The Birth of the Republic by Edmund S. Morgan: Book Review

"The Birth of The Republic," written by renowned historian Edmund S. Morgan, presents a concise, engaging account of the birth of America, accomplished in a brief span of about twenty-five years. Morgan, the Sterling Professor Emeritus of Yale University and author of "dozens of books on Puritan and early colonial history," ¹ presents to the reader a very unique premise concerning the Revolutionary era: he states that the catalyst for the fight for independence was one of an economic nature that soon evolved into being a fight for equality among all men.

The book begins with an examination of the relationship between the English Parliament and the colonies. Initially comfortable, the relationship quickly deteriorates due to Parliament's taxation of the colonists without colonial representation in Parliament itself. The issue of taxation thus serves as the catalyst for the independence movement, in that economic liberty equated to political and social liberty in the minds of the colonists. This is emphasized by the fact that property ownership was of paramount importance, for it "...gave not only economic independence but also political independence to the average American."²

Morgan utilizes only a handful of pages to discuss the actual war itself, but as the book is not meant to be a military analysis, this is not a drawback. To combat this, however, Morgan expends a great deal of energy explaining how the Articles of Confederation eventually evolved into the U.S. Constitution. He presents a clear picture of how and why the Articles failed - too much power was placed in the hands of the states rather than in the hands of the central government - and the steps taken by the colonies to alleviate the problems resulting from that failure. The end result was the creation of the U.S. Constitution, which was and continues to be the foundation of our government.

Morgan ends the text of the book with his discussion on the U.S. Constitution and its ratification. Yet the book does not actually end there. Included as an appendix are the main documents of the period: the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, the U.S. Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. They provide the reader a wonderful opportunity to see the documents that played such pivotal roles in the creation of a new nation. Also included is a timeline of the period, as well as an extensive bibliographical section.

The Birth of The Republic is an excellent read. Rather bogging down the reader with of military jargon or intricate political dissections, Morgan touches on all the major events of the period in an easy-to-read manner for the everyday person. Each major event has its own chapter, thus allowing the reader to focus more clearly on the material presented. Also, there is never a need to return to previous chapters or reference other books to clarify the information presented. Morgan accomplishes his goal of providing a simple yet detailed analysis of how and why the colonies fought for independence. Therefore, this book is a great resource for those who are students of history or who are simply interested in how the U.S was created, and why it has endured for so long.

1. Gonzalez, Susan. Edmund S. Morgan, Sterling Professor Emeritus. 12 January 2001. Yale Bulletin &Calendar. 5 August 2007.

2. Morgan, Edmund S. The Birth of The Republic: 1763-89. 3^rd ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1992) 8