America 250 · 1763–1789
Founding & Revolution
The argument, the war, and the constitution that came out of both.
From the Stamp Act crisis to the ratification of the Constitution — the quarter-century in which thirteen colonies argued, fought, and improvised a republic. The cross-media canon for the era of the 250th anniversary itself.
Presidents who served
Histories
The Radicalism of the American Revolution
Gordon S. Wood · 1992
Pulitzer winner. Wood's case that the Revolution wasn't just a war but the most radical social transformation in modern history.
The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution
Bernard Bailyn · 1967
Bancroft + Pulitzer. The pamphlets that made the case for independence, read closely.
Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation
Joseph J. Ellis · 2000
Pulitzer winner. Six episodes — the duel, the dinner, the silence — that map the founders' world through their relationships.
The British Are Coming
Rick Atkinson · 2019
Volume one of Atkinson's Revolution trilogy. The war itself, vividly, from Lexington through 1777.
Lives
Washington: A Life
Ron Chernow · 2010
The Pulitzer-winning modern standard on Washington. The human inside the marble.
John Adams
David McCullough · 2001
Pulitzer winner. Pulled Adams back from the shadow of the Founders he often resented.
Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power
Jon Meacham · 2012
Jefferson as political operator; treats Sally Hemings as central rather than scandal.
The Three Lives of James Madison: Genius, Partisan, President
Noah Feldman · 2017
Madison the constitutional architect, partisan operator, and wartime president — three theories that don't add up cleanly, which is the honesty.
In their own words
The Federalist Papers
Alexander Hamilton · 1788
Hamilton, Madison, and Jay's argument for the Constitution — the political philosophy of the founding, written under deadline.
Common Sense
Thomas Paine · 1776
The pamphlet that swung public opinion to independence. Read in months by hundreds of thousands; the closest the Revolution came to going viral.
Fiction
Burr
Gore Vidal · 1973
The Founders from the perspective of the one they tried to write out — controversial and brilliant.
Rise to Rebellion
Jeff Shaara · 2001
Historical fiction of the buildup, 1770–1776 — Adams, Franklin, Washington in their own kitchens.
On screen
John Adams
Tom Hooper · 2008
HBO miniseries with Paul Giamatti and Laura Linney. 13 Emmys — the most for any miniseries.
1776
Peter H. Hunt · 1972
The Continental Congress as a musical. Holds up better than it has any right to.
Turn: Washington's Spies
Craig Silverstein · 2014
AMC four-season drama on the Culper Ring — the Revolution's intelligence war on Long Island.
Sons of Liberty
Kari Skogland · 2015
History Channel three-night miniseries on the Boston instigators — Sam Adams, Hancock, Revere, before they were statues.
Common questions
What is the best book to understand the ideological roots of the Founding & Revolution era?
Bernard Bailyn's The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution is the definitive text on this subject. It examines the intellectual framework that drove the thirteen colonies to argue against British rule and eventually improvise a new republic between 1763 and 1789.
Which cross-media resource best captures the atmosphere of the Founding & Revolution?
The 2008 miniseries John Adams is the primary screen treatment for this era. It provides a detailed look at the quarter-century of conflict, from the initial Stamp Act crisis through the complex process of drafting and ratifying the United States Constitution.
How does Gordon S. Wood explain the social shifts of the Founding & Revolution?
In The Radicalism of the American Revolution, Gordon S. Wood argues that the era was a profound social transformation. He details how the colonies moved from a monarchical society to a republic, fundamentally changing the nature of American life and governance during the late eighteenth century.
Why does the Founding & Revolution era matter for the 250th anniversary?
This era, spanning 1763 to 1789, marks the critical quarter-century where the thirteen colonies transitioned from British subjects to an independent republic. Understanding this period is essential for the 250th anniversary because it encompasses the arguments, the war, and the creation of the Constitution.
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