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History 605 S4 Ep 20: An America 250 Special: "America's Revolutionary Mind."

Bradley Thompson joined us to discuss how the founders would have answered the question, "How did the revolution start?" The more research he did into how John Adams and others answered the question the more he realized that the most important aspect about the revolution was not the war, but what occurred in the minds of many colonists before any shots were fired. Adams and other founders convinced him that there was a moral revolution in the mind of many Americans beginning as early as 1760. The rich discussion about natural law created a unique American Mind focusing on equality, rights, consent and revolution. Thomas Jefferson then captured that sentiment in The Declaration of Independence in 1776. For information about the book see: America's Revolutionary Mind - Encounter Books.

This is our final episode of season 4. We're taking a few months off but we'll be back in the Spring with Season 5.