Category: The Historical Muse

Thoughts on history and the historical profession. Clio is the muse of history–this category title is a play on that concept.

British Documents of Liberty

  

I’ve been chronicling the legal foundations of British history to show how the early American colonists viewed their rights. Thus far, I’ve noted the significance of the Magna Carta and the Common Law. The seventeenth century saw a number of other improvements that are worth mentioning. First, when King Charles I wanted money from Parliament to conduct a war, the Parliament balked, issuing instead what we call The Petition of Right in 1628. Any law like this, when you look… Read more »

The Lewis Book: Finished

  

I’ve now finished writing my manuscript on C. S. Lewis’s impact on Americans. It has been a labor of love. My agent is working diligently to find the right publisher. I thought today I’d show you how I wrap up the book. Here is my conclusion: Lewis has developed a true fan following in America. This book has shown his many interactions with Americans of his day. He became good friends with many of them, whether in person or via… Read more »

Precedent Based on Eternal Law

  

Last week I wrote about the Magna Carta as part of the background of English law that the American colonists depended upon. When they took issue with the Mother Country about their rights, they had that document as a basis for their concerns. There are other aspects of English law that also were part of colonial America. One of these was the English Common Law. When a case came before a judge, and there might not be a precise statute… Read more »

Magna Carta: The Biblical Basis

  

Last week I wrote about the principles at stake in the American War for Self-Government (a.k.a., the American Revolution). What we need to realize is that the American colonists didn’t formulate these principles in a vacuum. There is a long history of British documents related to limited government and the rights of citizens. First on that list is the Magna Carta. Written in the 13th century (1215, to be precise), the Magna Carta was a response to King John, who… Read more »

Was the American Revolution Revolutionary?

  

In my ongoing analysis of American history (which has been interrupted by all the crucial current events that needed commentary), I am up to the point of the American Revolution. I have to use that term so people will know what I’m talking about, but I let my students know I don’t fully agree that it was all that revolutionary. What do I mean? Revolutions, by nature, try to upend the existing establishment. However, in the case of the American… Read more »

Lewis on the Welfare State

  

One of C. S. Lewis’s longtime American correspondents was Vera Gebbert, who had written plays with some success in the 1940s. Their exchange of letters had a personal side throughout the years, as Lewis gave advice on her writing career, a painful divorce, and the raising of a son as a single mother. They also commented on the political/governmental issues of the day. Here’s an excerpt from a chapter in my upcoming Lewis book: In one of his first letters… Read more »

Tocqueville’s Prophetic Word

  

Alexis de Tocqueville was a Frenchman who visited America in 1831. He traveled extensively, made many notes of what he experienced, and wrote them down in a massive tome called Democracy in America. It is a classic, and is still being used today in university political science courses. It points out both the strengths and potential weaknesses he saw in this new nation. It is obvious Tocqueville liked much of what he witnessed in this country, but he also wrote… Read more »