The Spirit of '74

The Spirit of '74
Author: Ray Raphael
Publisher: New Press, The
Total Pages: 305
Release: 2015-08-25
Genre: History
ISBN: 1620971275

How ordinary people went from resistance to revolution: “[A] concise, lively narrative . . . the authors expertly build tension.” —Publishers Weekly Americans know about the Boston Tea Party and “the shot heard ’round the world,” but sixteen months divided these two iconic events, a period that has nearly been lost to history. The Spirit of ’74 fills in this gap in our nation’s founding narrative, showing how in these mislaid months, step by step, real people made a revolution. After the Tea Party, Parliament not only shut down a port but also revoked the sacred Massachusetts charter. Completely disenfranchised, citizens rose up as a body and cast off British rule everywhere except in Boston, where British forces were stationed. A “Spirit of ’74” initiated the American Revolution, much as the better-known “Spirit of ’76” sparked independence. Redcoats marched on Lexington and Concord to take back a lost province, but they encountered Massachusetts militiamen who had trained for months to protect the revolution they had already made. The Spirit of ’74 places our founding moment in a rich new historical context, both changing and deepening its meaning for all Americans.

The Spirit of 'seventy-six

The Spirit of 'seventy-six
Author: Henry Steele Commager
Publisher:
Total Pages: 740
Release: 1958
Genre: United States
ISBN:

Who shall write the history of the American Revolution? Who can write it? asked John Adams in 1815. Renowned scholars Henry Steele Commager and Richard B. Morris have provided a prudent, perceptive answer--the participants themselves--and in the process have fashioned from the vast source material a thrilling chronological narrative. The Spirit of 'Seventy-Six allows readers to experience events long-entombed in textbooks as they unfold for the first time for both Loyalists and Patriots: the Boston Tea Party, Bunker Hill, the Declaration of Independence, and more. In letters, journals, diaries, official documents, and personal recollections, the timeless figures of the Revolution emerge in all their human splendor and folly to stand beside the nameless soldiers. Profusely illustrated and enhanced by cogent commentary, this book examines every aspect of the war, including the Loyalist and British views; treason and prison escapes; songs and ballads; the home front and diplomacy abroad. In short, the editors have wrought a balanced, sweeping, and compelling documentary history.

One Life to Give

One Life to Give
Author: John Fanestil
Publisher: Augsburg Fortress Publishers
Total Pages: 289
Release: 2021-08-03
Genre: History
ISBN: 1506474144

One Life to Give explores martyrdom from its classical and Christian origins to the onset of the Revolutionary War. Fanestil shows how martyrdom animated many personal commitments to American independence, and thereby to the war. Understanding the role of martyrdom helps the reader grasp the origins of the American Revolution.

The World of the American Revolution [2 volumes]

The World of the American Revolution [2 volumes]
Author: Merril D. Smith
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Total Pages: 941
Release: 2015-08-28
Genre: History
ISBN:

This two-volume set brings to life the daily thoughts and routines of men and women—rich and poor, of various cultures, religions, races, and beliefs—during a time of great political, social, economic, and legal turmoil. What was life really like for ordinary people during the American Revolution? What did they eat, wear, believe in, and think about? What did they do for fun? This encyclopedia explores the lives of men, women, and children—of European, Native American, and African descent—through the window of social, cultural, and material history. The two-volume set spans the period from 1774 to 1800, drawing on the most current research to illuminate people's emotional lives, interactions, opinions, views, beliefs, and intimate relationships, as well as connections between the individual and the greater world. The encyclopedia features more than 200 entries divided into topical sections, each dealing with a different aspect of cultural life—for example, Arts, Food and Drink, and Politics and Warfare. Each section opens with an introductory essay, followed by A–Z entries on various aspects of the subject area. Sidebars and primary documents enhance the learning experience. Targeting high school and college students, the title supports the American history core curriculum and the current emphasis on social history. Most importantly, its focus on the realities of daily life, rather than on dates and battles, will help students identify with and learn about this formative period of American history.

A People's History of the American Revolution

A People's History of the American Revolution
Author: Ray Raphael
Publisher: New Press, The
Total Pages: 386
Release: 2011-05-24
Genre: History
ISBN: 1620972808

“The best single-volume history of the Revolution I have read.” —Howard Zinn Upon its initial publication, Ray Raphael’s magisterial A People’s History of the American Revolution was hailed by NPR’s Fresh Air as “relentlessly aggressive and unsentimental.” With impeccable skill, Raphael presented a wide array of fascinating scholarship within a single volume, employing a bottom-up approach that has served as a revelation. A People’s History of the American Revolution draws upon diaries, personal letters, and other Revolutionary-era treasures, weaving a thrilling “you are there” narrative—“a tapestry that uses individual experiences to illustrate the larger stories”. Raphael shifts the focus away from George Washington and Thomas Jefferson to the slaves they owned, the Indians they displaced, and the men and boys who did the fighting (Los Angeles Times Book Review). This “remarkable perspective on a familiar part of American history” helps us appreciate more fully the incredible diversity of the American Revolution (Kirkus Reviews). “Through letters, diaries, and other accounts, Raphael shows these individuals—white women and men of the farming and laboring classes, free and enslaved African Americans, Native Americans, loyalists, and religious pacifists—acting for or against the Revolution and enduring a war that compounded the difficulties of everyday life.” —Library Journal “A tour de force . . . Ray Raphael has probably altered the way in which future historians will see events.” —The Sunday Times

The Real History of the American Revolution

The Real History of the American Revolution
Author: Alan Axelrod
Publisher: Sterling Publishing Company
Total Pages: 398
Release: 2007
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781402740862

Axelrod explores the fascinating mix of philosophical ideals and economic self-interest that ignited America's struggle for independence.