Rebels and Democrats: The Struggle for Equal Political Rights and Majority Rule During the American Revolution
Description
While the American colonists fought to break the tie with England, a less privileged group within Revolutionary ranks was determined to win equal political rights for all adult males and a government in which the will of a majority of citizens would prevail. Farmers and artisans saw the Revolution not as an end in itself but as a means of building a new, truly democratic society. When they demanded democratic reforms they were confronted by men of substance who, though devoted to liberty, had no desire to disturb the existing social system. The resolution of this internal conflict laid the ...
ISBN(s)
081290382X, 9780812903829
