Public Libraries of Suffolk County, New York

Our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor, the forging of American independence, 1774-1776, Richard R. Beeman

eng

Includes bibliographical references (pages 435-477) and index

collective biography

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index present

non fiction

Our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor

bibliography

Richard R. Beeman

the forging of American independence, 1774-1776

In 1774, American independence was hardly inevitable-- indeed, most Americans found it neither desirable nor likely. Beeman tells the remarkable story of how the delegates to the Continental Congress, through courage and compromise, came to dedicate their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor to the forging of American independence

The continental Congress : a chronology -- The Genesis of revolution, 1763-1774 -- The quest for a unified American resistance -- The delegates gather in Philadelphia -- Two different paths to liberty : John Adams and John Dickinson -- The Congress organizes -- "Fight against them that fight against me" -- Galloway's last stand -- Getting acquainted in the city of brotherly love -- Power to the people -- The first Congress completes its business -- Escalation -- A new Congress, changed circumstances -- John Hancock enters the drama -- Congress assumes command of a war -- Desperate efforts at reconciliation amidst an escalating war -- Managing a war while seeking peace -- Waiting for King George III -- Small steps toward independence -- The year 1776 dawns -- "The scales have fallen from our eyes" -- "The child Independence is now struggling for birth" -- Fourteen paths to independence -- "The greatest debate of all" -- Thomas Jefferson's Declaration of Independence -- America's Declaration of Independence

adult

Forging of American independence, 1774-1776