Revolutionary War historians and biographers of Charles Lee have
treated him as either an inveterate enemy of George Washington or a
great defender of American liberty. Neither approach is accurate
argues author Christian McBurney, who stresses that in order to
fully understand the war's most complicated general, objectivity is
required. His new book, George Washington's Nemesis: The Outrageous
Treason and Unfair Courtmartial of Major General Charles Lee during
the American Revolution, relies on original documents (some newly
discovered) to combine two dramatic stories involving the military
law of treason and court-martials, creating a balanced view of the
Revolution's most fascinating personality. General Lee, second in
command in the Continental Army led by George Washington, was
captured by the British in December 1776. While a prisoner, he
prepared and submitted to his captors a military plan on how to
defeat Washington's army as quickly as possible. This extraordinary
act of treason, arguably on a par with Benedict Arnold's heinous
treachery, was not discovered during his lifetime. Many historians
shrug off this ignoble act, but it should not be ignored. Less well
known is that throughout his sixteen months of captivity and even
after his release, Lee continued communicating with the enemy,
offering to help negotiate an end to the rebellion. After Lee
rejoined the Continental Army, he was given command of many of its
best troops with orders from Washington to attack the rear of
British General Henry Clinton's column near Monmouth, New Jersey.
Lee intended to attack on June 28, 1778, but retreated in the face
of Clinton's bold move to reverse his march. Two of Lee's
subordinate generals-without orders and without informing Lee-moved
more than half of his command off the field. Faced with the
possible destruction of the balance, Lee ordered a general retreat
while conducting a skillful delaying action. Many historians have
been quick to malign Lee's performance at Monmouth, for which he
was convicted by court-martial for not attacking and for retreating
in the face of the enemy. This was a miscarriage of justice,
stresses McBurney, for the evidence clearly shows that Lee was
unfairly convicted and had, in fact, by retreating, performed an
important service to the Patriot cause. The guilty verdict was more
the result of Lee's having insulted Washington, which made the
matter a political contest between the army's two top generals-only
one of them could prevail. McBurney's objective pen makes George
Washington's Nemesis a gripping, fast-paced study that relies upon
facts, logic, and hard evidence to set the historical record
straight.
General
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