"It is with peculiar Pleasure . . . that the Commander in Chief can inform General Knox and the Officers of Artillery that the Enemy have done them the Justice to acknowledge that no Artillery could be better served than ours. --George Washington, General Orders for June 29, 1778, following the Battle of Monmouth
Background Reading
eBook Chapters
Birkhimer, William Edward. (1884). Organization-Generally. Historical Sketch of the Organization, Administration, Material and Tactics of the Artillery, United States Army, (pp. 1-67). Washington DC: James J. Chapman
Dastrup, Boyd L. (1992). Birth Pains: 1775-1783. King of Battle: A Branch History of the U.S. Army's Field Artillery (pp. 1-34). Virginia: United States Army Training and Doctrine Command.
McKenney, Janice E. (2007). The Beginnings. The Organizational History of Field Artillery 1775-2003, (pp. 3-11). Washington DC: Center of Military History.
U.S. Army Field Artillery School. (1984). Revolutionary War. Right of the Line: A History of the American Field Artillery. Fort Sill: U.S. Army Field Artillery School.
Fisher, George J.B. (1934). "Father Knox". Fort Sill: The Field Artillery School.
Print Sources
Brooks, Noah. (1974). Henry Knox, A Soldier of the Revolution: Major-General in the Continental Army, Washington's Chief of Artillery. NY: Da Capo.
Callahan, North. (1958). Henry Knox: General Washington's General. NY: Rinehart.
Puls, Mark. (2010). Henry Knox: Visionary General of the American Revolution. NY: Palgrave Macmillan.
Quotes
"I have had many forty two exceedingly strong sleds & have provided eighty yoke of oxen to drag them as far as Springfield where I shall get fresh cattle to carry them from here to Albany or Kinderhook but on sleds the roads being very gullied- at present the sledding is tolerable to Saratoga about 26 miles; beyond that there is none- I have sent for sleds & teams to come here & expect to begin moving them to Saratoga on Wednesday or Thursday next trusting that between this & then we shall have a fine fall of snow which will enable us to proceed further & make the carriage easy- If that should be the case I hope in 16 or 17 days to be able to present your Excellency a noble train off artillery".
--Diary of Henry Knox, Fort George, December 17, 1775 [To General Washington]
"One of the most impressive developments in the Continental Army was the creation of the artillery arm. Not even in existence at the beginning of the war, this branch of service grew to a point where big guns became the decisive factor in the Yorktown campaign...Henry Knox was the person primarily responsible for this amazing expansion."
--North Callahan, George Washington's Generals and Opponents: Their Exploits and Leadership. 1944.
General Lafayette, who had come to regard himself as an American, enthusiastically shouted above the din, "We fire faster than the French. Upon my honor I speak the truth. American artillery- one of the wonders of the Revolution"
--Fairfax Downey, The Sound of Guns: The Story of American Artillery from the Ancient and Honorable Company to the Atom Cannon and Guided Missile, NY: David MacKay Company, Inc. 1955.
"General Knox, who has deservedly acquired the Character of One of the most valuable Officers in the Service, and who, combating almost innumerable difficulties in the department he fills, has placed Artillery upon a footing, that does him the greatest Honor".
--George Washington, letter to Continental Congress, May 31, 1777
As the library does not have many primary sources on the Revolutionary War, this library guide provides supplemental information to support you in your research. Please contact us if you need further assistance or have any questions.
Artillery in the American Revolution
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Select Bibliography
Print Sources
Downey, Faifax. (1966). Cannonade: Great Artillery Actions of History the Famous Cannons and the Master Gunners. NY: Doubleday & Company, Inc.
Downey, Fairfax. (1956). Sound of the Guns: The Story of American Artillery form the Ancient and Honorable Company to the Atom Cannon and Guided Missile. NY: David McKay Company, Inc.
Gooding, S. James. (1965). Introduction to British Artillery in North America. Ontario: Museum Restoration Service.
Hughes, B. P. (1969). British Smooth-Bore Artillery: The Muzzle Loading Artillery of the 18th and 19th Centuries. PA: Stackpole Books.
McAfee, Michael J. (1976). Artillery in the American Revolution. Washington American Defense Preparedness Association.
Peterson, Harold. (1969). Round Shot and Rammers. NY: Bonanza Books.
Robson, Eric. (1966). The American Revolution in Its Political and Military Aspects, 1763-1783. NY: W. W. Norton.
Chernow, Ron. Alexander Hamilton / Ron Chernow. NY: Penguin Press, 2004.
Kajencki, Francis. Thaddeus Kosciuszko:Military Engineer of the American Revolution. TX: Southwest Polonia Press, c1998.
Lockhart, Paul Douglas. The Drillmaster of Valley Forge: The Baron de Steuben and the Making of the American Artillery. Washington D.C.: Smithsonian Books; NY: Collins, 2008.
Wright, Robert K. The Continental Army.Washington D.C.: USA Center of Military History, 1983.
