This book offers the first full-scale analysis of the Pequot War (1636-37), a pivotal event in New England colonial history. Through an innovative rereading of the Puritan sources, Alfred A. Cave refutes claims that settlers acted defensively to counter a Pequot conspiracy to exterminate Europeans. Drawing on archaeological, linguistic, and anthropological evidences to trace the evolution of the conflict, he sheds new light on the motivations of the Pequots and their Indian allies. He also provides a reappraisal of the interaction of ideology and self- interest as motivating factors in the Puritan attack on the Pequots.

Alfred A. Cave is professor of history at the University of Toledo. His previous publications include Jacksonian Democracy and the Historians.

"A masterful analysis of events and beliefs that led up to the Pequot War."—Boston Sunday Globe

"Engrossing as it is comprehensive, Cave's narrative repeatedly brings careful scholarship and penetrating insight to areas of controversy. Its breadth, depth, and readability make this the definitive study of a relatively small war that shaped the mythology of the conquest of America."—New England Quarterly

"This well-researched, finely written book . . . provides a solid narrative of events surrounding the war and offers a thoughtful argument that challenges many existing interpretations."—Choice

"Cave's scholarship is impeccable. He is able, through the Pequot War, to illuminate both the culture of the English colonies and the varied Native American cultures of the region. The work is engrossing."—Barry O'Connell, editor, On Our Own Ground: The Complete Writings of William Apess, a Pequot (University of Massachusetts Press, 1992)