ALAN PELL CRAWFORD'S THIS FIERCE PEOPLE, EXPLORING REVOLUTIONARY WAR'S SOUTHERN CAMPAIGNS, WINS AMERICAN BATTLEFIELD TRUST PRIZE FOR HISTORY

Nomination window now open for military history books published in 2025 to be considered for next year's $50,000 prize

WASHINGTON, Oct. 16, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The $50,000 American Battlefield Trust Prize for History has been awarded to historian Alan Pell Crawford for This Fierce People: The Untold Story of America's Revolutionary War in the South, a timely work that humanizes stories amid that conflict's 250th anniversary. The prize underscores the irreplaceable perspective and primary research value of preserving the battlefields of the conflicts that forged our nation, which we continue to learn from today.

Crawford's work was selected from dozens of entries from 15 distinct publishers for the prize.

"It is hard to imagine a work of historical research more aligned with the Trust mission," said Trust President David Duncan. "The Revolutionary War battlefields across the Carolinas and Georgia showcase incredibly powerful and compelling stories and represent some of our greatest successes in the ongoing preservation and interpretation related to our fight for independence."

In accepting the prize, Crawford said, "This recognition from the American Battlefield Trust amid the 250th anniversary of the Revolutionary War is a tremendous honor. The battlefields of the Southern Campaigns are powerful places where both scholars and the rest of us can draw profound insights into our common history, and it is a privilege to have played some part in telling those stories."

The award will be presented at the Trust's inaugural Battlefield BookFest, to be held in Gettysburg, Pa., November 14-15. Fellow book prize finalists Patrick O'Donnell (The Unvanquished: The Untold Story of Lincoln's Special Forces, the Manhunt for Mosby's Rangers, and the Shadow War That Forged America's Special Operations) and Andrew Waters (Backcountry War: Rise of Francis Marion, Banastre Tarleton, Thomas Sumter) will join Crawford in speaking and a book signing, along with a slate of legendary public historians and writers including William Frassanito, Dennis Frey, A. Wilson Greene, Scott Hartwig, Carol Reardon and others. Tickets are available for purchase on the Trust's website. 

Other finalists this year included: Erik Larson's The Demon of Unrest (Crown Publishing); Timothy Smith's The Inland Campaign for Vicksburg: Five Battles in Seventeen Days, May 1-17, 1863 (Kansas University Press); and Alan Taylor's American Civil Wars: A Continental History (W.W. Norton & Company).

The nomination window for the 2026 Prize for History is now open, with publishers invited to submit through December 31. Qualifying works must have been published in the preceding calendar year and focus on history or biography related to the three conflicts that are central to the Trust's mission: the Revolutionary War, War of 1812 and the Civil War. Nominations are narrowed to a field of finalists by an initial selection committee and then evaluated by a judging committee made up of renowned historians. Full details on criteria and submission procedures are available at www.battlefields.org/bookprize.

The Prize, endowed by a generous donor to ensure no funds are diverted from the Trust's primary mission, recognizes an outstanding published work focused on military history or a biography central to the nation's formative conflicts: the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812 and the Civil War. The Trust has protected more than 60,000 acres at 160-plus sites related to these wars since its founding — but many more remain threatened.

For more information on the prize, including past honorees, please visit www.battlefields.org/bookprize.

The American Battlefield Trust is dedicated to preserving America's hallowed battlegrounds and educating the public about what happened there and why it matters today. The nonprofit, nonpartisan organization has protected nearly 60,000 acres associated with the Revolutionary War, War of 1812, and Civil War across 160 sites in 25 states. Learn more at www.battlefields.org.

(Publishers inquiring about submission guidelines and official rules may email  [email protected] .)

SOURCE American Battlefield Trust