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    Sir William Howe: A Study In Failed Strategic Leadership
    Sir William Howe: A Study In Failed Strategic Leadership
    Sir William Howe: A Study In Failed Strategic Leadership
    Ebook57 pages39 minutes

    Sir William Howe: A Study In Failed Strategic Leadership

    By Colonel Brian Joseph McHugh

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    About this ebook

    This paper examines the strategic leadership competencies of British General William Howe during the American Revolution (1775-1778). During the American War of Independence, General Howe displayed periodic tactical brilliance and operational competence but consistent strategic ineptitude. After arriving in America, Howe was quickly thrust into the position of Commander-in-Chief of British Forces and General of North America. Howe’s lack of self-awareness, ineptness in managing the personalities of his subordinate commanders, personal biases, and lack of political savvy resulted in the strategic failure of the British war effort. Howe’s difficulty in transitioning from tactical, through operational to the strategic level provides a useful example as to the dramatically different challenges faced by current leaders as they prepare for and address similar challenges in our contemporary operational and strategic environment.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherGolden Springs Publishing
    Release dateAug 15, 2014
    ISBN9781782897606
    Sir William Howe: A Study In Failed Strategic Leadership

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    • 4/5
      I had problems with the technical side of this work in the beginning but the middle and latter part more than made up for it and gives a concise and intelligent look at the missteps made the the British C-in-C during the American Revolution.
    • 4/5
      A bit repetitive but provided a different perspective than most books about the American Revolution. It's interesting to see a modern military leader's insight into how and why General Howe failed.

    Book preview

    Sir William Howe - Colonel Brian Joseph McHugh

    This edition is published by PICKLE PARTNERS PUBLISHING—www.picklepartnerspublishing.com

    To join our mailing list for new titles or for issues with our books – picklepublishing@gmail.com

    Or on Facebook

    Text originally published in 2013 under the same title.

    © Pickle Partners Publishing 2014, all rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted by any means, electrical, mechanical or otherwise without the written permission of the copyright holder.

    Publisher’s Note

    Although in most cases we have retained the Author’s original spelling and grammar to authentically reproduce the work of the Author and the original intent of such material, some additional notes and clarifications have been added for the modern reader’s benefit.

    We have also made every effort to include all maps and illustrations of the original edition the limitations of formatting do not allow of including larger maps, we will upload as many of these maps as possible.

    Sir William Howe: A Study in Failed Strategic Leadership

    by

    Colonel Brian Joseph McHugh United States Army

    TABLE OF CONTENTS

    Contents

    TABLE OF CONTENTS 4

    ABSTRACT 5

    Strategic Leadership Competencies 7

    Conceptual Competencies: 8

    Technical Competencies 8

    Interpersonal Competencies 9

    William Howe’s Developmental Years 9

    General Howe, British CinC During the Revolution (1775-1778) 12

    Howe’s Two Years of Strategic Leadership Flaws Analyzed 22

    General Howe Post-Revolution 27

    Conclusion 27

    REQUEST FROM THE PUBLISHER 30

    ABSTRACT

    This paper examines the strategic leadership competencies of British General William Howe during the American Revolution (1775-1778). During the American War of Independence, General Howe displayed periodic tactical brilliance and operational competence but consistent strategic ineptitude. After arriving in America, Howe was quickly thrust into the position of Commander-in-Chief of British Forces and General of North America. Howe’s lack of self-awareness, ineptness in managing the personalities of his subordinate commanders, personal biases, and lack of political savvy resulted in the strategic failure of the British war effort. Howe’s difficulty in transitioning from tactical, through operational to the strategic level provides a useful example as to the dramatically different challenges faced by current leaders as they prepare for and address similar challenges in our contemporary operational and strategic environment.

    SIR WILLIAM HOWE: A STUDY IN FAILED STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP

    The arrival of Major General William Howe to America in May of 1775 marked a pivotal point of the American Revolution. In Howe, Great Britain had the commander it wanted on the ground. Howe represented the cream of the British Army, an officer garnered in laurels from previous campaigns; he was considered the best and most experienced commander that the Army had to offer.{1} The heir apparent to General Thomas Gage, the belief amongst the circles of power in Britain was that Howe, an exceptional leader at the tactical and operational level, would continue his successful performance and bring the colonies back into the fold before the end of 1776. Unfortunately, Howe would fall far short of these expectations. Instead, he botched the Revolution for the two years he commanded British Forces. At the end of this period he resigned his command and returned to Great Britain, his reputation severely diminished and the Revolutionary cause in a better position than it had been before his arrival.

    What happened? How did the Crown’s hand-picked General, provided with the largest military force that Great Britain had ever deployed overseas, fail to prosecute a successful war against an unprofessional rabble of farmers, blacksmiths, and tradesmen? This paper examines this question through the lens of strategic leadership offering that it was General Howe’s failure to understand and adapt to the unique strategic

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