Casimir Pulaski: A Hero of the American Revolution

A veteran of Poland's struggle for independence from Russia, Count Pulaski (1747-1779) fought in the American Revolution out of a love of liberty and a desire for fame. Syzmanski, a California freelance writer, makes much of Pulaski's role as ``father of the American cavalry,'' even though his elaborate and intelligent regulations were never put into effect. Starved for troops, equipment and money, the Continental army's cavalry remained a military stepchild. Szymanski's biography presents a story of countless petty frustrations culminating in Pulaski's death, not in a heroic mounted charge but in attempting to rally a futile infantry attack against the British fortifications of Savannah. The book is poorly edited. Pulaski himself never clearly emerges from the lengthy reproductions of documents on obscure details of his career. Nor are his achievements and failures placed in the war's wider context. Even specialists in military history and the Revolutionary War will find the book disappointing. (Mar.)