Between 1763 and 1848, revolutions took place in North America, South America, the Caribbean, Africa, and Europe. But why is it that we only seem to remember the American Revolution, the French Revolution, and the Haitian Revolution?
Given that the American Revolution took place before all of these other revolutions, what was its role in influencing this larger “Age of Revolutions?” Did it influence this larger period?
Our exploration of what the American Revolution looked like within the larger period known as the “Age of Revolutions” continues as Janet Polasky, a professor of history at the University of New Hampshire and the author of Revolutions Without Borders: The Call of Liberty in the Atlantic World, guides us through the period to explore answers to these questions.
About the Series
The mission of episodes in the Doing History: To the Revolution series. is to ask not just “what is the history of the American Revolution?” but “what are the histories of the American Revolution?”
The Doing History series explores early American history and how historians work. It’s produced by the Omohundro Institute.
Be sure to check out Doing History season 1, Doing History: How Historians Work.
About the Show
Ben Franklin’s World is a podcast about early American history.
It is a show for people who love history and for those who want to know more about the historical people and events that have impacted and shaped our present-day world.
Each episode features a conversation with a historian who helps us shed light on important people and events in early American history.
Ben Franklin’s World is a production of the Omohundro Institute.
Episode Summary
Janet Polasky, the Presidential Professor of History at the University of New Hampshire and the author of Revolutions Without Borders: The Call of Liberty in the Atlantic World, leads us on an exploration of the Age of Revolutions and how the American Revolution fit into that age.
As we explore this period in greater detail, Janet reveals information about the Age of Revolutions and why it took place; How the American Revolution fit within the Age of Revolutions; And, how revolutionary ideas and revolutions spread across the Atlantic World.
What You’ll Discover
- The Age of Revolutions
- The burgeoning literature on the American Revolution in a global context
- The American Revolution within the Age of Revolutions
- Influence of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense
- Traveling revolutionaries
- Travel journals, narratives, and revolutionary ideas
- Rumors and revolutions
- Newspapers clubs and revolutionary ideas
- Information and revolutions
- American reaction to the Age of Revolutions
Links to People, Places, and Publications
- Paul Mapp
- Omohundro Institute Books
- The Elusive West and the Contest for Empire, 1713-1763
- Janet Polasky
- Revolutions without Borders: The Call to Liberty in the Atlantic World
- Reforming Urban Labor: Routes to the City, Roots in the Country
- Eliga Gould
- New York State Library
- Papers of Elkanah Watson
Sponsor Links
- Omohundro Institute
- The OI Reader
- William and Mary Quarterly-Journal of the Early Republic special joint issue on the American Revolution $10 promotion
- The Great Courses Plus (1 Free Month of Unlimited Courses)
Complementary Blog Posts
- Dael A. Norwood, “Global Trade and Revolution: The Politics of Americans' Commerce with China“
Complementary Episodes
- Episode 090: Caitlin Fitz, Age of American Revolutions
- Episode 091: Gregory Dowd, Rumors, Legends, and Hoaxes in Early America
- Episode 144: Robert Parkinson, The Common Cause of the American Revolution
- Episode 152: Origins of the American Revolution
- Episode 155: Pauline Maier’s American Revolution
- Episode 156: The Power of the Press in the American Revolution
- Episode 161: Smuggling and the American Revolution
- Episode 163: The Revolution in Continental North America
- Episode 164: The Age of Revolutions in the Caribbean
Time Warp Question
In your opinion, what would have happened if all, or more of the Revolutions that took place during the Age of Revolutions had succeeded?
Questions, Comments, Suggestions
Do you have a question, comment, or suggestion?
Get in Touch! Send me an e-mail, tweet, or leave a comment.
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