Fr... | Becoming America: The Revolution Before 1776

Next time you think about the founders, remember that they were the products of a century-long cultural revolution that changed the world before the first shot was ever fired. Becoming America - Harvard University Press

Forget the image of the simple, self-sufficient pioneer. Butler reveals a colonial economy that was aggressive, profit-driven, and tied to international markets. Becoming America: The Revolution before 1776 fr...

The following blog post explores the themes of Jon Butler's book, . Next time you think about the founders, remember

By the mid-1700s, the colonies were home to an incredible variety of spiritual beliefs. While religious "modern revivals" signaled a renewed commitment to faith, they also grew out of a pluralistic environment where no single church held total authority. However, Butler reminds us that this emerging tolerance had a dark side: it rarely extended to the Native American or African populations, whose own spiritual traditions were often suppressed or decimated. 4. Politics Beyond the Town Hall The following blog post explores the themes of

Between 1680 and 1770, the British mainland colonies underwent a transformation that turned them into the world’s "first modern society". Long before George Washington took command, the DNA of modern America was already being spliced together. 1. A "Jumble of Peoples": The First Melting Pot

In 1680, most European settlers were English. By 1770, the colonies had become a "polyglot" society. Waves of Scots, Germans, Dutch, Swiss, and French Huguenots joined a landscape already inhabited by Native Americans and a rapidly growing population of enslaved Africans. This "unprecedented jumble of peoples" created a unique ethnic and racial diversity that we still recognize as fundamentally American today. 2. The Birth of Global Consumerism