In 1775 General George Washington.secretly armed a handful of small ships and.sent them to sea against the world�s.mightiest navy .From the author of the critically acclaimedBenedict.Arnold�s Navy, here is the story of how America�s first.commander-in-chief--whose previous military experience.had been entirely on land--nursed the fledgling.American Revolution through a season of stalemate by.sending troops to sea. Mining previously overlooked.sources, James L. Nelson�s swiftly moving narrative.shows that George Washington deliberately withheld.knowledge of his tiny navy from the Continental.Congress for more than two critical months, and that.he did so precisely because he knew Congress would.not approve.