You've whetted my appetite for the next essays in this series. I didn't think I was going to read this, but once in I found myself captured. I've always liked history, and your writing reminds me why.
It was a secession not a revolution. The Founders started out wanting the traditional rights of Englishmen and only declared independence when they figured out they couldn't get them within the confines of the British Empire. In other words, it followed in the path of every other secession in history and created some new models in the process. All colonial struggles are secessionist in nature.
Yeah, America in 1830 was a lot different than Britain in 1630 or 1730 but so was Britain. Intervening factor was a real revolution-the Industrial Revolution which profoundly changed every place it touched.
I'm using revolution in a slightly different sense. I'm not using the term in the same sense as the English or French revolutions. I'll be trying to lay out the sense in which I am using the term in the essays to follow in the next couple of months.
Look forward to that. Got that you were talking outcomes.
For my part I am talking about secession. Americans are obsessed with 1861 but there were other movements, notably New England during the War of 1812, not to mention hundreds more all over the world.
Nonsense. The English government never said anything like "all men are created equal." And Jefferson changed Locke's "pursuit of property" into the "pursuit of happiness." Secession itself is anti-English, since their trademark was uniting kingdoms, not dividing them.
I first have to say your essay is very well written and one I enjoyed reading. History is a passion of mine and I appreciate finding your Substack from a Note. Going to have to read more of your writing starting with this series and the linked essays you have in this one. So, a new subscriber gained.
Very interesting content, thanks. I would love to read more about your thoughts on the French Revolution and how it compares to the American, especially since there’s an interpretation that tries to paint the American Revolution as conservative, non-idealistic, and non-radical.
The Puritans are quite often given a bad rap. They are highly misunderstood these days; I would recommend, if you haven't already done so, studying them on their own terms.
Thanks, Adrian. The good news is that I have been studying the Puritans for quite some time and have written a long essay on them as a chapter for my next book.
Also not so sure that the Founding left behind quite as much of the Puritans as you claim. For example, a defining characteristic of conservatism and of most of the Founding Fathers is a belief in the inherent badness of people, not inherent goodness. That comes from the Bible, ultimately, but the Puritans definitely believed it.
I have been reading all your posted essays, after now reading your book, America’s Revolutionary Mind. I loved your book (I listened to it on Audible) but I can’t get past how similar your ideas are to Ayn Rand’s. Do you credit her writings for any of your scholarship or for being a catalyst for your writings?
You've whetted my appetite for the next essays in this series. I didn't think I was going to read this, but once in I found myself captured. I've always liked history, and your writing reminds me why.
It was a secession not a revolution. The Founders started out wanting the traditional rights of Englishmen and only declared independence when they figured out they couldn't get them within the confines of the British Empire. In other words, it followed in the path of every other secession in history and created some new models in the process. All colonial struggles are secessionist in nature.
Yeah, America in 1830 was a lot different than Britain in 1630 or 1730 but so was Britain. Intervening factor was a real revolution-the Industrial Revolution which profoundly changed every place it touched.
I'm using revolution in a slightly different sense. I'm not using the term in the same sense as the English or French revolutions. I'll be trying to lay out the sense in which I am using the term in the essays to follow in the next couple of months.
Look forward to that. Got that you were talking outcomes.
For my part I am talking about secession. Americans are obsessed with 1861 but there were other movements, notably New England during the War of 1812, not to mention hundreds more all over the world.
Nonsense. The English government never said anything like "all men are created equal." And Jefferson changed Locke's "pursuit of property" into the "pursuit of happiness." Secession itself is anti-English, since their trademark was uniting kingdoms, not dividing them.
I first have to say your essay is very well written and one I enjoyed reading. History is a passion of mine and I appreciate finding your Substack from a Note. Going to have to read more of your writing starting with this series and the linked essays you have in this one. So, a new subscriber gained.
Thanks, Eric. Welcome aboard.
Very interesting content, thanks. I would love to read more about your thoughts on the French Revolution and how it compares to the American, especially since there’s an interpretation that tries to paint the American Revolution as conservative, non-idealistic, and non-radical.
The Puritans are quite often given a bad rap. They are highly misunderstood these days; I would recommend, if you haven't already done so, studying them on their own terms.
Thanks, Adrian. The good news is that I have been studying the Puritans for quite some time and have written a long essay on them as a chapter for my next book.
Also not so sure that the Founding left behind quite as much of the Puritans as you claim. For example, a defining characteristic of conservatism and of most of the Founding Fathers is a belief in the inherent badness of people, not inherent goodness. That comes from the Bible, ultimately, but the Puritans definitely believed it.
I have been reading all your posted essays, after now reading your book, America’s Revolutionary Mind. I loved your book (I listened to it on Audible) but I can’t get past how similar your ideas are to Ayn Rand’s. Do you credit her writings for any of your scholarship or for being a catalyst for your writings?
Gordon Wood wrote an entire book on this idea titled "The Radicalism of the American Revolution."
My reaction was the same!