Origins and Ideologies of the American Revolution

De: Peter C. Mancall, The Great Courses

Narrado por: Peter C. Mancall

The years between 1760 and 1800 rocked the Western world. These were the years when colonists on the eastern fringes of a continent converted the ideals of Enlightenment thought first into action, then into an actual form of government.

Now you can learn why this happened and how the colonists did it - in a series of 48 insightful lectures from an award-winning teacher and author.

Professor Mancall brings to life not only the famous but also the little-remembered colonists who were caught up in the debates over rights and power, liberties and empire. It is a story of immense importance and rich discoveries. And because he presents original source materials, including examples of how events were reported and interpreted, you'll more readily grasp the evolution of ideas, the competing pressures, and the misunderstandings - not only in the time leading up to the Revolution, and during the years it was being fought, but afterwards, as well.

That's when the victorious colonists came to learn that in achieving freedom from Great Britain, they had simply traded one set of problems for another. They still had to cope with the extraordinarily difficult task of crafting a workable government - one that could support their ideals of how citizens and government should relate to each other - and achieving respect and success among other nations.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2006 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2006 The Great Courses

Great listen

Great to listen to. Love the Era. Unbiased and was very educational. Will listen to again

Fills a lot of gaps

Any additional comments?

This was a very worthy addition to the Great Courses, soberly teasing apart a complicated, multi-sided tangle of action, reaction, understanding, and misunderstandings. Its attention to the oft-neglected period between Pilgrims and Stamp Acts was especially welcome.

Mancall does an excellent job, too, of capturing how even individuals--such as Franklin, Adams, and Hutchison--could be divided in their own minds at a time when the right was not so clear and battle lines had yet to harden, as well as the familiar interpersonal debates. A testimony to the thoughtfulness exhibited on many sides of the issue of revolution.

Absolutely superb

For all of the American history courses I’ve taken, this one has been the most illuminating. So much of the early revolutionary era is closed over in American schools, and it’s this series of lectures that provides crucial detail to understanding our founding.

Learned much I didn't know.

This course focuses on thoughts and motivations of the people involved in the revolution. Fairly balanced, with no woke crap or Trump crap.

Excellent use of primary sources

Brings the revolution to life using the words of American colonists on both sides of the conflict.

Missing the implications of religious faith

I give this audio book (lecture series) only 4 stars because the material seems to intentionally skirt the implications and impact of spiritual faith, religiously based morality and ethics, and personal devotion to God. Mr. Mancall presents an incredible and extensive integration of many social and political facets in his narrative. I am thoroughly impressed and appreciative for how he assembled his information and organized its order and level of detail. I have gained much in listening through his rich material. However, he tends to scoff at the legitimacy and merit of statements of faith and choices made based on religious convictions as having bearing on his topic, the origins and ideologies of the American revolution. That has been rather disappointing. Notwithstanding, this lecture series is a great reminder of what brought about a great conundrum, a rebellion and revolution by many people aspiring to a society that celebrates liberty and divinely grounded virtue in constructive and enjoyable life and governance.

Insightful! Couldn’t stop listening!

The author is also the presenter. His passion kept me interested throughout the entire series. I had quite a bit of knowledge of the Revolutionary War and the founding fathers before beginning this series, but I came away with so much more. This should be a must read/listen for all Americans. Our educators should use this in high school history classes. Stop with memorizing dates and teach conceptual knowledge and students will retain more.

An Ideal Way to Study the Revolution

This course examines the ideologies that led to the outbreak of the American Revolution, fueled the Revolution during the war and guided the formation of America's government that endures to the present. This course does not cover the military history of the war. Instead, this course focuses on the great thinkers, like John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin, whose ideas helped stir the colonists into action. This course is not a biography of these individuals but, rather, is an examination of their thoughts and ideas. The course examines the way that ideas traveled, including by word of mouth, printed materials and propaganda drawings, and the way those ideas impacted history.

One of the more interesting aspects of the course is the discussion about how Americans, Loyalists and British had such divergent views of the same set of facts. For instance, Americans viewed the Boston Tea Party as a justified act of civil disobedience while Loyalists saw it as an act of lawlessness and British saw it as an act of rebellion. Perhaps the best part of the course is its broad scope. I expected the course to focus just on the build-up to the war and the war itself. However, the course went beyond that and dedicated several lectures to the establishment of the peace and the development of the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution. The bottom line is that this course does a great job going behind the scenes of the American Revolution and providing fantastic details often overlooked in other courses. This course provides a deep understanding of the motives that led to the war and leaves a new appreciation for the genius of the nation's founders.

Peter knows his stuff

Excellent excellent commentary on many of the thoughts and feelings of the revolutionaries, the English, and French contemporaries. The most in depth analysis I've read on the most wide ranging pieces of history, doctrine, politics, and people I've seen on one place.
Broken up into 30 minute chapters for easy reading. one chapter a day will get you a clearer picture of the Revolutionary War

Comprehensive Detailed Examination of an Era

This is the course for you if looking for what my review title includes. Quotes extensively from contemporary documents.