New Reviews of "Traitor's Homecoming"

A Definitive Study

I bought this from the publisher. Benedict Arnold's September 1781 raid on New London and Groton has generally gotten sparse attention because it occurred when more significant events were occurring to the south in Yorktown, Virginia. What attention it has been given is largely focused on the fact that the hated traitor Benedict Arnold was in command. Simply put, this book is a terrific and ground-breaking study of a military event in the AWI that has never gotten this level of detailed or eye-opening treatment. The fact that it has been turned out by a first-time author borders on astonishing. Without simply repeating what others have said - and I am in full agreement with them - it bears emphasis that the research in primary sources is prodigious. That includes accessing British military records at the National Archives in Kew and German/"Hessian" records at the museum in Marburg. The operational and tactical detail is impressive. Among many examples, as someone with a strong interest in field artillery I took note that the author has specified the calibers/types of the two guns in the Royal Artillery detachment that accompanied Arnold's raid. All too often this sort of information goes missing even in competent tactical narratives. One of the most important features of this book is its methodical and evidence-based undermining of the popular narrative that Arnold's troops committed atrocities after the surrender of Fort Griswold, which was across the water from New London. Taking advantage of American hatred for Arnold, Connecticut Governor Trumbull led a successful effort to convince the public that Arnold's troops had committed a "massacre" of American defenders after they had surrendered. Reardon has examined the actual evidence closely and shows that much of this was what can properly be labeled "propaganda". Another significant attribute of this book - and one which too often is minimized or missing altogether in military studies - is the several excellent and closely-detailed maps.

 The publisher made a wise decision to take this chance with a new author. I very enthusiastically recommend this book to any AWI enthusiast, and hope that we will see more from Reardon.

THE definitive history of the Battle of New London/Groton Heights

In the past decade, many battles of the Revolutionary War, after over two centuries of neglect, finally had the definitive books written about them. This happened with Brandywine and Germantown, Monmouth (Fatal Sunday) and now finally with Groton Heights/Fort Griswold/New London. The book covers not only in amazing detail the bloody Battle of Groton Heights, but the fighting in the town of New London itself, which I knew little about, as the other book written on the same event, Alamo of the Revolution, was almost entirely about Fort Griswold itself. There are many great maps in the book showing the stages of the battle and photos of the town and fort today which I now want to visit.