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Plain Truth (pamphlet)
''Plain Truth'' is a pamphlet authored by the loyalist James Chalmers in 1776, as a rebuke of Thomas Paine's ''Common Sense''. Chalmers, under the pen name “Candidus”, begins by stating his love for ‘true liberty’, alongside his belief in Common Sense’s insidious intent, which he believes will bring the thirteen colonies into ‘ruin, horror, and desolation’. ''Plain Truth'' stated that Thomas Paines' complaints about the British Monarchy were 'invalid' and ' barbaric'. Plain Truth goes on denounce Common Sense’s attempt to utilise religion to attack the institution of monarchy, pithily summarising that Thomas Paine should have added ‘Common Sense, and blood will attend it’. Chalmers then goes on to describe the British Constitution as being one consisting of ‘Monarchy, Aristocracy, and Democracy’. He goes on to argue that without this mixed system, the constitution would devolve into a pure democracy. The author then goes on to denounce the radical ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
James Chalmers (loyalist)
James Chalmers was a Loyalist officer and pamphleteer in the American Revolution. Born in Elgin, Moray, Scotland, Chalmers was an ambitious military strategist after the War of Independence, who immigrated to America in 1760 "with several black slaves and 10,000 British pounds in his pocket," settling in Kent County and becoming "one of the Eastern Shore's most prominent landowners." American Revolution In 1776 he authored a pamphlet entitled '' Plain Truth,'' a rebuke of Thomas Paine's ''Common Sense'', going under the pen name "Candidus." After conditions grew intolerable in his home in Chestertown, Maryland, with a mob chasing him after publishing ''Plain Truth'', Chalmers accompanied the British Army under General Sir William Howe up the Chesapeake Bay as it made its way to Philadelphia in August 1777. After the Battle of Brandywine in September, Philadelphia fell to the British in early October. On 14 October, Chalmers was commissioned lieutenant colonel of the Firs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Montesquieu
Charles Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu (; ; 18 January 168910 February 1755), generally referred to as simply Montesquieu, was a French judge, man of letters, historian, and political philosopher. He is the principal source of the theory of separation of powers, which is implemented in many constitutions throughout the world. He is also known for doing more than any other author to secure the place of the word ''despotism'' in the political lexicon.. His anonymously published ''The Spirit of Law'' (1748), which was received well in both Great Britain and the American colonies, influenced the Founding Fathers of the United States in drafting the U.S. Constitution. Biography Montesquieu was born at the Château de la Brède in southwest France, south of Bordeaux. His father, Jacques de Secondat (1654–1713), was a soldier with a long noble ancestry, including descent from Richard de la Pole, Yorkist claimant to the English crown. His mother, Marie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1776 Non-fiction Books
Events January–February * January 1 – American Revolutionary War – Burning of Norfolk: The town of Norfolk, Virginia is destroyed, by the combined actions of the British Royal Navy and occupying Patriot forces. * January 10 – American Revolution – Thomas Paine publishes his pamphlet ''Common Sense'', arguing for independence from British rule in the Thirteen Colonies. * January 20 – American Revolution – South Carolina Loyalists led by Robert Cunningham sign a petition from prison, agreeing to all demands for peace by the formed state government of South Carolina. * January 24 – American Revolution – Henry Knox arrives at Cambridge, Massachusetts, with the artillery that he has transported from Fort Ticonderoga. * February 17 – Edward Gibbon publishes the first volume of ''The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire''. * February 27 – American Revolution – Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge: S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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