The crowded hour : Theodore Roosevelt, the Rough Riders, and the dawn of the American century

Author

Clay Risen

Call Number

• 973.89 R5953 (CEN)

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Edition

First Scribner hardcover edition.

Publication Information

New York : Scribner, 2019.

Physical Description

x, 355 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm

Summary

When America declared war on Spain in 1898, the US Army had just 26,000 men, spread around the country--hardly an army at all. In desperation, the Rough Riders were born. A unique group of volunteers, ranging from Ivy League athletes to Arizona cowboys and led by Theodore Roosevelt, they helped secure victory in Cuba in a series of gripping, bloody fights across the island. Roosevelt called their charge in the Battle of San Juan Hill his "crowded hour"--a turning point in his life, one that led directly to the White House. "The instant I received the order," wrote Roosevelt, "I sprang on my horse and then my 'crowded hour' began." As The Crowded Hour reveals, it was a turning point for America as well, uniting the country and ushering in a new era of global power. Both a portrait of these men, few of whom were traditional soldiers, and of the Spanish-American War itself, The Crowded Hour dives deep into the daily lives and struggles of Roosevelt and his regiment. Using diaries, letters, and memoirs, Risen illuminates a disproportionately influential moment in American history: a war of only six months' time that dramatically altered the United States' standing in the world. In this enlightening narrative, the Rough Riders--and a country on the brink of a new global dominance--are brought fully and gloriously to life.