William Tryon's role in the affairs of British America during the last
years of the empire, and his inability to stem the collapse of that
empire, makes for a fascinating story. Royal governor of North Carolina
from 1765 to 1771 and then of New York from 1771 to 1780, Tryon became a
general in the British army attempting to quell the American rebellion.
This biography covers his life in service to the Crown through the end
of the American Revolution.
Paul Nelson argues that Tryon was a talented colonial administrator and
a successful, even popular, governor largely because he understood
American thinking on such basic constitutional issues as taxation,
finance, and trade policy. British home authorities failed to follow
Tryon's sage counsel regarding the governance of the colonies, advice
that might have forestalled the Revolution. In particular, Tryon, like
Edmund Burke and others in Parliament, could not convince British
ministers that Americans would never accept internal taxes imposed upon
them by London.
Once the war broke out and Tryon's role changed from governing to
leading Loyalist American troops, he was an advocate of harsh,
retributive warfare against his former charges. Nelson follows Tryon's
military career, especially his debates with colleagues such as Sir
Henry Clinton on the wisdom of hard-line versus conciliatory approach to
the fighting. And after the war, Nelson shows, Tryon's connections with
those unfortunate Americans who came out on the losing side of the great
imperial struggle retained an important place in his life.
An exciting drama in its own right, Tryon's story also serves to
illuminate a number of issues important to historians of the
Revolutionary War. Played out on two continents and in two important
American colonies, amid the stirring events that resulted in the
formation of the United States of America, Tryon's life is significant
for understanding many aspects of politics and society in the
Anglo-American world of the eighteenth century.
Originally published in 1990.
A UNC Press Enduring Edition -- UNC Press Enduring Editions use the
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