Admiral de Grasse and American Independence

by Charles Lee Lewis

The average American knows little or nothing of the great service rendered by Admiral de Grasse, a French admiral, to the cause of American independence in the battle off Cape Henry in 1781. The battle off Cape Henry had ultimate effects more important than those of Waterloo. De Grasse's action entailed upon the British the final loss of the thirteen colonies in America. This biography by Charles Lee Lewis places this supremely important naval battle off the Virginia Capes in its proper historical perspective, and gives de Grasse the full credit for rendering the aid which made possible the capture of Cornwallis at Yorktown. Washington fully recognized this aid, when he wrote to de Grasse following the surrender of Cornwallis and expressed his gratitude "in the name of America for the glorious event for which she is indebted to you." Without de Grasse's victory all the military efforts on land made by Rochambeau, Lafayette, and Washington would have been in vain. The battle off Cape Henry was only one of numerous battles fought by this dashing Gallic sea captain. Over fifty years of his long life, 1722-1788, were spent in the service of Louis XV and Louis XVI, in the Mediterranean, in India, on the North American coast, and in the West Indies. He fought in all the wars of his day, the War of the Austrian Succession, the Seven Years' War, and the War of the American Revolution which developed into a general European struggle.

404 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1945

About the author

Charles Lee Lewis was a prominent naval historian and a professor of English and history at the United States Naval Academy.

Reviews

[Jerome Otte · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent book on De Grasse, Lewis demonstrates an excellent grasp of the subject matter and the time period, and judging by the bibliography he has looked at basically all the available material on the subject, although at times it seems like Lewis is unable to determine which are really useful.

Lewis’s book is not really a biography: the admirals’ pre-war career gets about fifty pages or so, with the rest of the book focused on his role in the Chesapeake and Caribbean campaigns. he provides a good deal of information on the background and context, although this seems a little overdone at times and makes de Grasse seem like almost a secondary subject. Lewis also feels it necessary to describe the peace negotiations in Paris at length. While Lewis fails to really flesh out de Grasse, this might not be Lewis’s fault since the admiral was not as colorful a character as, say, George Rodney or Lafayette.

Curiously, Lewis blames Admiral Hood for being too eager to join Graves at New York---despite the fact that he was carrying out orders from Rodney. He also writes that Rodney’s fleet was too crippled to follow up the victory at the Saintes, but provides no real evidence. Lewis also assumes that the reader knows a good deal of French.