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.

American Character: William Bradford

  

He was only in his twenties when the awesome responsibility of governing a community was thrust upon him. Then, for 35 years of the next 40, he continued to lead that community, being reelected annually. That must mean he was doing something right. His name was William Bradford, governor of the Pilgrim colony of Plymouth. He arrived on the Mayflower in 1620 along with a band of his fellow believers. In England, they were called Separatists because they didn’t want… Read more »

American Character: Pocahontas

  

To some, she is the stuff of legend. Perhaps that’s why Disney felt comfortable making a film that is largely fantasy. First, she was not an alluring young woman when she met Capt. John Smith; she was about ten years old. Fantasy is at work also in the image of John Smith here. Pocahontas was fascinated with these English settlers. She spent time at the fort playing with the young boys. Her father, Chief Powhatan, didn’t mind her visiting his… Read more »

American Character: Chanco

  

Most of you probably looked at the name in the title above and said, “Who is that?” Character is not found only among the well known; it appears in those we might call “the common man” as well. I call Chanco an example of American character even though he was not one of the early English settlers. Rather, he was a native American, one already living here when the English arrived. The backdrop: Jamestown was 15 years young in 1622…. Read more »

American Character: Capt. John Smith

  

I spent a few days posting on the principle of Christian character. Throughout American history, there have been individuals who have exhibited certain of those traits and, by them, have contributed greatly to our history. Some of those people may not have been Christians themselves, except in the cultural sense, but they still exemplify the qualities that are essential for a society to work. One such man was Capt. John Smith—soldier, adventurer, mapmaker of the New World. One of Smith’s… Read more »

Another Plug for Chambers

  

I have been saying for over twenty years that there is one movie that has not been made that needs to be. The life of Whittaker Chambers, as poignantly described in his autobiography Witness is a classic. It can make the transition from the printed page to film. Now I have found at least one person who agrees with me. Matt Lewis, a blogger at Townhall.com, is making the same argument as he talks about conservative movies that should see… Read more »

Where's the Arrogance?

  

In one of his European speeches last week, President Obama commented that the United States had sometimes been arrogant in its relations to other nations, and that we had not appreciated the Europeans. To be fair, he also noted that Europeans had spouted anti-Americanism as well, but the emphasis seemed to be on America’s arrogance. Every nation displays arrogance at times, but has that been the hallmark of American interactions with others? Think back to WWII for a moment: we… Read more »

The Tipping Point

  

I finished reading the book I recommended a few days ago—The Forgotten Man by Amity Shlaes. It was as good as I thought it would be. Even though I thought I knew a lot about the Great Depression, it opened my eyes to the extent of the reach of the government at that time. For a while, it seemed as if all private business was at a standstill due to the desire to have the government control everything. For instance,… Read more »