Becoming German tells the intriguing story of the largest and earliest mass movement of German-speaking immigrants to America. The so-called Palatine migration of 1709 began in the western part of the Holy Roman Empire, where perhaps as many as thirty thousand people left their homes, lured by rumors that Britain's Queen Anne would give them free passage overseas and land in America. They journeyed down the Rhine and eventually made their way to London, where they settled in refugee camps. The rumors of free passage and land proved false, but, in an attempt to clear the camps, the British government finally agreed to send about three thousand of the immigrants to New York in exchange for several years of labor. After their arrival, the Palatines refused to work as indentured servants and eventually settled in autonomous German communities near the Iroquois of central New York.Becoming German tracks the Palatines' travels from Germany to London to New York City and into the frontier areas of New York. Philip Otterness demonstrates that the Palatines cannot be viewed as a cohesive "German" group until after their arrival in America; indeed, they came from dozens of distinct principalities in the Holy Roman Empire. It was only in refusing to assimilate to British colonial culture-instead maintaining separate German-speaking communities and mixing on friendly terms with Native American neighbors-that the Palatines became German in America.

"At her father's command, Annaliese flees as fast as her five-year-old legs can take her. Clutching her only possession, a corn-husk doll, she watches as her thatched-roof home, mother, father, and newborn brother are consumed by flames, pillaged at the hands of the French Ancien Régime.

Found and adopted by a sympathetic family that survives the same raid, Annaliese grows into a young woman, marries, and bears children. She and her family are repeatedly driven from their land and home as they try to escape religious persecution and poverty wrought by Louis XIV, who is feverishly pursuing political and religious dominance in Europe. Ultimately displaced by the raging wars, Annaliese joins thousands of others in the Blackheath Refugee Camp in England, awaiting word of her destiny from the benevolent Queen Anne.

Piecing together three generations of sparsely documented European history, Walrabenstein is a richly detailed and moving story of the Walrabe family's plight and flight for survival, from their rich farms and vineyards of the Rhineland, through their harrowing migration with fifty thousand other German, Swiss, and French nationals. Only when the Queen quietly charters ships to colonies in the New World does Annaliese find refuge and peace. "

Hunter combines 19th century craftsmanship with 21st century design and technology to create ceiling fans of unmatched quality, style, and whisper-quiet performance. Using the finest materials to create stylish designs, Hunter ceiling fans work beautifully in todays homes and can save up to 47% on cooling costs!