America Begins: How Connecticut’s Samuel Johnson Created America
by“The great End and Business therefore of Philosophy, is to make us truly happy; and this is the End ultimately pursued through all the…
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King Frederick the Great and the American Colonies—Mit Complimenten Aweissen
byMit Complimenten Aweissen (put him off with compliments) Arthur Lee, one of the American Commissioners stationed in Paris, was appointed minister to the Prussian Court…
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Fort Ticonderoga, The Last Campaigns
byBOOK REVIEW: Fort Ticonderoga, The Last Campaigns, War in the North 1777-1783 by Mark Edward Lender (Yardley, PA: Westholme, 2022) Mark Edward Lender’s recent book…
This Week on Dispatches: Brian Koyn on George Washington’s Emotional Intelligence and the Newburgh Conspiracy
byOn this week’s Dispatches, host Brady Crytzer interviews US Army chaplain Brian Koyn on how modern emotional intelligence research can provide insight on how George…
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George III’s (Implicit) Sanction of the American Revolution
byIn Summary View of the Rights of British America (1774), Jefferson wrote of King George III’s unwillingness to use his “negative” to veto unjust proposals….
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The Articles of Confederation and Western Expansion
byThe Articles of Confederation described the first government of the new United States. As one may imagine from understanding the later debates on the…
Informing a Nation: The Newspaper Presidency of Thomas Jefferson
byBOOK REVIEW: Informing a Nation: The Newspaper Presidency of Thomas Jefferson by Mel Laracey (Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press, 2021) In Informing a Nation:…
Point/Counterpoint, 1777 Style: Dueling Proclamations from Israel Putnam and William Tryon
byAs the year 1777 drew to a close, the region around the city of New York had been under British control for a year….
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King Frederick the Great and the American Colonies: The Preliminaries
byUpon the death of his grandfather on May 31, 1740, Frederick William II of the House of Hohenzollern became the King of Prussia. Over…
A Very Fine Regiment: The 47th Foot During the American War of Independence, 1773–1783
byBOOK REVIEW: A Very Fine Regiment: The 47th Foot during the American War of Independence, 1773-1783 by Paul Knight. (Warwick, UK: Helion Publishing, 2022) The…
This Week on Dispatches: Christian McBurney on How Rhode Island Prevented an Enslaved Family from Being Transported to the South
byOn this week’s Dispatches, host Brady Crytzer interviews Rhode Island and Revolutionary War historian Christian McBurney on uncovering the extraordinary story of a man from…
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First in Emotional Intelligence: George Washington During the Newburgh Conspiracy
byGeneral George Washington stood in front of his assembled officers, reading glasses in hand, and stated, “Gentlemen, you will permit me to put on…
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Rebels at Sea: Privateering in the American Revolution
byBOOK REVIEW: Rebels at Sea: Privateering in the American Revolution by Eric Jay Dolan (New York, NY: Liveright Publishing Corporation, 2022) Marine historian Eric Jay…
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Williamsport, DC? How a Maryland Town Vied to be the Nation’s Capital
byAfter seven years of fighting in the Revolutionary War, Otho Holland Williams returned home. It was the Spring of 1782. When he left Frederick,…
The 2022 JAR Annual Volume
byThe eighth straight uniform volume of selected articles from the previous calendar year is now available. The articles in the Journal of the American…
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John Adams and the Rule of Law
byIn the Spring of 1776, as the American Revolution was underway the movement of the Colonies towards independence was just starting to gain steam….
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Weaponizing Impeachment: Justice Samuel Chase and President Thomas Jefferson’s Battle Over the Process
byThere was much discussion over the impeachment process during the Constitution’s ratifying debates. Federalists argued that the ability to impeach an individual gave disproportionate…
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Contributor Question: If We Only Had A Portrait . . .
byThis month we asked our contributors, which person, for whom no image is known to exist, would you like to discover a full-length portrait…
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The Earl of Dartmouth, Secretary of State for the Colonies, Second Year: November 1773 – August 1774
byDuring the three months that the Earl of Dartmouth, Secretary of State for the Colonies, was on holiday from August to November 1773, the…
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What Do Bond Prices Tell Us about the Early Republic?
byAmerica’s early finances were, in a word, messy. The states took on enormous debt to fund the Revolutionary War while the national government chartered…
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A Brief History of Benjamin Franklin’s Residences on Craven Street, London: 1757 – 1775
byIf one looked into Benjamin Franklin’s time on Craven Street, they might initially believe he lived at 36 Craven Street the entirety of his…
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How do you define “Founding Fathers”?
byHow do you define “Founding Fathers”? You can define it either broadly or narrowly. By consensus, most historians limit the narrow definition to six….
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Which side benefited the most from the Native Americans?
byWhich side do you think benefited the most from the Native American involvement in the war? Why? The British benefited the most, from one…
Hamilton: An American Musical
byReview of the Broadway musical Hamilton, now playing at the Richard Rodgers Theater on 46th Street in New York City. Let me confess at…
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9 Questions with Rick Atkinson
byLearning that one of the most acclaimed military writers of our time has turned his narrative expertise towards the American Revolution is exciting news…
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The American Vicars of Bray
byLoyalists, those Americans who openly supported the British Government during the American Revolution, have been largely assumed to have had unchanging allegiance during the…
America's Most Important History!
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Rhode Island Acts to Prevent an Enslaved Family from Being Transported to the South
byThe American Revolution spurred the world’s first significant movement to abolish slavery and the African slave trade.[1] Before then, there was virtually no antislavery…
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The Brothers Bliss: A Soldier’s Account Behind the New York Lines
byThe Bliss Family roots run deep in Connecticut. Born in England around 1618, Thomas Bliss became a founder of Hartford and Norwich, Connecticut before…
“The Chiefs Now in This City:” Indians and the Urban Frontier in Early America
by“The Chiefs Now in This City:” Indians and the Urban Frontier in Early America by Colin G. Calloway (New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2021) BOOK…
This Week on Dispatches: M. Andrew Holowchak on Thomas Jefferson on Rebellion, Revolution, and “Treason”
byOn this week’s Dispatches, host Brady Crytzer interviews historian M. Andrew Holowchak on interpreting the distinctions Thomas Jefferson made between rebellion, revolution, and treason. New…