David McCullough, Part One

America at 250: Part One of a 2005 conversation as Wayne Shepherd talks with historian David McCullough about the events surrounding George Washington in 1776.  (click for more...)  

Website:  www.simonandschuster.com/p/david-mccullough

As we approach July 4th and the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, in this 2005 interview noted historian David McCullough discusses his book 1776, focusing on George Washington and the desperate, pivotal year of the Revolutionary War. He emphasizes how close the Patriots came to losing — particularly during the disastrous Battle of Brooklyn — and how a providential fog allowed Washington's army to escape across the East River at night, an event he calls the most representative moment of the war's "thinnest of lines." McCullough explores how 18th-century Americans interpreted such events as the hand of God working for or against them, citing letters from Abigail Adams and contemporary newspapers. He also describes the ragged, undisciplined nature of the Continental Army, Washington's ability to recognize talent in inexperienced officers like Nathanael Greene and Henry Knox, and the eventual betrayal by his trusted aide Joseph Reed (to be covered in part two). The episode closes by noting McCullough's death in 2022 and previewing next week's continuation of the conversation.

                           NEXT WEEK:  Part two with David McCullough

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