The first true intellectual biography of Thomas Paine, this book establishes the origins of his beliefs and their influence on his activism. For the past century, scholars have been studying Paine in piecemeal fashion; studies of limited scope focused on the minutiae of Paine's life and career, but no clear portrait had existed to know how the pieces fitted together. This is the complete picture. Who he was, what he believed, why he believed, and how his beliefs and personal history are reflected in his political activism - not just in the American Revolution, but also the French Revolution.