Book Review of Edmund S. Morgan's The Birth of the Republic, 1763-89.

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Recommended: Comparing the articles of confederation and the constitution

Edmund Sears Morgan, the author of, The Birth of the Republic, was a Sterling Professor of History at Yale University. Morgan's studies focused on American colonial history and English history. He wrote many books examining the colonial period and the period of Revolution, an example of which is The Birth of the Republic. He is also known for writing a best-selling biography of Benjamin Franklin.1
In The Birth of the Republic, Morgan tells the story of the birth of America and its road to independence, as well as the period after the Revolutionary War, in a blunt and concise manner. He begins by describing an era in which American civilians lived happily, enjoying an appropriate amount of freedom under the ruling of England; their owned property guaranteed their freedom. As soon as the Parliament of England imposed taxes American people after the costly war with France, Americans' freedom was threatened. The book briefly describes the revolutionary war since it is not meant to examine the military aspect excessively. Furthermore, Morgan thoroughly described how the Articles of Confederation was reformed to become the United States Constitution, explaining that it was due to the fact that state governments enjoyed too much power, while central (federal) government was too weak.
The author takes into the humanitarian aspect of revolution in prospect; he talks about how Americans wanted to be equal to Englishmen in respect to being represented in the House of Parliament. The "Stamp Act" is what the thoughts of the author are revolving around. Morgan associated the "Stamp Act" with what he believes Americans have reached before anyone else in the world which is "human equality." They have done so by denying that new taxes and tariffs...

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...ents with evidence, which may have hurt his credibility and perspicacity.
The author cites works that he says helped him form his ideas consciously and subconsciously; first of which is George Bancroft's History of the United States of America (Vol. 2); in which Bancroft answers the question "How did the United States come into being as a nation dedicated to principles of liberty and equality?" with utter confidence, according to Morgan.2 Bancroft was born in the post-revolution era in Massachusetts; his father was a revolutionary soldier and an author, which may have made his work biased toward the Patriots rather than the loyalists.

Works Cited

1.Yale University. "Department of History." Accessed January 28, 2014. http://www.yale.edu/history/faculty/morgan.html.
2.Morgan, Edmund S. The Birth of the Republic, 1763-89. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1992.

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