From early setbacks to hard-won victories, this conversation—paired with a special clip screening—explores how the American Revolution was fought on the ground, led from the top, and sustained through extraordinary sacrifice. 

Ranging from battlefield tactics to command decisions and the lived realities of revolutionary warfare, the discussion examines how a fragile, makeshift Continental Army managed to defeat the most powerful empire on earth.

Ken Burns is joined by four-star General (Ret.) Stanley McChrystal, and Rick Atkinson, bestselling author and historian, for a wide-ranging look at strategy, leadership, and the improbable path to American independence.