Disunion Among Ourselves

The Perilous Politics of the American Revolution

Häftad, Engelska, 2025

AvEli Merritt

359 kr

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Winner of the 2024 Society of the Cincinnati Prize from the American Revolution InstituteIn this eye-opening account, Eli Merritt reveals the deep political divisions that almost tore the Union apart during the American Revolution. So fractious were the founders’ political fights that they feared the War of Independence might end in disunion and civil war.Instead of disbanding into separate regional confederacies, the founders managed to unite for the sake of liberty and self-preservation. In so doing, they succeeded in holding the young nation together. To achieve this, they forged grueling compromises, including Declaration of Independence in 1776, the Mississippi-Fisheries Compromise of 1779, and the ratification of the Articles of Confederation in 1781.In addition to bringing new insights to the history of the American Revolution, Disunion Among Ourselves has inevitable resonances with our present era of political hyperpolarization and serves as a touchstone for contemporary politics, reminding us that the founders overcame far tougher times than our own through commitment to ethical constitutional democracy and compromise.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum2025-10-15
Mått152 x 229 x 36 mm
Vikt708 g
FormatHäftad
SpråkEngelska
Antal sidor456
FörlagUniversity of Missouri Press
ISBN9780826223463

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Eli Merritt is a political historian at Vanderbilt University who specializes in the founding era of the United States. A frequent public speaker, he lectures widely on the founding fathers, the American Revolution, the Constitution, patriotism, civic virtue, leadership, and the intersection of demagogues and democracy. He has written for academic journals as well as national news outlets like The New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and Chicago Tribune. Merritt writes a blow-by-blow account, "The Story of the American Revolution," in his Substack newsletter (www.elimerritt.substack.com). To inquire about speaking engagements and interviews, visit elimerritt.com.

Acknowledgments/ ixIntroduction/ 3Part One: First Congress to the Trial of Independence Chapter 1:“Civil Wars Among Ourselves”/ 19Chapter 2:“Unite or Die”/ 41Chapter 3:South Carolina Withdraws/ 57Chapter 4:“A Fatal Issue to Our Union”/ 77Chapter 5:“Intestine Wars and Convulsions”/ 99Chapter 6:“Colonies Might Secede from the Union”/ 123Chapter 7:“A Firm League of Friendship”/ 135 Part Two: Alliance, Confederation, and Crisis of Union Chapter 8:The Mississippi and Fisheries/ 151Chapter 9:“The Very Salvation of These States”/ 167Chapter 10:“North Against South”/ 185Chapter 11:The Mississippi and Fisheries Again/ 209Chapter 12:Crisis of Union/ 227 Part Three: First Constitution and the Perils of Peace Chapter 13:“The Body Politic Is Sick, Sick Indeed!”/ 243Chapter 14:“A Confederation of Very Dissonant Parts”/ 257Chapter 15:“The Power of Britain in These StatesIs Now Broken”/ 275Chapter 16:“Symptoms of Disunion”/ 293Chapter 17:“Le Washington de la Negotiation”/ 309Chapter 18:“The Greatest Empire in the World”/ 321Chapter 19:“Stained with the Blood of Her Sons”/ 337Chapter 20:“United We Stand, Divided We Fall”/ 353 Notes/ 371Bibliography/ 411Index/ 427

“Disunion Among Ourselves tells an important story that has been missed or skipped over in nearly all histories of the Revolution. It has indeed, as promised, recovered ‘a whole area of the Revolution’ previously underappreciated, and for that is invaluable.”—Richard Kreitner, writer and historian, author of Break It Up: Secession, Division, and the Secret History of America’s Imperfect Union