Jack Tar vs. John Bull

Book excerpt: This classic study explores the role of merchant seamen in precipitating the American revolution. It analyzes the participation of seamen in impressment riots, the Stamp Act Riot, the Battle of Golden Hill, and other incidents. The book describes these events and explores the social world of the seamen, offering explanations for their actions. Focusing on the culture, politics, and experiences of early American seamen, this legendary study played an important role in the development of histories of the common people and has inspired generations of social and early American historians. Lemisch's later related article, Jack Tar in the Streets, was named one of the ten most important articles ever published in the prestigious William and Mary Quarterly. Long unavailable, this edition includes an index and an appreciative foreword by Marcus Rediker, author of Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea: Merchant Seamen, Pirates, and the Anglo-American Maritime World, 1700-1750 (Ph.D. Dissertation, Yale University, 1962)