Founding Fathers

In retrospect, this semester of History 120 has been an interesting one. I feel I have learned much and benefited greatly by learning new thoughts and information about the era of 1600s-1877 History.

So, in choosing a topic for this blog post, I wanted to focus on the big picture of the subject of History – Principles. When I have studied History over the past, I have learned many facts – but I have also been deeply imprinted with the ideals and/or principles of whoever I am studying. Thus, for the subject of this blog post, what better than

The Founding Fathers.

Let’s open with a bit of background history. The newspaper publisher, Warren G. Harding, then a Republican Senator, coined the phrase “Founding Fathers” in his keynote address to the 1916 Republican National Convention. He used it several times thereafter, most prominently in his 1921 inaugural address as President of the United States. (1)

Inside of the heading of ‘The Founding Fathers,’ there are two smaller groups – the Signers of the Declaration of Independence, and The Framers of the Constitution. The key men of these groups were Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, John Jay, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton. These men were well-educated, prominent leaders of their communities. Almost all had taken part in the American Revolution, and some were prominent figures in National Affairs. To say that they were well-qualified for their positions, is putting it lightly. All of these men, plus others, attended the Federal Convention of Philadelphia, where they debated and finally drafted the Constitution of the United States. (2) (3)

What were the principles of these Founding Fathers?

The following is a brief overview of the principles found in The Five Thousand Year Leap, and one chapter is devotes to each of these 28 principles.

Principle 1 - The only reliable basis for sound government and just human relations is Natural Law.

Natural law is God's law. There are certain laws which govern the entire universe, and just as Thomas Jefferson said in the Declaration of Independence, there are laws which govern in the affairs of men which are "the laws of nature and of nature's God."

Principle 2 - A free people cannot survive under a republican constitution unless they remain virtuous and morally strong.

"Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters." - Benjamin Franklin

Principle 3 - The most promising method of securing a virtuous people is to elect virtuous leaders.

"Neither the wisest constitution nor the wisest laws will secure the liberty and happiness of a people whose manners are universally corrupt. He therefore is the truest friend to the liberty of his country who tries most to promote its virtue, and who ... will not suffer a man to be chosen into any office of power and trust who is not a wise and virtuous man." - Samuel Adams

Principle 4 - Without religion the government of a free people cannot be maintained.

"Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports.... And let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion." - George Washington

Principle 5 - All things were created by God, therefore upon him all mankind are equally dependent, and to him they are equally responsible.

The American Founding Fathers considered the existence of the Creator as the most fundamental premise underlying all self-evident truth. They felt a person who boasted he or she was an atheist had just simply failed to apply his or her divine capacity for reason and observation.

Principle 6 - All mankind were created equal.

The Founders knew that in these three ways, all mankind are theoretically treated as:

1.      Equal before God.

2.      Equal before the law.

3.      Equal in their rights.

Principle 7 - The proper role of government is to protect equal rights, not provide equal things.

The Founders recognized that the people cannot delegate to their government any power except that which they have the lawful right to exercise themselves.

Principle 8 - Mankind are endowed by God with certain unalienable rights.

"Those rights, then, which God and nature have established, and are therefore called natural rights, such as are life and liberty, need not the aid of human laws to be more effectually invested in every man than they are; neither do they receive any additional strength when declared by the municipal [or state] laws to be inviolable. On the contrary, no human legislation has power to abridge or destroy them, unless the owner [of the right] shall himself commit some act that amounts to forfeiture." - William Blackstone

Principle 9 - To protect human rights, God has revealed a code of divine law.

"The doctrines thus delivered we call the revealed or divine law, and they are to be found only in the Holy Scriptures. These precepts, when revealed, are found by comparison to be really a part of the original law of nature, as they tend in all their consequences to man's felicity." - William Blackstone

Principle 10 - The God-given right to govern is vested in the sovereign authority of the whole people.

"The fabric of American empire ought to rest on the solid basis of the consent of the people. The streams of national power ought to flow immediately from that pure, original fountain of all legislative authority." - Alexander Hamilton

Principle 11 - The majority of the people may alter or abolish a government which has become tyrannical.

"Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes ... but when a long train of abuses and usurpations ... evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security." - Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence

Principle 12 - The United States of America shall be a republic.

"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America
and to the republic for which it stands...."

Principle 13 - A Constitution should protect the people from the frailties of their rulers.

"If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary.... [But lacking these] you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself." - James Madison

Principle 14 - Life and liberty are secure only so long as the rights of property are secure.

John Locke reasoned that God gave the earth and everything in it to the whole human family as a gift. Therefore the land, the sea, the acorns in the forest, the deer feeding in the meadow belong to everyone "in common." However, the moment someone takes the trouble to change something from its original state of nature, that person has added his ingenuity or labor to make that change. Herein lies the secret to the origin of "property rights."

Principle 15 - The highest level of prosperity occurs when there is a free-market economy and a minimum of government regulations.

Prosperity depends upon a climate of wholesome stimulation with four basic freedoms in operation:

1.      The Freedom to try.

2.      The Freedom to buy.

3.      The Freedom to sell.

4.      The Freedom to fail.

Principle 16 - The government should be separated into three branches.

"I call you to witness that I was the first member of the Congress who ventured to come out in public, as I did in January 1776, in my Thoughts on Government ... in favor of a government with three branches and an independent judiciary. This pamphlet, you know, was very unpopular. No man appeared in public to support it but yourself." - John Adams

Principle 17 - A system of checks and balances should be adopted to prevent the abuse of power by the different branches of government.

"It will not be denied that power is of an encroaching nature and that it ought to be effectually restrained from passing the limits assigned to it." - James Madison

Principle 18 - The unalienable rights of the people are most likely to be preserved if the principles of government are set forth in a written Constitution.

The structure of the American system is set forth in the Constitution of the United States and the only weaknesses which have appeared are those which were allowed to creep in despite the Constitution.

Principle 19 - Only limited and carefully defined powers should be delegated to government, all others being retained by the people.

The Tenth Amendment is the most widely violated provision of the bill of rights. If it had been respected and enforced America would be an amazingly different country than it is today. This amendment provides:

"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."

Principle 20 - Efficiency and dispatch require that the government operate according to the will of the majority, but constitutional provisions must be made to protect the rights of the minority.

"Every man, by consenting with others to make one body politic under one government, puts himself under an obligation to every one of that society to submit to the determination of the majority, and to be concluded [bound] by it." - John Locke

Principle 21 - Strong local self-government is the keystone to preserving human freedom.

"The way to have good and safe government is not to trust it all to one, but to divide it among the many, distributing to every one exactly the functions he is competent [to perform best]. - Thomas Jefferson

Principle 22 - A free people should be governed by law and not by the whims of men.

"The end of law is not to abolish or restrain, but to preserve and enlarge freedom. For in all the states of created beings, capable of laws, where there is no law there is no freedom. For liberty is to be free from restraint and violence of others, which cannot be where there is no law." - John Locke

Principle 23 - A free society cannot survive as a republic without a broad program of general education.

"They made an early provision by law that every town consisting of so many families should be always furnished with a grammar school. They made it a crime for such a town to be destitute of a grammar schoolmaster for a few months, and subjected it to a heavy penalty. So that the education of all ranks of people was made the care and expense of the public, in a manner that I believe has been unknown to any other people, ancient or modern. The consequences of these establishments we see and feel every day [written in 1765]. A native of America who cannot read and write is as rare ... as a comet or an earthquake." John Adams

Principle 24 - A free people will not survive unless they stay strong.

"To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace." - George Washington

Principle 25 - "Peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations -- entangling alliances with none."- Thomas Jefferson, given in his first inaugural address.

Principle 26 - The core unit which determines the strength of any society is the family; therefore the government should foster and protect its integrity.

"There is certainly no country in the world where the tie of marriage is more respected than in America, or where conjugal happiness is more highly or worthily appreciated." Alexis de Tocqueville

Principle 27 - The burden of debt is as destructive to human freedom as subjugation by conquest.

"We are bound to defray expenses [of the war] within our own time, and are unauthorized to burden posterity with them.... We shall all consider ourselves morally bound to pay them ourselves and consequently within the life [expectancy] of the majority." - Thomas Jefferson

Principle 28 - The United States has a manifest destiny to eventually become a glorious example of God's law under a restored Constitution that will inspire the entire human race.

The Founders sensed from the very beginning that they were on a divine mission. Their great disappointment was that it didn't all come to pass in their day, but they knew that someday it would. John Adams wrote:

"I always consider the settlement of America with reverence and wonder, as the opening of a grand scene and design in Providence for the illumination of the ignorant, and the emancipation of the slavish part of mankind all over the earth." (4)

 The Founding Fathers, as you can see, laid down many principles that related to many universal subjects.

The Constitution is not a document to be ‘interpreted’ at will, but it does have room for growth. The Founding Fathers provided, in the Constitution, the freedom to amend and change laws as the growing modern world sees fit, while still keeping the general guidelines. They established a government allowing us to write blogs like this one, and speak freely in public. They established a system of checks and balances with three powerful branches to our government being the executive branch, congress, and the judicial branch in order to prevent any one group from having too much power (which, has gone sadly awry). They established a system where ownership is possible, and motivation and drive respected, and they reduced the executive branch to an elected official with set terms that did not allow dictatorship. (5) The founded many good principles to build upon.

While I agree that the Founding Fathers should be admired, not worshipped, I feel that if political leaders today kept some of their principles in mind, our country might be in a better place.


Sources:

Bernstein, R.B. Founding Fathers Reconsidered. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc. 2009.

Data on the Framers of the Constitution. usconstitution.net. US Constitution Online, n.d.

America’s Founding Fathers: Delegates to the Constitutional Convention. archives.gov. The Charters of Freedom, n.d.

Over 150 volumes of the Founding Fathers original writings, minutes, letters, biographies, etc. distilled into The

Five Thousand Year Leap, by W. Cleon Skousen, published by National Center for Constitutional Studies, 1981.

The Founding Fathers: Admired, Not Worshipped. hubpages.com. Valerie Belew, n.d.

Reform

I chose the topic of ‘Reform’ for this blog post. In reading through ‘Give Me Liberty!’ by Eric Foner, I was really intrigued learning about all the groups and ‘resistances’ that sprung up all over the United States. Most of them I’d never heard of, so it was interesting learning about them and their policies.

In answering the question, “Were all of these movements really "reform" movements? That is, did all of these movements want substantive change in society or were they efforts to achieve a more uniform, homogenous society?” I tend to think that most of the movements really tried to achieve harmonious environments, but they just weren’t laid out correctly or the leaders had too high of ambitions. For example, in New Harmony, Robert Owen’s community in Indiana, he attempted to create a “new moral world.” (Foner, 416) “’The character of man is, without a single exception, always formed for him,’ Owen declared. Individuals could be transformed by changing the circumstances in which they lived. In Owen’s scheme, children would be removed at an early age from the care of their parents to be educated in schools where they would be trained to subordinate individual ambition to the common good. Owen also defended women’s rights, especially access to education and the right to divorce. At New Harmony, he promised, women would no longer be “enslaved” to their husbands, and the “false notions” about innate differences between the sexes would be abandoned.” (Foner, 416)

I believe Owen had the right ideas, but there was just too much freedom involved, as strange as that sounds, for the community to become really profitable. People were just not used to having that much freedom, I believe, so this ‘newness’ soon became too much to understand and undermined the whole operation.

Also, in answer to the beginning question, I think most of the movements really wanted to better the whole country as a whole, by starting small and ‘building it up from the ground,’ per se. They would work on starting their own little communities, and then gradually expanding from there.

They just didn’t realize that their ideas were just one small part of a huge nation, and there was no way to completely change the face of the US. Also, many people in the US saw the reform movements as “an attack on their own freedom.” (Foner, 417) They didn’t want their personal lives dictated to them. They preferred to be able to enjoy their freedom that they had received by living in the US. Many reformers spoke out about the evils of alcohol and sexual relationships, and the majority of the US preferred that their lives remained in their usual pattern. “’A Liberty Loving Citizen,’ of Worcester, MA, wondered what gave one group of citizens the right to dictate to others how to conduct their personal lives.”

Did the efforts of the reformers really work? Well, a few groups survived long enough to make a good impact. The Shakers and several other groups have been remembered over time, supposedly making a large enough impact to be recorded the history books. The Shakers, especially, worked hard for women’s rights, and are remembered for their participation in the Seneca Falls Convention, and also for their beautifully handcrafted furniture and wonderful cultural contributions.

Foner, Eric. Give me liberty! An American history. 2nd Seagull ed. New York: W.W.

Norton, 2009. Print.

The Boston Tea Party

"The battle, Sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave. Besides, Sir, we have no election. If we were base enough to desire it, it is now too late to retire from the contest. There is no retreat but in submission and slavery! Our chains are forged! Their clanking may be heard on the plains of Boston! The war is inevitable; and let it come! I repeat, Sir, let it come!"
~ Patrick Henry (rightwingnews.com)
I love how this quote seems to show the absolute freedom and excitement in Patrick Henry's countenance - his exuberance fairly oozes out of it. The story of the Boston Tea Party has long intrigued me as an American interested in the stories of the shaping of our country.
My primary source is an eyewitness account written by a participant in the Tea Party, George Hewes.
http://www.boston-tea-party.org/account-george-hewes.html

One of the reasons I picked this particular source is that I hope to address more topics on American freedom and individuality in future blogs. I felt like this was a broad enough topic to build upon.

First off, some history of the Boston Tea Party. Back in 1769, some 900,000 pounds of tea was consumed in the American colonies. As the Americans became more independent from England, however, and moving into the year 1773, their tea consumption dropped considerably. This was difficult for the East India Trading Co., as this threatened their livelihood quite a bit. Thus, the British government decided to levy a Tea tax upon the Colonists only, something that did not go over very well. In defiance, the colonists simply stopped drinking English tea.

On November 17, 1773, a British ship named the Dartmouth came into the Boston harbor, loaded with English tea. But the colonists would not give in so easily. They decided that they would not pay the tax, and send the tea right back to where it came from. But the ship owners would not sail back to England.

Desperate measures were needed. That night, 50 men dressed as Indians boarded the three ships containing tea and carefully opened the chests of tea, and dumped them overboard. They did not stir up trouble, make noise, or harm the owners of the ships. They simply did what they came to do, and left. This became known as the Boston Tea Party. (essortment.com)

The first thing I really noticed from reading this article was how peaceful, un-warlike their rebellion was. No fighting, killing, giving the British army any reason to come crack down on them. There was mention in the text that "We were surrounded by British armed ships, but no attempt was made to resist us." (essortment.com) Why, I asked? The British could have easily overpowered them, probably killing a few in the process, but at  least saved their tea and money spent in shipping. Did the British just not want to stir up trouble? Did they not want to 'bother'? A few options are possible. The most obvious of these is from this quote by Admiral Montague: Montague watched the affair from the fleet, but he took no action because of the cargo ships' position next to the wharf. "I could easily have prevented the Execution of this Plan," he wrote the following day in a report, "but must have endangered the Lives of many innocent People by firing upon the Town." (teachinghistory.org) So, their reasoning was that they didn't want to start a battle with the colonists by protesting their rebellion.


Another gathering from the post was how dedicated each and every Son of Liberty was to this cause. They didn't falter or grow fainthearted at the thought of pretty much marching right up under the nose of the British government and dumping 342 chests of tea overboard. The next day, the colonists noticed tea floating in giant masses on the ocean, and they rowed out in boats and made sure it was all wet so none could be salvaged. They could have easily kept some for themselves, as I have said before, tea was quite dear to them. But no - they stuck to their cause, and weren't swayed by any distraction. That takes true courageousness and fortitude.

Works cited:

“Quotes From The American Revolution.” http://www.rightwingnews.com/ Right Wing News, n.d. Web. February, 2011.

“Eyewitness Account by George Hewes.” http://www.boston-tea-party.org Boston Tea Party Historical Society, 2008. Web. February, 2011.

“History of Women and The Boston Tea Party 1773.” www.essortment.com Essortment: Your Source for Knowledge, n.d. Web. February, 2011.

“Why Were the Sons of Liberty Not Stopped by British Troops?” www.teachinghistory.org TeachingHistory.org, Ask A Historian, John Buescher, n.d. Web. February, 2011.