The American Revolution: A History

by Gordon S. Wood

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER“An elegant synthesis done by the leading scholar in the field, which nicely integrates the work on the American Revolution over the last three decades but never loses contact with the older, classic questions that we have been arguing about for over two hundred years.”—Joseph J. Ellis, author of Founding Brothers A magnificent account of the revolution in arms and consciousness that gave birth to the American republic. When Abraham Lincoln sought to define the significance of the United States, he naturally looked back to the American Revolution. He knew that the Revolution not only had legally created the United States, but also had produced all of the great hopes and values of the American people. Our noblest ideals and aspirations-our commitments to freedom, constitutionalism, the well-being of ordinary people, and equality-came out of the Revolutionary era. Lincoln saw as well that the Revolution had convinced Americans that they were a special people with a special destiny to lead the world toward liberty. The Revolution, in short, gave birth to whatever sense of nationhood and national purpose Americans have had. No doubt the story is a dramatic Thirteen insignificant colonies three thousand miles from the centers of Western civilization fought off British rule to become, in fewer than three decades, a huge, sprawling, rambunctious republic of nearly four million citizens. But the history of the American Revolution, like the history of the nation as a whole, ought not to be viewed simply as a story of right and wrong from which moral lessons are to be drawn. It is a complicated and at times ironic story that needs to be explained and understood, not blindly celebrated or condemned. How did this great revolution come about? What was its character? What were its consequences? These are the questions this short history seeks to answer. That it succeeds in such a profound and enthralling way is a tribute to Gordon Wood’s mastery of his subject, and of the historian’s craft.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, American Revolution, American History, Politics, American Revolutionary War, American

224 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 22, 2002

About the author

Gordon Stewart Wood is an American historian and professor at Brown University. He is a recipient of the 1993 Pulitzer Prize for History for The Radicalism of the American Revolution (1992). His book The Creation of the American Republic, 1776–1787 (1969) won the 1970 Bancroft Prize. In 2010, he was awarded the National Humanities Medal by President Barack Obama.

Reviews

[robin friedman · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Beginnings Of American Democracy

The American Revolution remains the formative event in our Nation's history. During the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln looked back to it to define the significance of the conflict and to restate the ideals and aspirations of our country.

In "The American Revolution: A History" the distinguished historian of the American Revolution, Gordon Wood, has written a succinct summary of the Revolution which will give the reader a good overview of the event. The book will allow the reader to think through for him or herself the meaning of our Revolution and to explore further through additional reading as indicated in the bibliography .

In the short compass of the study, Wood offers his own interpretation of the importance of the Revolution. It was the source of what he calls "middling democracy". By this phrase, Wood means that any person, regardless of social status, wealth or education had the right to pursue his or her own ends, to find value, and to seek his or her own self-defined interests and economic success. The Revolution broke the hierarchical structures of Europe. We are still, for Wood, living through and developing the insights and consequences of the Revolution.

I found the most interesting section of the book was the discussion of the French-Indian War and how it lead Great Britain to place an army on the frontier and to impose certain taxes to pay its cost. From these small beginnings, a Revolution grew. Wood presents a summary of the causes of the Revolution -- a topic difficult and fascinating in itself.

Wood briefly discusses the Revolutionary War, and spends somewhat more space discussing the Articles of the Confederation and the experiments of the various states with constitutionalism and independence. Wood has explored this ground before in his longer books, particularly his "The Radicalism of the American Revolution" and it is pivotal to his understanding of the formation of American democracy.

Finally Wood discusses the Constitutional Convention and the Federalist Anti-Federalist debate over the ratification of the Constitution. He discusses the significance of the Constitution as a written document (unlike the unwritten Constitution of England) and he suggests how the Constitution led, in a short time and in spite of the Framer's intentions, to the robust "middling democracy" that is the theme of his book.

The American Revolution was not one event, but several. (The break with England, War, Articles of Confederation, Constitution) Wood gives each attention here and shows how they were each integrated with the other to produce the beginnings of American democracy. Wood's account both gives an insightful view of the history and also encourages the reader to reflect on how the Revolution continues to shape our country and its values.

Robin Friedman

[Lona Manning · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've had some depressing encounters on Twitter lately with people who think that "Oh yeah? Slavery!" or "Oh yeah? Indians!" is all you need to say to shut down any praise of the Founders, as well as with people who fault the Founders because they didn't establish a Scandinavian-style social democracy with universal suffrage.
It's sent me back to the bookshelf for another round of reading. I intend to read more of what the Founders actually wrote because a lot of people now living in the nation they established seem to believe they had pretty selfish motives. And remember that writing was a laborious process back then, dipping the quill pen in the ink, working by candlelight. So it seems odd that the Founders spent so much time writing about liberty, and how to protect and preserve the republic, and the threat of tyrannical government and how to limit government from taking over our lives, when, according to their modern-day critics, they only cared about making money and oppressing poor people.
This book gives the big picture, the American Revolution at 20,000 feet, so to speak. It discusses the events of the Revolution and more importantly the progress and the evolution of the thinking that produced the Revolution and the Constitution that followed. It lays out the arguments made by the people who rebelled against King George III, and gives an explanation of what they hoped to accomplish. I found myself highlighting passage after passage.
Many countries have had revolutions and all too often, a tyrant (Robespierre, Napoleon, Lenin, Mao, Castro, Mugabe) takes over and destroys the egalitarian dream of the people who supported the revolution. They throw off one tyrant to find themselves under a new tyranny. But because we had Washington, Jefferson and Madison, etc, that didn't happen in the USA. As the book notes, Washington drew world-wide acclaim and wonder for stepping down and returning to his plantation at the end of his presidency.
Wood also discusses the changes the Revolution brought about in education, the fifth estate and charitable organizations. "Unlike liberals of the twenty-first century, the most liberal-minded of the eighteenth century tended to see society as beneficent and government as malevolent." Its pretty much reversed today. So it's very worthwhile to review what the Founders actually said and believed.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short book. It isn't about the Revolutionary War (although the war is part of it). It's about all the revolutions in government, economics, culture, and society that we ordinary folk clump together and misinterpret when we refer to the American Revolution. The Revolution was anything but a military revolution; in fact, it was a revolution in just about everything but that. And the author does a fantastic job of revealing just how revolutionary the Revolution was.

It's a quick read and a great introduction for those who wouldn't be able to give a 2 minute talk about the Revolution if our lives depended on it.

[Greg Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very slick book that, in a slim 160ish pages, draws out the environment, causes, and course of the revolution all the way to the ratification of the Constitution.

The lovely thing is that despite the concision, this is a book written for actual, serious adults that respects your intelligence and briskly lays out the social structure of colonial-era America. With a fraction of the word-count it can’t quite compare with the richness of the best other works the era, but gets admirably close.

The one concession to popular history writing: no footnotes. But the extended bibliography almost makes up for it, even if it’s over two decades old now.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

After my undergraduate history degree focusing on the American Revolution, this book is a nice overview now that I am 3 years out of college. It's an easy read without too many names and dates to make your eyes glaze over. He does lean heavily towards Ben Franklin, but that is only natural as he has done biographies on the man. Rather than get caught up in the details of the Revolution, the reader sees the big picture and how the events relate to one another.

[James Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great primer for someone whose high school education took place in Canada; probably a good refresher for others. Succinct overview from pre-Revolutionary background to ratification of the Constitution by a scholar who wrote one of the definitive histories. I learned more than I care to admit. ;-)

[Jenni Lithgow · Rating 1 out of 5]

I should preface this review by saying, the only history books I read are biographies. I find them completely absorbing, so I thought I'd enjoy some "overall history" books. But, either history books just aren't as great as biographies, or this book was sort of total crap.

More specifically. . .

I felt like it was way too much information crammed in to way too short of a volume (only 166 pages). Clearly, the goal here was to give a brief overview, but instead of being a scratch-the-surface sort of a deal, it felt more like a bajillion and one tedious details all smashed together - and not in consecutive order, either, which I always think makes things more confusing then they need to be. I felt like this should-be-interesting topic was made a bit dry and boring, and on top of that, I kept getting the feeling that I was reading a high school term paper.

I'm a bit disillusioned with this genre of books as a result of reading this one, and am less excited about the other three I've bought and was thinking of reading soon. . .

[Chad Manske · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part of our National War College Domestic Context course reading, this Pulitzer Prize winning book from renowned Constitutional scholar Wood takes the reader on a whirlwind tour beginning with the roots of the Revolution all the way through the Federalist/Anti-Federalist debates. A portable and worthy read!

[Piker7977 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This little book packs an informative punch! The reader gets a good history of the Revolution following the French and Indian War all the way through the ratification of the Constitution of the United States. Not only is this book a political history but it also touches on the substantial transformations the Revolution brought on society, religion, and business. For the historian or nerd, this is also a sampling of Gordon Wood's greatest hits as it condenses many ideas from his much longer and thorough works into an accessible study of the birth of America.

This book, Timothy Snyder's On Tyranny, and copies of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution should be shoved in every mailbox and taught, thoroughly and enthusiastically, in every classroom.

[Aaron Gibbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderfully concise account of events preceding, during, and following the American Revolution. Of course, as an abridged amalgamation of some of Wood's other works, it is lacking in some detail. For more on the ideological shifts during this period, or on the critical period and the making of the Constitution, read The Radicalism of the American Revolution or The Creation of the American Republic, respectively. Robert M. Middlekauf's The Glorious Cause is another excellent one-volume history of the American Revolution, particularly for those in search of a more detailed account.

[Tom Bottern · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a compact political and military history of the US spanning 1760-1790. The first half is a very helpful overview of the social upheaval and military conflict. The second half is much more a political history of the postwar developments that led to the constitution. Reading this gave me new perspective on the Constitution as a reaction to the “excesses” of democracy that emerged under the articles of confederation.
Wood is at the top of his field and his been for a long time. I would say that if you’re even mildly nterested in this era you need to read him.

[Bookluvr7 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Knowing this was going to be a time period book that I really didn’t care about, made me go into this book with a little bit of doubt. However, I think this book actually made the American Revolution before and after more intriguing than what you learn in school. I think Wood did a very good job at explaining the different ways as to how the revolution occurred and why we are still the America we are today. Overall a good history book. 4/5 stars.

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

Professor Wood, considered by many to be one of the better historians of the American Revolution, has written perhaps the classic summary of the conflict that founded one nation,ended the first empire of another and has changed the world. What sets this book, at less than a 170 pages, is its conciseness and ability to sum up many and large complicated issues well.

Wood does a wonderful job if explaining how a struggle between 13 of Britain's 21 North American colonies was virtually inevitable due to many circumstances that were surely incomprehensible at first, and to hard to untangle afterwards when the issues were of the present day, until all at once, individuals who would rather not, were forced to choose sides. The unusual thing about the American Revolution, is that both sides were choosing between two different types of traditionalism, and were forced to fight a contemporary battle among issues that had divided English speaking peoples since early Norman times, over 600 years in the past. As Wood easily explains, a series of disputes over trade acts and taxes hardly seems like the justification to start the world anew, especially considering that the Revolution saw a huge proportion of military and civilian deaths, leading to economic destruction and civil war in many of the colonies.

Wood only spends 14 whole pages on direct discussion on the military conflict proper, though a reader will not come away with misunderstandings about how the conflict developed or why it was concluded the way it was. The strategic limitations of the British military, not least of which was that were told to wage general war on people most of their office class considered to be as much their countrymen as a Scotchman or Welshman, in the fast American frontier, are explained crisply.

Along the way, Wood does a fine job of explaining why the culture of the American colonies was more united than they gave themselves credit for, why it was overwhelmingly optimistic, with a bent on radical equality of the sort that British people had not hoped for in over 400 years. Wood quotes a British traveler in America from 1759 who writes of the American urgency to rise to the point where the American British reached their destiny to write the laws of the rest of civilization. From that frame of reference, of a new American nation, built with the best of British hopes of tradition, law and religion is how Wood has framed the story of the American Revolution. The book is recommended in the highest way.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was looking for a brief overview of the American Revolution, and I found it. It is hard to believe that so much information and insight can be found in just 165 pages.

Gordon S. Wood's The American Revolution: A History summarizes the events surrounding the revolution, and places them in a context that you do not get in K-12 education. Many of the details are not given. For example, why a certain battle was not won, etc. Those are details for other books. What I found here was the societal and theoretical context through which to understand the revolution itself.

What I found most fascinating, perhaps, is just how modern the issues of the 1770-1780s seem in relation to the issues of today. We often have a sense that 200 or 250 years ago, people were less advanced or more naive than today. But for a ocean of difference in technology, there really is not much difference. We still grapple with the issues of state sovereignty versus federal authority, and with a class system that seems to dominate elected offices. Issues of race and equality were not misunderstood, though they were often ignored or distorted.

The book is easy to read and fluid. I found the writing to be erudite without being stuffy and boring. The larger context of what England was doing before the revolution and why the colonists rebelled is well explained, along with descriptions of England's reactions and efforts to make peace. I learned many things about England's response to the revolution here that I didn't learn in school (or I have forgotten).

What I liked about the book is that it has encouraged me to read more about the era. I plan to read other books to fill in details that were just skimmed in this summary. I'm not sure you can ask for more from a brief and concise survey work.

[Nick Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

At a little less than 170 pages, this volume on The American Revolution is perfect for any amateur historian. Not only does it describe the calamitous war which broke out first at Lexington and Concord, but it also painstakingly details the contentious array of events which impelled the American people to their separation with Great Britain. Drawing on a number of decades as a professor of history, Wood is able to be what he is: an expert on the Revolutionary period. Wood then goes on to describe the way Americans, once the British were defeated, gradually came to solve the bigger problem of how they would be governed. After Shays' rebellion and the period of time when state governments became corrupt in ways, the general consensus of lawmakers was to drastically change the Articles of Confederation, scrapping it, and outline their plan of republican government. Wood is quick to note that although the Federalists did get their way in some of the reforms, ultimately it was the Anti-Federalists who came to dominate American politics in the following generation. And with this point, he proves that American politics is unpredictable, that if you think you know what's going to happen, you might wind up dead wrong. Along with a copious bibliography, the book is perfect and concise enough to manage in a week. I highly recommend it! Five stars.

[Brian Willis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This the deepest concise version of the American Revolution out there, not simply a rehashing of the facts but rather a profound analysis of the reasons and the causes and the effects of the colonial rebellion.

If you ask the person on the street, they will most likely respond with the shallowest reasons for the rebellion: "freedom", "tyranny", and the like. These terms betray a profound misunderstanding of the revolution: what exactly were loyal English subjects rebelling against? It turns out, according to Wood, that the rural, remote American rebelled against concentrations of power outside of their sphere that dominated their lives. This rebellion is traced by Wood through its progressions in taxation, armed rebellion, and finally the establishment of American government with the US Constitution. Other books will give a deeper analysis and more thorough investigations but that is not Wood's job here. This is a superb book for those who want a quick overview of the Revolution, a brief refresher course, or simply Wood's own acclaimed take on its importance: the radicalism of the farming class rejecting remote financial power centers that stretched into the pockets of the working class.

[Greg Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliantly compact general survey of the American Revolution, starting with the factors that led up to it and ending with the ratification of the constitution. Speaking as someone whose elementary, middle, and high schools covered it mostly on a military and mythic level - with the historiography stalled out somewhere in the 19th century - the book did an amazing job of illustrating the true variety of causes and contexts that this seminal event held. I know most readers come at this subject through the biographies of various Founding Fathers, but if you're going to read one book about the American Revolution, this should be it.

Plus the bibliography is probably the most badass bibliography I have ever read, essentially a roadmap to what you should read if you're interested in any specific facet of the subject.

[Jc · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful short introduction/summary/review (depending on your level of history reading) of the Revolutionary period in America. The book is more than the title promises. It doesn't just outline the war. In fact, the actual Revolution takes up only a small portion of the book. The rest is telling what lead to the war, what life was like for those who lived in the soon-to-be United States at the time, and how the Revolution changed the politics, economy, and daily life of Americans, and how it affected the world at large. Fascinating how much Wood could squeeze into only 200 some pages, and still give the reader and exciting, readable narrative with lots of details. Highly recommended to anyone who would like to review the founding of the country.

[Cherif Jazra · Rating 1 out of 5]

Real bad, full of generalities, platitudes, and mythologizing. the author doesn’t try to make us understand much of what was happening, but remains at a 20,000 ft requiring leap of faith from his readers in almost every other paragraph. One of the worst book I have read, given that I have already read many books on the topics. I am very skeptical this would be even a decent book for beginners. Nothing much original that hasn’t been written before.

[Dan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a short, solid review of the American Revolution. In one sense I was disappointed in this book. It breaks no new ground, has no new or surprising insights to share. On the other hand, it doesn't leave anything indispensable out. This is a thorough non-controversial, conventional overview of the American Revolution. Recommended for those who know little or nothing about this period in American history.

[SJ L · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most concise, bang for your buck, and informative history of the American Revolution. Each chapter is meticulously researched, wonderfully presented and careful to provide multiple perspectives. This is the kind of history book with no "filler" text or unnecessary rambling. It's almost as if you could underline every sentence because each has so much to offer. This book is outstanding.

[James M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short (very), concise (extremely) survey of all aspects - economic, political, philosophical, military - of the Revolution which, several times, made me think that I was reading a school textbook because of its reach. Nevertheless, I’m always able to find interesting nuggets of hitherto unknown (to me, at least) information even from a survey. A good read.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written, but not entirely about the Revolution. I was expecting a book about the Revolutionary War, but instead found that it was about the Revolution that brought about changes that changed the culture of America.

[Pete Stevenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best American Revolution review book there is. It does not go into depth on any one subject, but it explains everything very easily, and is very short (~200 pages).

[Sean Chick · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent overview of the Revolution and Gordon Wood's interpretation of the Revolution.

[Martha Swiercz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is pretty much like your typical American Revolution history book, retelling the same old story about America's independence from Britain, even though this mainly covers the cultural part of the Revolution. The main issue I had with this book is that it's not very engaging, at least for someone who likes learning about history (despite it not being my major).

I'm not saying that I disliked this book, and I'm not saying it's a bad book either, but I think it didn't tell enough for it to be a "true" history book, and it was half-baked at parts, which is why my rating for this book is as low as it is.

In summary, this book is fine for what it is; it's just that it doesn't have many points of interest. It's not the best or worst history book I've read, but overall, it's a solid reading experience if you're taking an American history class and can honestly make for a good source when writing essays.

[Watto Nick · Rating 1 out of 5]

Absolute trash!

I picked up this book thinking, as it's title depicts 'A History' of the American Revolution not a book personal opinion of the revolution

All seriousness this book is the stereotypical mentality of American patriotism that most non America's despise.
With statements such as 'the revolution is the greatest achievement that stunned the French and indeed the rest of the world.'
When in fact no one outside the colonies in 1776 knew what the hell America was!

Woods gloats about American's at the time of the revolution being at the forefront of progression, equality, enlightenment and of course libertarianism.

In reality America in 1776

Had 25% of it's population in slavery.

Woman were treated only slightly better than slaves (considered to be property).

Massacred the indigenous population.

And each colony was not united at all they actually despised each other.

I feel as though there are many things about this book that if told from a neutral stand point would be a better read

But if you want to read 170 pages (or so) of Gordon Wood talk about how great America is and how much better they were than the rest of the world then this is the book for you.

[Jakob Myers · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

It is really good stuff, I was just left wanting for more. Understandably, that is sort of the point. It is a smaller pamphlet of sorts to summarize Woods' historical analysis. Yet, even still, it felt as though major events were brushed over in mere paragraphs. Felt more for those wanting an overview of the Revolution than in depth historical analysis.

Read it for a class. Despite everything above, still a solid read.

[Joe Archino · Rating 4 out of 5]

“When in the midst of the Civil War Abraham Lincoln sought to define the significance of the United States, he naturally looked back to the American Revolution. He knew that the Revolution not only had legally created the United States, but also had produced all of the great hopes and values of the American people. The noblest ideals and aspirations of Americans - their commitments to freedom, constitutionalism, the well-being of ordinary people, and equality, especially equality - came out of the Revolutionary era. But Lincoln saw as well that the Revolution had convinced Americans that they were a special people with a special destiny to lead the world toward liberty. The Revolution, in short, gave birth to whatever sense of nationhood and national purpose Americans have had.” - Gordon S. Wood, "The American Revolution: A History"

President Abraham Lincoln embodied and understood the essence of America as well as any mighty figure the nation has ever produced. Born into a life of crushing poverty, the story of Lincoln’s youth on the frontier in Kentucky, Indiana, and Illinois was defined by hard work, hardship, and heartbreak. Despite the tough hand he was dealt when he started out in life, Lincoln was able to rise to greatness in America by way of his own unique talents, his perseverance and spirit, and his own resolution to succeed. As Lincoln once told a group of soldiers at the presidential palace during the Civil War, “I happen temporarily to occupy this big White House. I am a living witness that any one of your children may look to come here as my father’s child has.”

As an astute student of American history, Lincoln understood that the principle of equality was a key tenet of the American ethos. He regarded the nation’s founding document, the Declaration of Independence, as the “immortal emblem of Humanity,” and its sacred words perfectly captured what the nation stood for: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” The lesson that Lincoln shared with those soldiers at the White House during the summer of 1864 was a reminder of the power behind America’s fundamental principles. As Lincoln put it, his life was a testimony to the ideals that America strived to uphold: human equality, freedom, and opportunity; ideals that had to be preserved and fully lived up to by winning the Civil War and abolishing slavery. Lincoln wanted to make it clear that if he could begin life in a one-room log cabin and eventually go on to call the White House his home, so too could his fellow countrymen sincerely dream that in this land of hope, their children also had the chance to rise in the world and achieve greatness on their own terms.

The immense hope that gave light to the life of Abraham Lincoln and so many others over the course of American history would not have been possible without the enormous sacrifices made by America’s Founding Fathers to secure American Independence and forge an American republic. As historian Gordon S. Wood explains, republicanism, a political philosophy in which the power of government rests in the hands of the people, was the ideology that fueled the American Revolution. For the Founding Fathers, equality was a key tenet of republicanism. In fact, as one of those Founders, David Ramsay of South Carolina, put it, equality was the very “life and soul” of republicanism. This commitment to building an American republic dedicated to liberty, equality, and opportunity put the young nation at odds with the rest of the world. As Wood adds, at this time in history “most governments were monarchies [meaning they were ruled by a king or sovereign of some kind], and republicanism was their enemy.” Despite facing great odds and opposition, the Founders pressed on to build what they hoped would serve as a beacon of hope for the rest of the world. As the great Alexander Hamilton put it, “The preservation of the sacred fire of liberty, and the destiny of the Republican model of Government, are justly considered as deeply, perhaps as finally staked, on the experiment entrusted to the hands of the American people.”

In another note on republicanism, Gordon Wood writes, “In a republic individuals were no longer destined to be what their fathers were. Ability, not birth or whom one knew, was what mattered.” As Abraham Lincoln fully comprehended, those conditions are what made it possible for him to rise from poverty to the presidency. It seems only fitting, and also quite a blessing, that when the American “experiment” faced its greatest test of survival during the Civil War, Lincoln was the one at the helm to ensure that the last best hope of man did not perish from the earth.

I owe these observations to my reading of "The American Revolution: A History" by Gordon S. Wood. Regarded as one of the foremost experts on the American founding and the Revolutionary era, Wood is always a wise source to consult when studying the political origins of the United States. In "The American Revolution," Wood provides a solid 166-page primer on the Revolutionary period and the birth of the American republic, making this book a great starting point to build a base of knowledge before moving on to more lengthy works on the subject.

[Blaine Welgraven · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Thus despite the patrician sense of gentlemanly distinction expressed by Revolutionary leaders—a frank and unabashed commitment to elitism that profoundly separated them from us today—what in the end remains remarkable is the degree to which they accepted the equality of all people.”—Gordon S. Wood, The American Revolution