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Key episodes of the Revolution illustrate how the Founders dealt with thorny wartime issues: How do we protect citizens’ rights when the nation is struggling to defend itself? Who decides war strategy? When should we use military tribunals instead of civilian trials? Should we inflict harsh treatment on enemy captives if it means saving American lives? Beirne finds evidence in previously unexplored documents such as General Washington’s letters weighing the use of torture, an eyewitness account of the military tribunal that executed a British prisoner, Founders’ letters warning against government debt, and communications pointing to a power struggle between Washington and the Continental Congress.
Vivid stories from the Revolution set the stage for Washington’s pivotal role in the drafting of the Constitution. The Founders saw the first American commander in chief as the template for all future presidents: a leader who would fiercely defend Americans’ rights and liberties against all forms of aggression.
Pulling the reader directly into dramatic scenes from history, Blood of Tyrants fills a void in our understanding of the presidency and our ingenious Founders’ pragmatic approach to issues we still face today.
Gripping. Relevant. Revolutionary. This page-turning historical thriller is packed with fresh factual narratives that draw the reader into the scenes to show how the United States earned its stripes. The wisdom of 1776 was never more crucial than today.
—Amy Chua, Yale Law School professor and best-selling author of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother
A fresh and stimulating history of the American Revolution . . .
—James McPherson, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Battle Cry of Freedom
[T]here is almost no tale told of the Revolution that does not find its way into Blood of Tyrants, provided it is juicy enough.
—Wall Street Journal
A timely, insightful, and much-needed reminder why America does best at war when it honors rather than erodes its founding principles.
—Victor Davis Hanson, senior fellow in classics and military history at the Hoover Institution and author of A War Like No Other
[A] fresh new perspective . . . . Beirne’s genealogical and personal interest in history, politics and the military makes for an enjoyable read.
—Washington Times
Blood of Tyrants strips away the fantasy and lays bare the violence and political intrigue needed for the American Revolution to succeed. Lurid, horrifying, scandalous. I could not put it down.
—William Eskridge Jr., Yale Law School professor and author of Republic of Statutes
In this fast-paced narrative, Logan Beirne vividly explains something every American should know, but which few of us really understand.
—Jack Rakove, Stanford University professor and Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Original Meanings: Politics and Ideas in the Making of the Constitution
Anyone interested in the original meaning of the Constitution, or America’s revolutionary struggle generally, should read this riveting and informative account.
—Weekly Standard
Those who want an unvarnished account of how a great leader handled nasty and messy problems of war: prepare to be hocked, amazed, and educated.
—Hon. Michael W. McConnell, Stanford Law School professor, director of the Stanford Constitutional Law Center, and former federal judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
There was more to the founders than noble sentiments and fine words—they were revolutionaries, who fought for and won America’s freedom on bloody battlefields. Blood of Tyrants tells this gritty story smartly and compellingly—and plumbs it for practical lessons for the toughest issues of our times.
—Adam Cohen, research scholar at Yale Law School and author of Nothing to Fear: FDR’s Inner Circle
and the Hundred Days That Created America
Beirne’s narrative pulls the reader directly into the scenes, filling the void in our understanding of the presidency and our ingenious Founders’ pragmatic approach to issues we still face today.
—Huntington News
Future roads of national promise rest on proven paths of the past. Colby Award winner, Logan Beirne, points us on our way by strikingly using Washington’s guideposts. Tomorrow is yesterday.
—John Borling, Major General (Ret.), U.S. Air Force, 6.5-year POW in Hanoi, and author of Taps on the Walls