Did It Really Take Courage?

College of Political Knowledge

Subject:  Early American History

I enjoy and study the period in early US history, 1750-1820….this was a time when a lot could go wrong in the Colonies….and the merchant class was a ticking bomb waiting for the best time to assert their influence……

Today we celebrate the signing of the Declaration of Independence, but it was submitted on the 4th and finally signed on the 6th of July…..my readers are well aware that I do not worship at the alter of Jefferson…actually I firmly believe that he compiled the DoI, especially the thoughts that were offered up by Thomas Paine in “Commonsense”………he spent his time working from notes for the final draft of the DoI…….

Many students and people have commented on the extreme courage it took for the Founders to sign the document….I will agree that it took a degree of courage but it was not a blind courage of the outcome of their action……(This part ought get the fir a flying)…….in my opinion the history of Early America has been romanticized for the sake of patriotism….making more of the Founders than they were……

Do not get me wrong……I admire the men that put their names to the document but they may not be the supermen a lot of people and academics want them to be……I know you want to know just what makes me think this of our Founders, right?

In 1775 the Founders sent the Olive Branch Petition to the king and he went ballistic and called the Colonies as a rebel state…….Lexington Concord showed that the locals could take on the best military in the world and hold their own…..and then Breed’s Hill where the colonials met a large Brit military force and held its own and caused many causalities for the Brits…..the Founders felt that England’s military might not be the cohesive force that they told them they were and there was a possibility that they could fight the Crown to a draw and possible to a loss……at this point in history the English army had fought many wars and won most of them……but in replacing their losses had given them men with little training and not the tradition that we hear so much about…….and armed with this information some of the Founders, the radical ones, thought that the Colonies had a real chance of success.

All history is revisionist…..and since there are NO Founders left for us to interrogate we must depend on their writings, speeches, letters and other memorabilia left behind…..the Founders were men and being men were not infallible….regardless what academics and their works would have you believe…..

6 thoughts on “Did It Really Take Courage?

  1. “Lexington Concord showed that the locals could take on the best military in the world and hold their own”

    To be fair on the Brits, they only had a 2nd or even 3rd starting team in North America. The great majority of their best equipped ground forces were in Europe dealing with on-going wars with and against Germany, Austria, France, Russia, Sweden, Spain and Portugal, a huge contingent was in India fighting non-stop battles, and 80% of their naval forces were busy blockading the French and finishing off the Spanish and Portuguese.

    1. So true….but it makes us yanks feel better to pretend that they were the top of the line soldiers…..our ego would be shattered if the truth came out….

      1. Yeah, I debated whether or not to post that comment, then i figured you already knew :)

        But fairs-fair… for a reactionary movement that started out as little more than armed farm boys you guys did do remarkably well. Australia never had a revolution. We asked politely for independence and the Queen said, “Sure, why not.”

      2. Different era. The empire wasn’t what it used to be and a big friend sitting below Malaysia and Singapore was probably considered better than an enemy.

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