Patrick Henry and the Parson’s Cause II May 4, 2020PermalinkNancy WaldoToday's AMITAmerican History, American Politics, British History, Revolutionary War Lead: In the 1700s the United States broke from England. No colony in history had done that before. This series examines America’s Revolution. Intro: A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts Content: Having secured the support of the English Privy Council in striking down a Virginia statute that sought to relieve debtors facing ruin because of a spike in tobacco prices caused by drought, several Anglican clergymen set Virginian teeth on edge by suing to have their salaries paid at the full market rate, drought and inflation be damned. Their efforts were turned aside in two cases, but that of the most Rev. Mr. James Maury of Louisa County received favorable judgment from the court who then referred the case to a jury for a determination of the damages. Download [67.13 KB]
Patrick Henry and the Parson’s Cause I May 3, 2020PermalinkNancy WaldoToday's AMITAmerican History, American Politics, Revolutionary War Lead: In the 1700s the United States broke from England. No colony in history had done that before. This series examines America’s Revolution. Intro: A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts Content: Patrick Henry was a new man, often referred to in the early years of his storied career as a “young man,” this in contrast to the older leaders of the Commonwealth that hailed from the first families of Virginia. When his rich, powerful rhetorical abilities carried him to fame during the Stamp Act Crisis in 1765, he was already famous, a brilliant speaker, but many of his elders considered him pretty much an upstart lawyer from Louisa County out in the Virginia heartland. His reputation and fame came from many court proceedings but largely as a result of a famous court case known as the Parson’s Cause. Download [69.00 KB]
American Revolution: The Spreading Flame III January 7, 2020PermalinkNancy WaldoToday's AMITAmerican History, Revolutionary War Lead: In the 1700s the United States broke from England. No colony in history had done that before. This series examines America’s Revolution. Intro: A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts Content: Passage of the Stamp Tax by the British Parliament provoked several changes in the North American colonies. Rioting and civil disobedience were rampant. Advocates of the taxes were subjected to political pressure and physical violence. At the same time in most of the colonies a new class of leaders, such as Patrick Henry, began to help the public come to grips with a changing relationship with Britain, more resistant, even hostile to the interests of the mother country, and eventually to consider the path to independence. Read more →
American Revolution: The Spreading Flame II January 6, 2020PermalinkNancy WaldoToday's AMITAmerican History, Revolutionary War Lead: In the 1700s the United States broke from England. No colony in history had done that before. This series examines America’s Revolution. Intro: A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts Content: After the passage of the Stamp Act by Parliament in 1765, reaction was slow in coming but built all during the summer, fall and winter of 1765. In the end, Parliament was forced to repeal the Stamp Tax because of vigorous resistance within the colonies and not insignificant opposition within Parliament itself. With Virginia and Massachusetts leading the way, the flame of resistance began to spread to the other colonies. Read more →
American Revolution: The Spreading Flame I January 5, 2020PermalinkNancy WaldoToday's AMITAmerican History, Revolutionary War Lead: In the 1700s the United States broke from England. No colony in history had done that before. This series examines America’s Revolution. Intro: A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts Content: The passage of the Stamp Act by the British Parliament in 1765 transformed the political landscape within the colonies of North America. The London government was determined to extract from the colonies sufficient revenue to pay for the troops stationed on the continent to protect British and colonial interests. They came up with a clever scheme to raise the cash. A significant portion of legal and business documents would have to be printed on stamped paper supplied by the government at a relatively nominal rate, but no one was fooled. This was a tax, plain and simple. The reaction was slow in coming but built all during the summer, fall, and winter of 1765. In the end Parliament was forced to repeal the Stamp Tax because of vigorous resistance within the colonies and not insignificant opposition within Parliament itself. Read more →
American Revolution: March to Massacre II December 5, 2019PermalinkNancy WaldoToday's AMITAmerican History, Revolutionary War Lead: In the 1700s the United States broke from England. No colony in history had done that before. This series examines America’s Revolution. Intro: A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts Content: In late February 1770, the situation in Boston reached critical mass. The poisonous relationship between British soldiers and the townspeople was amplified by the death of 11-year old Christopher Seider, killed by a supporter of the Crown. His death illustrated the deteriorating circumstances in a town animated by hatred of Parliamentary import taxes, colonial attempts to strike at those taxes through non-importation of British goods, and the presence of an occupying standing army, something hated by Brits on both sides of the dispute, which led to fatal conflict and massacre. Download [81.44 KB]
American Revolution: March to Massacre I December 4, 2019PermalinkNancy WaldoToday's AMITAmerican History, Revolutionary War Lead: In the 1700s the United States broke from England. No colony in history had done that before. This series examines America’s Revolution. Intro: A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts Content: Throughout the fall and winter of 1769-1770 the tension mounted to poisonous levels in Boston between the townspeople and the troops sent to garrison the city. Two issues continued to arouse the passions of unrest: non-importation and the irritating presence of British troops sent by the London government to help collect the infamous import taxes imposed by Parliament and to keep order in a municipality that was increasingly unresponsive to royal authority. These two issues led ultimately to one of the important events in the run up to Revolution and war, the so-called Boston Massacre. Download [80.84 KB]
Washington Assumes Command II June 14, 2019PermalinkNancy WaldoToday's AMITAmerican History, Military History, Revolutionary War Lead: Though he had a certain magisterial demeanor, George Washington knew he was the servant of civilian rule. Intro.: A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts. Content: From the beginning, the American Republic vested ultimate power in the hands of people in the person of their elected representatives. Though the nation admired military leaders and has often elected them to power, republican sentiment has always distrusted the man on horseback and insisted that in peace and in war power rests with civilians. In many ways this attitude, if not originating with George Washington, was certainly re-enforced by his respectful approach to his civilian masters and his willingness to give up power, twice in fact. Download [69.25 KB]
