Constitutional Chats Presented By Constituting America

Constitutional Chats Presented By Constituting America

Signing the Declaration of Independence was just the beginning.  Now the colonists and Founding Fathers had to get the word out that it had been signed and gain public support for independence. Our guest today, Professor Jonathan Den Hartog explains how in the days immediately following the signing of the Declaration of Independence, we had to figure out how this Declaration would affect the colonists, congress and the army.  Professor Den Hartog is Professor and Chair of the Department of History at Samford University.   

Constitutional Chats Presented By Constituting America

We have finally arrived at the 250th Anniversary of our independence: our country’s 250th birthday!   To celebrate America 250, Constituting America produced a vertical series called “The Pursuit” to reimagine some of the stories of our founding generation.  For our show today, we invited our talented cast of actors to speak on their experience with this project, what they learned and to participate in a reading of that magnificent document, The Declaration of Independence.

Constitutional Chats Presented By Constituting America

As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, this presents a great time to not only recognize the philosophical foundation of our country but also to admire the sheer beauty of the United States bound by the principles espoused in our founding documents of constitutional self-government.  Our guest today has done just that.  We are honored to welcome Matt Mehan, author of "The American Book of Fables.”  In this beautiful book, Matt and his illustrator traveled extensively across the country to reimagine Aesop’s Fables for the...

Constitutional Chats Presented By Constituting America

The Marquis de Lafayette came to America as a young man to aid the colonists in the American Revolution.  He would return 47 years later at the invitation of President James Monroe and Congress to tour the country in the lead-up to our country’s 50th birthday.  On this return trip, he received a true rockstar welcome wherever he went as he toured all 24 states.  As we now prepare to celebrate our nation’s 250th birthday, we want to revisit the extraordinary legacy of this great man in service to our country.  To help us do so, we are honored to welcome Chuck...

Constitutional Chats Presented By Constituting America

It’s a year after the Battles of Lexington and Concord and only days before the Declaration of Independence would be signed. It’s June 1776 and along the shores of South Carolina, British troops are amassing while the colonists rush to construct Fort Sullivan out of the local palmetto logs which would later be commemorated on that state’s flag and in its nickname.  After a day of fighting involving 10,000 British and American troops, the British abandoned their effort and the patriots proved they could compete in battle with the British Army and Navy.  To walk us through this...

Constitutional Chats Presented By Constituting America

Did you know two years after Paul Revere’s famous ride, there was a second ride made by a teenaged woman?  That’s right. On April 26, 1777, 16-year old Sybil Ludington rode 40 miles throughout the night to alert and rally American militiamen to participate in a planned attack organized by her father, Col. Henry Ludington,  on British troops near Danbury, Connecticut.  To walk us through this historic event, what led up to it and its aftermath in the American Revolution, we are honored to welcome Libby McNamee.  Libby is a public speaker, lawyer, Army...

Constitutional Chats Presented By Constituting America

The story of Elizabeth “Mumbet” is inspirational.  Born into slavery in New York in 1744, she spent most of her life in Massachusetts.  Following the ratification of the new Massachusetts Constitution in 1780 which stated in Article 1, “All men are born free and equal and have certain natural, essential, and unalienable rights…,”Mumbet sued for her freedom.  She won and her court victory set the legal precedent that ended slavery in Massachusetts.  To further illustrate this remarkable woman and her victory, we are pleased to welcome  Dr. Lucas Morel,...

Constitutional Chats Presented By Constituting America

Regular followers of Constituting America know we view the Declaration of Independence as one of the greatest documents ever written.  An interesting point to ponder is that it had to come from somewhere, that there was a buildup to its drafting.  We can point to a moment in history as the beginning of that buildup: the 5th Virginia Convention that took place immediately after a vote to disband the House of Burgesses.  It was in the 5th Virginia Convention that Virginia’s vote for independence took place.  To help further explain this extraordinary timeline and series of...

Constitutional Chats Presented By Constituting America

The American Revolution obviously changed the course of American History.  That’s a given.  Have you ever contemplated how that singular event changed the course of world history over the ensuing centuries?  Think of how the American Revolution weakened the British and Spanish Empires and as our guest discusses, “it gives rights seekers everywhere a new vocabulary.”  To discuss this fascinating topic, we are delighted to welcome Richard Bell, author of “The American Revolution and the Fate of the World” and professor of history at the...

Constitutional Chats Presented By Constituting America

As a teenager, he dropped out of college and served in the in the 3rd Virginia Regiment in the Continental Army.  After studying law under Thomas Jefferson, he later served in the Virginia House of Delegates, as the US Ambassador to France and England, as governor of Virginia, as the Secretary of War and then Secretary of State. Finally, in March 1817, James Monroe became our country’s 5th President and in 1823 he famously introduced the Monroe Doctrine.  Quite a legacy for a teenager wounded in the Battle of Trenton at just 18 years old.  To help us better...