Respectable Army: The Military Origins of the Republic, 1763 - 1789
Praise for the first edition:"A Respectable Army is an important book for several reasons. It reminds one once again of Washington's contributions to the nation in the 'new modeling' of the army and more particularly in the establishment of a tradition of civil over military authority. It rejects the historical mythology of a patriotic soldiery and demonstrates that, ironically, it was the unpriveleged classes who fought to preserve the liberties of all citizens. Finally, it compresses the 'new' military history into a compact, readable volume and thereby makes current scholarship accessible to a wide audience." (The North Carolina Historical Review, 1983)"Clear in organization and style... Provocative reading, it should especially appeal to instructors anxious to engender classroom discussion." (The History Teacher, Spring 1983)"[James Kirby Martin and Mark Edward Lender] have done their job well. Founded on a close reading of the most recent litrerature,A Respectable Armyoffers a cogent narrative of the social, political, and intellectual developments that shaped the Revolutionary military establishment as well as a fair-minded assessment of current historiographical controversies." (Journal of Southern History, February 1984)