The Eggnog Riot of 1826
Most Infamous Night in West Point History Told by Those Who Were There
Gallons of smuggled liquor. A bribed sentry. Buckets of eggnog. Cadets wielding pistols and swords. The wildest night in West Point history!
On Christmas Eve 1826, cadets at the United States Military Academy decided that a ban on holiday drinking was more of a suggestion. Fueled by booze, they turned their barracks into a madhouse. They attacked officers, and each other, broke windows, and ran through the hallways with all manner of weapons.
In January 1827, a Court of Inquiry set out to untangle who drank what and who threw which club. This book presents that Court of Inquiry in full for the first time, transcribed and annotated by geographer Jon Malinowski from the handwritten original in the National Archives.
Extras include included:
An extensive minute-by-minute timeline of the riot in the cadets' own words written by the editor
A guide to the drinks, from eggnog to tiff
A catalog of the weapons and violence perpetrated
A portrait of West Point in 1826, with period maps
Nothing here is invented. Every ruckus and excuse comes straight from the record. For fans of West Point, military, or obscure history, this book is a must.