AR-SP45 War Without Mercy, with Mark Lender

 Our American Revolution welcomed special guest, Mark Lender , author of War Without Mercy, which challenges the "benign" narrative of the American Revolution by highlighting the extreme brutality and localized violence that the war evoked.

The Concept of Existential Warfare

Lender and his co-author, James Kirby Martin, argue that the American Revolution was an "existential war". Drawing on definitions from military think tanks, they describe this as a struggle for existence itself—as a nation, a people, and as individuals—rather than just status or territory. Because the stakes were so high, the combat often devolved into unlimited ferocity with no room for negotiation or middle ground.

The Breakdown of the "Rules of War"

The sources explain that while European enlightenment philosophers like Emer de Vattel had established rules for "civilized warfare," these often failed during the Revolution.

• Rebel Status: The British often viewed Americans as treasonous rebels rather than legitimate soldiers, justifying brutal suppression similar to their treatment of the Jacobite rebellion of 1745.
• Blurring Lines: The distinction between soldier and civilian evaporated, especially in areas far from the oversight of senior military commanders.
• Cycles of Retaliation: At the local level, particularly in "neutral grounds" like Bergen County, New Jersey, the war became a private cycle of revenge and hanging contests between neighbors.

Group and Regional Experiences

The conversation highlights that the war was not equally violent in all areas but was particularly fierce in "contested" zones like New Jersey and the South.

• Native Americans: Tribal nations like the Iroquois and Cherokee fought their own existential wars for cultural survival. The Americans responded with "wars of annihilation," such as the Sullivan expedition, which sought to destroy the Indians' ability to sustain themselves by burning their villages and crops.
• Loyalists: Following the Declaration of Independence, Patriots rebranded Loyalists as rebels, justifying the confiscation of their property and their exile. Lender notes that one in 40 Americans went into exile, a higher proportion than during the French Revolution.

Questions

Participants asked about whether civil wars were inherently more brutal than wars against a foreign country, about how widespread the violence was throughout the country, why prisoners of war were treated so harshly, and about the leadership abilities of Nathanael Greene and Benedict Arnold.

Resources

Get the book War Without Mercy, also available as an audio book or on Kindle.

Learn more about author Mark Edward Lender at his website: markedwardlender.com

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