Ordinary Courage: The Revolutionary War Adventures of Joseph Plumb Martin, 4th Edition

First published in 1830, this classic memoir of the American Revolutionary War relates events from the perspective of patriots who endured the hardships of long-term service in Washington's army during the period 1776-1783. Martin himself joined the continental army in 1776 at the age of 15 and endured all the horrors of war, including killer diseases, starvation, brutal weather, and bloody combat. This updated fourth edition has once more been overseen by the celebrated scholar of US history, James Kirby Martin, who has trimmed the repetitions of the original, updated spelling and punctuation, added explanatory notes and augmented the bibliography. The book now also includes a new Afterword by Karen Guenther on movie portrayals of revolutionary-era soldiers.

Martin’s memoir clearly demonstrates that the history made and recorded by ordinary people is just as compelling as that of the few famous leaders who traditionally dominate the historical limelight. Told with humor, frankness, and pathos, the work is a key primary document of the period and makes thought-provoking reading for today's college students.