Sir John Fortescue holds a pre-eminent place amongst British military historians, his enduring fame and legacy resting mainly on his life's work "The History of the British Army", According to Professor Brian Bond, the work was "the product of indefatigable research in original documents, a determination to present a clear, accurate, and readable narrative of military operations, and a close personal knowledge of the battlefields, which enabled him to elucidate his account with excellent maps. Most important, however, was his motivation: namely, a lifelong affection for the old, long-service, pre-Cardwell army, the spirit of the regiments of which it largely consisted, and the value of its traditions to the nation. An important part of his task was to distil and inculcate these soldierly virtues which, in his conservative view, contrasted sharply with the unedifying character of politicians who habitually meddled in military matters." ODNB. This third volume covers the period from 1763-1793, the European Powers fought each other via proxy but great vigour in North America and India. The British Army would have great success in India under military leaders of the calibre of Abercromby, Cornwallis and Warren Hastings. however the loss of the American Revolutionary War, gained for the Americans their Independence and the British troops, hamstrung by political foolishness, a humbling defeat

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