Loyalists and Patriots Debate the American Revolution

About this Collection

As C. Bradley Thompson notes in the Liberty Fund edition of Adams Revolutionary Writings: Upon his return from the Continental Congress in the fall of 1774, Adams was met with a series of powerful and lucid essays in the Massachusetts Gazette defending the principles and policies of British officialdom and challenging the claims of the American Whigs. Writing over the pseudonym Massachusettensis, Daniel Leonard argued that the constitutional authority of Parliament did and must extend to the colonies. Theoretically, the colonies must be under the sovereignty of Parliament, Leonard insisted, because two supreme or independent authorities cannot exist in the same state. Such an imperium in imperio was absurd and a contradiction in terms. According to Leonard, there could be no possible medium between absolute independence on the one hand, and subjection to the authority of Parliament on the other. Historians have long recognized the importance of Adamss Novanglus letters to the Revolutionary cause. They were not only a close, point-by-point refutation of Leonards argument, but they represent the most advanced Patriot argument against British imperial policy. The Novanglus letters were a systematic attempt by Adams to describe the origins, nature, and jurisdictional boundaries of the imperial British constitution. The central question that sparked Adams to write was clear and simple: Does the authority of Parliament extend to the colonies? In exhaustive and sometimes painstaking detail, Adams plumbs the depths of English and colonial legal history to demonstrate that the provincial legislatures are fully sovereign over their own internal affairs, and that the colonies are connected to Great Britain only through a modified feudal allegiance with the person of the King.

Key People

Titles & Essays

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A Friend to the Revolution: Mercy Otis Warren and the Ordinary Virtues of Republicanism

By: Sarah Morgan Smith

If, as the saying goes, you can judge a man by the company he keeps, then Mercy Otis Warren ought to be more highly regarded.

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Abigail Adams’ Patriotism

By: Elizabeth Amato

A Gallop poll shows a worrisome decline in patriotism among younger Americans. A mere half of Americans 35 and younger report being proud of their country. A generational shift is occurring that will have far-reaching consequences…

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“A perpetual jealousy, respecting liberty”: John Dickinson on Fundamental Rights

By: Jane E. Calvert

Although few Americans today have heard of John Dickinson, he was a central figure of the Founding era. Writing more for the American cause than any other figure, he was America’s first celebrity, known around the Atlantic World as…

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Benjamin Franklin and American Union

By: Steve Ealy

Under the dateline Philadelphia, May 9 [1754], Franklin’s The Pennsylvania Gazette printed an item based on dispatches from Major George Washington which detailed French advances and British losses along the Monongahela River. The…

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Benjamin Franklin at the Constitutional Convention

By: Steve Ealy

At 81, Benjamin Franklin was the senior statesman at a convention of young men. He was three times the age of the Convention’s youngest delegate (Jonathan Dayton of New Jersey, aged 26), and twice the average age for all delegates…

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Benjamin Franklin at the Constitutional Convention, Part 2

By: Steve Ealy

In 1776, Benjamin Franklin served as President of the Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention that produced the most radically democratic constitution of any of the colonies/states. Among the provisions of Pennsylvania’s constitution…

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Benjamin Rush: Founding Father of America & Psychiatry

By: Isadore Johnson

Franklin isn’t the only Founding Father named Benjamin. Benjamin Rush, an American physician, politician, and educator also played an important role in America’s founding. Benjamin Rush was both a historical luminary and a brilliant…
The Case of Great Britain and America, Addressed to the King and Both Houses of Parliament (London, December 1768)

Anonymous Pamphleteer 1768 (author)

Some scholars have suggested Gervaise Parker Bush as the author of this anonymous pamphlet that argues that the American colonists are even more disenfranchised and unrepresented than Englishmen without suffrage. The anonymous author…

The Claim of the American Loyalists

Joseph Galloway (author)

Having lost his valuable estate in Pennsylvania during the American Revolution, the Loyalist Galloway spent the rest of his years in exile in Britain lobbying the government for compensation and writing books like this one to…

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Common Sense with Thomas Paine

By: Jason Sorens

What does it mean to be an American? I don’t mean, “What are the legal requirements to be an American citizen?” but something more like, “What are the characteristics that make someone a part of the American people?” After all,…

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Deborah Sampson: American Warrior

By: Kirstin Anderson Birkhaug

Today, over 1.4 million women serve as active-duty members of the American military. While today’s acceptance of women in warfare is relatively new (women were allowed full participation in the Armed Forces with the Women’s Armed…

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Dolley Madison: Queen of America

By: Melissa Matthes

One of the animating questions of the women’s movement in America has long been how much or even whether women should use the qualities and skills traditionally associated with their sex or whether they should try to overcome those…

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Ethan Allen, Individualism, and Deism

By: Walter Donway

It is extraordinarily telling that Ethan Allen returned at the end of his life to the project of his teens, the manuscript he started with Thomas Young decades earlier. He completed it in 1785 and struggled to find a publisher to…

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Ethan Allen: Yankee Extraordinaire

By: Walter Donway

In many ways, Ethan Allen is the quintessential Yankee. A farmer, he speculated in land and involved himself in colonial politics regarding land. He plunged into the War of Independence and became its first hero. Captured by the…

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Exceptionalism: The Birth of the Idea of America

By: Walter Donway

The term is not politically correct, today, but there should be little doubt that “exceptionalism” applies to the Enlightenment in America. We know that thanks to the Pulitzer Prize–winning history by Harvard University professor…

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Founding Mother Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton…Remember Me!

By: Melissa Matthes

When the wife, mother or sister of a famous man is invoked, the first inclination is to wonder how that woman might have influenced her celebrated male counterpart. It is a reasonable question. The next question is whether that…

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“Farmer Refuted”

By: Anna Leman

Hamilton: An American Musical features an epic standoff between young, fiery Hamilton and bold, preachy Samuel Seabury in “Farmer Refuted.” In their musical sparring match, Hamilton “tears the dude apart,” with his defense of the…

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George Mason: Father of Inalienable Rights

By: Isadore Johnson

George Mason was born on December 11, 1725, in Fairfax County, Virginia. His parents died in a boating accident when he was 10, and he was taken in by John Mercer, an uncle, who was both a lawyer and a voracious reader. In 1736,…

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George Washington: America’s Founding Father

By: Isadore Johnson

George Washington was born in Pope's Creek, Westmoreland County, Virginia, on February 22, 1732. Most of his childhood was spent on Ferry Farm, which he inherited at age 11, along with 10 slaves. At Ferry Farm, Washington informally…

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Get Back!…to Madison: More Reasons to Read Madison

By: Hans Eicholz

From: Hans EicholzDate: June 14, 2022To: G. Patrick LynchCc: OLL
Subject: Get Back!...to Madison…More Reasons to read Madison

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Gouverneur Morris on the Word “Liberty”: An Empty Sound?

By: Melanie Randolph Miller

Is it enough for a nation to have a constitution purporting to guarantee liberty and justice? Gouverneur Morris would say emphatically no: a consistent theme in his writings is that a constitution must be suited to the people it…

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How to Read a Constitution…Hamilton Style

By: Hans Eicholz

To continue the Beatles analogy, if James Madison was the George Harrison of his day, certainly Alexander Hamilton was a lead vocalist of the caliber of John Lennon, and there are very good reasons why he resonates so well today…

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Introducing The Pamphlet Debate on the American Question in Great Britain, 1764-1776

By: Christy Lynn Horpedahl

Reading Room readers, meet your revolutionary new friend: The Pamphlet Debate on the American Question in Great Britain, 1764-1776 Collection.

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Is Madison’s Federalist Theory Still Relevant Today?

By: Colleen A. Sheehan

From: Colleen Sheehan
Date: June 16, 2022
To: G. Patrick Lynch, Hans Eicholz
Cc: OLL
Subject: Is Madison’s Federalist Theory Still Relevant Today?

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James Monroe: The Anti-Imperialist President and Founding Father

By: Isadore Johnson

Although James Monroe didn’t sign the Declaration of Independence, he is remembered as a crucial part of American History: the last of the “Founding Father” presidents. Beyond the doctrine named after him, Monroe is also known for…

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James Wilson and the New Nation

By: Mark David Hall

In 2007, Gary L. Gregg and I asked more than one hundred history, politics, and law professors who was the most important but forgotten of all American founders. There was widespread agreement that this honor, if it can be called an…

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Jefferson and the Principle of Natural Equality

By: Jason Jividen

Not long after his debates with Stephen Douglas, Abraham Lincoln was invited by Henry L. Pierce and a group of Boston-area Republicans to a festival honoring Thomas Jefferson’s birthday. Unable to attend, on April 6, 1859, Lincoln…

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John Dickinson and the Moderation of Constitutional Balance in The Letters of Fabius

By: William Reddinger

Some might be tempted to remember John Dickinson only as the man who at the last hour refused to support American independence. That would be an error. Among those American founders fallen into relative obscurity, few deserve…

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John Dickinson: The “Timid” Founder

By: David F. Forte

Did John Adams described John Dickinson in 1774 as “very modest, delicate, and timid”? Adams, who previously met with Dickinson during the proceedings of the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia, was much more complimentary,…

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John Hancock: The First U.S. President

By: Gary Scott Smith

He is the answer to the trick question: Who was the first president of the United States? His role as the initial president of the Continental Congress makes John Hancock, not George Washington, the correct answer. Known perhaps…

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John Jay: Legal and Constitutional Framer

By: Jonathan Den Hartog

John Jay (1745–1829) was one of the most significant members of the founding generation, but his reputation hasn’t kept pace with that reality. Most Americans, if they wrack their brains, might be able to come up with vague…

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John Leland: Theologian of the First Amendment

By: Obbie Tyler Todd

Evangelicals today are often accused of supporting political figures who seem to contradict their values and beliefs. But why do such coalitions exist in American politics? To answer that question, Americans should look back not to…

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John Marshall, the Great Chief Justice

By: Matthew J. Franck

There is only one judge in American history for whom the epithet “the Great” has been commonly used: John Marshall (1755–1835), the fourth chief justice of the United States. Yet in a strange way, his outsized reputation, built on…

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John Witherspoon: A Presbyterian’s Impact on America’s Founding

By: Paul A. Cleveland

John Witherspoon was born in Scotland and educated in Edinburgh. He was a leading Presbyterian, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and a member of the Continental Congress. He came to America in 1768 to become president of…

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Judith Sargent Murray: A Woman Between Worlds

By: Kirstin Anderson Birkhaug

In 1792, Mary Wollstonecraft published her famous work The Vindication of the Rights of Woman. To this day, this work is considered one of the origin points of western feminism. While Wollstonecraft enjoys great continuing fame, few…
The Legislative Authority of the British Parliament, with respect to North America, and the Privileges of the Assemblies there briefly considered

J. M. of the Inner Temple (author)

This essay defends Parliament’s authority over America “when considered as a collective Body of Colonies,” because only it could consider “the general good of the whole.” While certainly consistent with an idea of virtual…

A Letter to G. G.

L. At Richmond (author)

The essay argues against Parliament’s taxation of America, contending that “subordinate states,” whether Wales or the “palatinates of Chester and Durham” or the colonies, can only be taxed by representatives of their own choosing…

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Martha Washington: First in the Heart of the President

By: Kirstin Anderson Birkhaug

At George Washington’s funeral, General Henry Lee said of the great man that he was “first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen.” These are some of the most famous words spoken regarding Washington,…
Massachusettensis

Daniel Leonard (author)

A legalistic defense of the Loyalist opposition to the right of the American colonies to seek independence from Britain. This work was the subject of John Adam’s lengthy rebuttal in “Novanglus”.

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Mind Your Manners: Mercy Otis Warren on the Character of the American People

By: Megan Marie Russo

Why should we care about Mercy Otis Warren’s political writings today? Just because she’s a woman? No, but then again, maybe yes.
Even if we keep sex and gender out of it, Warren was impressive in her own right. At an early age,…
an ANSWER to a PAMPHLET, entitled Taxation no Tyranny. addressed to the AUTHOR, and to PERSONS IN POWER

Anonymous Pamphleteer 1775 (author)

As with other respondents to Johnson’s Taxation No Tyranny, the author of this pamphlet takes on Johnson’s towering literary reputation head on, asserting in his second sentence, “The very title of your pamphlet is delusion.” The…

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Patrick Henry: America’s Founding Orator

By: Isadore Johnson

Patrick Henry was born on May 29, 1736, in Hanover County, Virginia. He tried his hand at running a store at 15 but was unsuccessful. In 1754, at age 18, he married Sara Shelton and was given 6 slaves and 300 acres of land as a…
The Plea of the Colonies, on the Charges Brought Against Them

Anonymous Pamphleteer 1775 (author)

Some scholars propose Hugh Williamson as a possible author for this pamphlet that argues that the British government has pushed the Americans “ into the very bowels of a civil war.” The author further suggests that peace requires a…

Remarks On The Review of the Controversy Between Great Britain and Her Colonies

Edward Bancroft (author)

Bancroft’s pamphlet is directed against Grenville, Minister of the Treasury. In it, Bancroft takes issue with the suggestion that the American colonists simultaneously claim the privileges of British subjects and reject the authority…

Resistance No Rebellion: An Answer To Doctor Johnson’s Taxation No Tyranny

Anonymous Pamphleteer 1775 (author)

One of the many pamphlets in response to Johnson’s Taxation no Tyranny, Resistance no Rebellion praises the good sense and dignity of the Americans while noting the ways in which they have been insulted by the British. The author is…

Revolutionary Writings

John Adams (author)

This volume contains the principal shorter writings in which Adams addresses the prospect of revolution and the form of government proper to the new United States. There are pieces on the nature of the British Constitution and the…

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Richard Henry Lee: Founding Revolutionary and Anti-Corruption Advocate

By: Isadore Johnson

Richard Henry Lee was born at Stratford Hall in Westmoreland, Virginia, on January 20, 1732. At age 16, Lee moved to Yorkshire, England, for his formal education at Wakefield Academy. In 1750, when he was 18, both of Lee’s parents…

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Roger Sherman and the Creation of the American New Republic

By: Mark David Hall

In 1777, John Adams described Connecticut’s Roger Sherman as “that old Puritan, as honest as an angel, and as firm in the cause of American Independence as Mt. Atlas.” Late in life, Patrick Henry remarked that Sherman and George…

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Samuel Adams…Much More Than a Beer

By: Gary Scott Smith

Millions of Americans today are concerned about social justice. Issues ranging from abortion to environmental devastation to racial disparities in income, education, convictions, and imprisonment roil our nation. Similarly, more…

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Studying the Founders: A Summary and Downloadable Collection

By: Thea Burress

Over this past Summer, we invited scholars into the Reading Room to share their views on the Founding Fathers and Mothers and why we should read and understand them today. They explored the likes of George Mason, Deborah Sampson,…
Taxation no Tyranny; An Answer to the Resolutions and Address of the American Congress

Samuel Johnson (author)

Written in 1775 in response to the Declaration and Resolves of the First Continental Congress, Samuel Johnson’s Taxation no Tyranny is a defense of Parliamentary Sovereignty, particularly the right to tax. One of the greatest English…

The Pamphlet, Entitled, “Taxation no Tyranny,” Candidly Considered, and it’s Arguments, and Pernicious Doctrines, Exposed and Refuted

Anonymous Pamphleteer 1775 (author)

This response to Johnson’s Taxation no Tyranny emphasizes the concord which had existed between Great Britain and the colonies in previous times. Now, though, “The Tories have forced us into a situation which threatens shipwreck.”…

Taxation, Tyranny, Addressed to Samuel Johnson

Anonymous Pamphleteer 1775 (author)

This 1775 pamphlet was published as an anonymous response to Samuel Johnson’s Taxation No Tyranny. Johnson’s towering reputation as a man of letters appears to enrage rather than intimidate this anonymous author, who takes Johnson to…

The Evidence of the Common and Statute Laws of the Realm; Usage, Records, History, with the Greatest and Best Authorities Down to the 3d of George the 3rd, in Proof of the Rights of Britons Throughout the British Empire Addressed to the People

Anonymous Pamphleteer 1775 (author)

This essay presents one of the strongest responses to the claim of Parliamentary supremacy over the colonies. It is indicative of a robust revival of Old Whig ideas in England on the question of limited government, a revival that…

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The Last King of America: A Review

By: Renee Wilmeth

When it comes to Enlightenment-era monarchs, we generally think the worst of one in particular, especially when it comes to progress – King George III of England. Too often, we think of him as the king who lost the American…

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The Paranoia of Patrick Henry

By: Joy Buchanan

“Guard with jealous attention the public liberty. Suspect everyone who approaches that jewel.” Those are the words of Patrick Henry to the Virginia Ratifying Convention in 1788.

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The Written Legacy of Gouverneur Morris: Constitutional Wisdom We Cannot Afford to Forget

By: Melanie Randolph Miller

We the People. It is a phrase that shows up everywhere, on the banners of protestors on both sides of an issue, as the name of an expletive-laden song by Kid Rock, in the title of many books, many art exhibitions, and, of course, on…

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The “Pamphlet Wars” Climax in the American Revolution and Ratification Debate

By: Walter Donway

You cannot read many biographies of men who engaged the American separation from Britain, declaration of an independent nation, and shaping and winning ratification of the Constitution without encountering—repeatedly—references to…

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Thinking About Government with John Adams

By: Aeon J. Skoble

In philosophy classes, students sometimes wonder why we continue to read long-dead thinkers like Plato or Descartes, and there are two sorts of answers I usually give. One is that, for better or worse, their ideas set the stage for…

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Thomas Jefferson’s Last-Minute Flip-Flop on the Future of American Democracy

By: Dennis C. Rasmussen

As Thomas Jefferson neared his death—which came on July 4, 1826, the fiftieth anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence—he composed some of the most famous and optimistic lines ever to emerge from his pen. He…

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Two Reasons to Read Jefferson

By: Jeremy D. Bailey

We live in a world where attention spans are short and partisan posturing is expected, so why should students bother with reading works by the American Founders, a group of men that did not include philosophers but did include…
Tyranny Unmasked: An Answer to a Late Pamphlet Entitled Taxation no Tyranny

Anonymous Pamphleteer 1775 (author)

Written in response to Samuel Johnson’s Taxation no Tyranny, this pamphlet dismisses Johnson’s arguments as unworthy of response, except for the fact that they are “irritating to Englishmen.” The author makes much of Johnson’s…

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Which Beatle is James Madison?

By: G Patrick Lynch

If we think about the most prominent of the American Founding Fathers as the Beatles, then Jefferson, Washington and Hamilton have gotten most of the attention from folks, much like Paul McCartney, John Lennon and Ringo Starr. They…

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Who are the Real Federalists? Why we should read John Francis Mercer

By: Hans Eicholz

Who qualifies as a Founder? Who is a Framer? These are questions about which we often assume general agreement, but the reality is otherwise.
“Founders” can sometimes refer to anyone who supported or participated in the American…

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Why George Mason Matters

By: Daniel L. Dreisbach

There is an unfortunate tendency among students of the American founding to focus on the accomplishments of a few “famous founders” while ignoring the salient contributions of an expansive fraternity of “forgotten founders.” One…
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Notes About This Collection

For additional information about the American Founding see the following: