Iron Tears: America’s Battle for Freedom, Britain’s Quagmire:
1775–1783 by Stanley Weintraub Free Press, 375 pp., $28.00
Picture the following situation. The greatest power in the world
is confronted with an insurgency thousands of miles away, which
it expects to put down quickly and easily. It sends a large army
to deal with the insurgents, but counts on many loyal supporters
to flock to its standard. Recruiting soldiers, however, is
difficult, and since the great power cannot enlist enough of its
own troops to deal with the situation, it has to hire thousands
of mercenaries. It occupies the remote land, sends increasing
numbers of soldiers, spends enormous amounts of money, and
suffers more and more casualties, all of which arouses a good
deal of criticism at home. The hawkish cabinet minister in
charge of the war remains confident and vainly tries to
micromanage the war an ocean away. But finally the great power
is unable to put an end to the insurgency. It carries on for
many long years until its politica