Kategoria BISAC: History >> United States - Colonial Period (1600-1775)

Part of the enduring fascination of the Salem witch trials is the fact that, to date, no one theory has been able to fully explain the events that ravaged Salem in 1692. Countless causes, from ergot-infected rye to actual demonic posession, have been offered to explain why the accusations and erratic behavior of seven village girls left hundreds accused, over 20 dead, and the townspeople of eastern Massachusetts shaken. Through a multitude of resources, this authoritative reference guide explores the Salem Witchcraft episode, including the religious and political climate in Puritan New...

Cadwallader Colden was a Scottish emigre to the American colonies in the 18th century. Trained as a physician, he settled in Philadelphia in 1710 to establish a medical practice. In 1718, he was offered a minor administrative position in the Province of New York, and thereafter he rose through a number of appointed offices, culminating in that of lieutenant governor of the colony in the era leading up to the American Revolution. As a public figure, he cast his role as a loyal servant of the Crown and adamantly tried to maintain the royal prerogative in the face of increasing divisiveness...

The French and Indian War was but the American front of a much larger war taking place in Europe, the outcome of which had significant consequences for both North America and the world. As the frontier sideshow of the Seven Years' War, being fought between the powerful English and French empires in the 1760s, the French and Indian War brought northern America firmly under the control of Great Britain, and removed the vital French counter-weight used by native American Indian tribes to block the westward encroachment of land-hungry English settlers.

An excellent introduction to...

In the early years of the American Republic the political ideals of the Revolution took definite form, and pervaded the daily lives of Americans in multifarious ways, affirming and transforming the country and its people in the process. In this informative and eminently readable resource, award-winning authors David and Jeanne Heidler discuss the people who lived during this critical time, and uncover the essential and unexpected realities of ordinary life in the early American republic.

Rapid developments in agriculture, encouraged by a strong sense of dignity in work and a bold new...

The colonial days of America marked not only the beginnings of a country, but also of a new culture, part of which was the first American music publishers, entrepreneurs, and instrument makers forging musical communities from New England to New Spain. Elements of British, Spanish, German, Scots-Irish, and Native American music all contributed to the many cultures and subcultures of the early nation. While English settlers largely sought to impose their own culture in the new land, the adaptation of native music by Spanish settlers provided an important cultural intersection. The music of...

Brecher explores the controversial diplomacy by which the United States separately brought to a "de facto" close its War of Independence against the British, leaving its one ally, France, in the lurch. He focuses on the two dominant, ostensibly allied peace negotiators, John Jay and Vergennes.

Veteran diplomat and diplomatic history author Frank Brecher follows the chronology of the American War of Independence, alternating between accounts of the conflict as experienced diplomatically and, in less detail, militarily by the Americans and the French, respectively. In doing so, after...

As the oldest still operational written constitution in the world, the U.S. Constitution--and the concepts it proclaims-- have been under almost constant attack since its inception. At a convention in 1787, fifty-five delegates assembled in Philadelphia to revise and amend the Articles of Confederation, only to emerge sixteen weeks later with a new document: the U.S. Constitution. The convention was filled with constant debate over how much power should be given to government and how should this power be allocated, state rights v. nationalists, small states v. large states, political...

Science and technology are central to history of the United States, and this is true of the Colonial period as well. Although considered by Europeans as a backwater, the people living in the American colonies had advanced notions of agriculture, surveying, architecture, and other technologies. In areas of natural philosophy--what we call science--such figures as Benjamin Franklin were admired and respected in the scientific capitals of Europe. This book covers all aspects of how science and technology impacted the everyday life of Americans of all classes and cultures.

"Science and...

Colonial America comes alive in this depiction of the daily lives of families--mothers, fathers, children, and grandparents. The Volo's examine the role of the family in society and typical family life in 17th- and 18th-century America. Through narrative chapters, aspects of family life are discussed in depth such as maintaining the household, work, entertainment, death and dying, ceremonies and holidays, customs and rites of passage, parenting, education, and widowhood. Readers will gain an in-depth understanding of the world in which these families lived and how that world affected their...

The opening essay illuminates the central importance of America's provincialism to the formation of a truly original political system. In the chapters following, he explores the ambiguities and achievements of Jefferson's career, Benjamin Franklin's changing image and supple diplomacy, the circumstances and impact...