pep. Includes index.

An assembly of the angry -- From ink to blood -- Undeclared independence -- Men at arms, 1775-1776 -- The balance of obstinacy, 1775-1776 -- Means and ends -- Toward independence, 1776 -- Independent, invaded, intractable -- Diplomatic dawn and military dusk -- The year the British might have won : 1777 -- Hard words and cold comfort, 1777-1778 -- Foreign entanglements and embraces, 1778 -- A maritime dimension added, 1778-1779 -- Backward at home, forward abroad, 1779-1780 -- The worst of times, 1780-1781 -- Of real estate and nationalism, 1780-1781 -- The long lane to Yorktown, 1780-1781 -- Free, sovereign, and independent states -- Independence won -- Why it came out as it did.