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The Birth of the Republic, 1763-89 (The Chicago History of American Civilization)
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Product Description
colonies were transformed into a nation. Edmund S. Morgan's
classic account of the Revolutionary period shows how the
challenge of British taxation started the Americans on a
search for constitutional principles to protect their
freedom and eventually led to the Revolution.
Morgan demonstrates that these principles were not
abstract doctrines of political theory but grew instead out
of the immediate needs and experiences of the colonists.
They were held with passionate conviction, and incorporated,
finally, into the constitutions of the new American states
and of the United States.
Though the basic theme of the book and his assessment
of what the Revolution achieved remain the same, Morgan has
updated the revised edition of The Birth of the
Republic (1977) to include some textual and stylistic
changes as well as a substantial revision of the
Bibliographic Note.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #8517 in Books
- Published on: 1993-02-01
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Binding: Paperback
- 224 pages
Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Edward S. Morgan is Sterling Professor of History Emeritus at Yale University and past president of the Organization of American Historians. His many books include The Puritan Family: Religion and Domestic Relations in Seventeenth-Century New England; The Gentle Puritan: A Life of Ezra Stiles; The Puritan Dilemma: The Story of John Winthrop; American Slavery—American Freedom: The Ordeal of Colonial Virginia; The Challenge of the American Revolution; Inventing the People: The Rise of Popular Sovereignty in England and America; and, with Helen M. Morgan, The Stamp Act Crisis.
Customer Reviews
A Handy Overview
Morgan's Birth of the Republic is a wonderful overview of the political groundwork of the American Revolutionary period. Covering the extralegal dealings of the colonies from the Stamp Act to Ratification, Morgan succeeds in giving an immense amount of detail in a very slim volume.
In addition, Morgan provides a useful bibliography.
Concise Query into Ideology
One would think that justice cannot be done to the topic of ideology during the American Revolution in such a short book, but Edmund S. Morgan does the job quite well. In each chapter, you have an introduction to the various basic issues that confronted Americans during the Revolution and how the people grappled with the issues. Morgan does not waste words by going on and on about every minute detail, but hits on what needs to be covered and gives the reader the background knowledge needed when looking at the American Revolution and considering what issues were in play as a result of the new dialogue about freedom and liberty. This volume does not merely deal with how our Founding Fathers responded, but also the laborer and the merchant, the slave and the freedman, and the Southern plantation owner and the Northern farmer. I am not sure if one should read this volume before reading a general history of the American Revolution or vice-versa, but it is clear to me that one is needed to properly understand the other. Perhaps reading this volume with Robert Middlekauf's "Glorious Revolution," would make a good duo to explore the history of the American Revolution.
Principle and Patriotism
In his book, The Birth of the Republic 1763 - 89, Edmund S. Morgan addresses the historical problem of why the American colonists, who frequently engaged in quarrels and disputes with each other over the most trivial of matters, united together in a common enterprise to end English rule and establish a new government. Morgan's historiographical analysis offers a response to the progressive historians' emphasis on the internal struggles among the colonies before, during, and after the Revolution. While Morgan may agree that the colonies were not without their share of conflicts and discord, he strongly argues that they were able to set aside their differences to unite in a common cause. The belief in principle, namely the belief and discovery of human equality, united the colonists to a common cause and was the most significant force behind the American Revolution. In addition to the principle of human equality, Morgan demonstrates that the Lockian principles of property and liberty were also vital factors in the cause for revolution.
In addition to his detailed biographical notes, Morgan's book can be appreciated for the inclusion of the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, the Constitution of the United States, the Bill of Rights, and a list of important dates between 1763 and 1790. Seemingly, such documents as the Declaration and the Constitution are central to the history of the American Revolution and founding of our nation. Perhaps more significantly, these items supplement the patriotic sentiment prominent in Morgan's book, solidifying his argument that in order for such documents to have even been created successfully the colonies had to be united in their efforts and ideals.
Many other historiographical arguments on the American Revolution exist (particularly on its nature, meaning, and significance); there are certainly many more detailed and interpretative studies that one could read. Edmund S. Morgan is noted for being a consensus historian, often criticized by 'new left' historians for presenting the Revolution as too synthetic and without regard to the issues of women, blacks, and the poor and dispossessed. Despite this criticism, I believe that Morgan's book offers a good starting point for a student of history or anyone wishing to learn about the birth of our nation.
