A Blog Exploring American History and Politics
Pamphlet by “Cato”: Thoughts on a Question of Importance Proposed to the Public, Whether it is probable that the Immense Extent of Territory acquired by this Nation at the late Peace, will operate towards the Prosperity, or the Ruin of the Island of Great-Britain? London, 1765. Part I here. When a nation has “Elegance and […]
MorePamphlet by “Cato”: Thoughts on a Question of Importance Proposed to the Public, Whether it is probable that the Immense Extent of Territory acquired by this Nation at the late Peace, will operate towards the Prosperity, or the Ruin of the Island of Great-Britain? London, 1765. At the end of the Seven Years War, known […]
More“Cato” V New York Journal, November 22, 1787 Following are excerpts from an anonymous article published in the New York Journal: “To the Citizens of the State of New-York. In my last number I endeavored to prove that the language of the article relative to the establishment of the executive of this new government was vague and inexplicit, that […]
MoreAnswers to Mason’s “Objections”: “Marcus” [James Iredell] II Norfolk and Portsmouth Journal (Virginia), February 27, 1788 Following are excerpts from James Iredell’s responses to George Mason’s “Objections” to the Constitution: “IVth. Objection. The Judiciary of the United States is so constructed and extended, as to absorb and destroy the Judiciaries of the several States
MoreAmerica, in the early part of the 1800s, developed a reputation for being an experimental society. It was a prime example of popular rule, which brought a unique perspective to the world stage. See Daniel Walker Howe, What Hath God Wrought: Transformation of America, 1815-1848, 304.
MoreWhile during the American Revolution, the judiciary was mostly forgotten, in the interest of controlling gubernatorial power by empower legislatures, that began to change during the 1780s.
MorePrior to the American Revolution, the colonists had become familiar with the concept of charters. Charters, whether royal, corporate, or proprietary, operated “as the evidence of a compact between an English King and the American subjects.” Gordon Wood, The Creation of the American Republic: 1776-1787, 268; see also Leonard Krieger, The Politics of Discretion: Pufendorf and the Acceptance […]
MoreCorruption was rife in England in the decades leading up to the American Revolution, and Americans were keenly aware of that fact. For many individuals, the English Constitution was viewed as a hollow document, as the crown had taken the power away from all other sources. See Gordon Wood, The Creation of the American Republic: 1776-1787, 34-35. Americans […]
MoreInvolvement in government is crucial to the success of government as a whole. During the American Revolution, it was clear that participation in the political process would continue to be valued. Since those years, much has changed.
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