Download PDF The CityState of Boston The Rise and Fall of an Atlantic Power 16301865 eBook Mark Peterson
Download As PDF : The CityState of Boston The Rise and Fall of an Atlantic Power 16301865 eBook Mark Peterson
A groundbreaking history of early America that shows how Boston built and sustained an independent city-state in New England before being folded into the United States
In the vaunted annals of America’s founding, Boston has long been held up as an exemplary “city upon a hill” and the “cradle of liberty” for an independent United States. Wresting this iconic urban center from these misleading, tired clichés, The City-State of Boston highlights Boston’s overlooked past as an autonomous city-state, and in doing so, offers a pathbreaking and brilliant new history of early America. Following Boston’s development over three centuries, Mark Peterson discusses how this self-governing Atlantic trading center began as a refuge from Britain’s Stuart monarchs and how—through its bargain with slavery and ratification of the Constitution—it would tragically lose integrity and autonomy as it became incorporated into the greater United States.
Drawing from vast archives, and featuring unfamiliar figures alongside well-known ones, such as John Winthrop, Cotton Mather, and John Adams, Peterson explores Boston’s origins in sixteenth-century utopian ideals, its founding and expansion into the hinterland of New England, and the growth of its distinctive political economy, with ties to the West Indies and southern Europe. By the 1700s, Boston was at full strength, with wide Atlantic trading circuits and cultural ties, both within and beyond Britain’s empire. After the cataclysmic Revolutionary War, “Bostoners” aimed to negotiate a relationship with the American confederation, but through the next century, the new United States unraveled Boston’s regional reign. The fateful decision to ratify the Constitution undercut its power, as Southern planters and slave owners dominated national politics and corroded the city-state’s vision of a common good for all.
Peeling away the layers of myth surrounding a revered city, The City-State of Boston offers a startlingly fresh understanding of America’s history.
Download PDF The CityState of Boston The Rise and Fall of an Atlantic Power 16301865 eBook Mark Peterson
"I expected a social history of the city of Boston. The book is a political history told primarily through the actions and deeds of its leaders and politicians. The author has a complete command of the subject. Whether he has displayed that knowledge effectively will be for you to judge. You will learn a lot from the book. I just don’t know if you will like the effort it takes to get through the entirety of the discussion.
The reader is 300 pages into the book before you get to the American Revolution. You have learned that Bostonians are fiercely independent. They border on the rebellious side and have exercised those traits frequently and consistently since the founding of the colony. Their role in the Revolution should be expected. It is in their DNA. Likewise, the fact that the concept of secession originates with them should be no surprise.
There are only two chapters on the Revolution, which is a surprise given the role that the city played. The author starts chapter 6 by saying that the reader may be surprised that he is going to use Phillis Wheatley as the person central to this chapter. He admits that since she was a slave, a female and a teenager her impact on the Revolution may be small. Well, at least he has a good grasp on the obvious. Then, throughout the chapter he is almost apologetic for selecting Wheatley. It appears that whenever someone died, Wheatley wrote an Ode to the family of the deceased. Not to make light of the expression of sympathy but Odes are only going to get you so far in the middle of a war. It was a colossal misstep by the author. The entire chapter appears artificial and contrived.
The next chapter on the Revolution focuses on John Adams, and rightful so. However, there is no mention of the dozens of other Bostonians that made huge contributions to the Revolution. I was hoping for some narrative about the city’s experience during the war. There was very little. The author feels that we all know the story of the War and there was no need to repeat it. Actually, there was no need to include a chapter on Wheatley.
There is a long winded discussion of the difference between Federalism and federalism. The discussion is far too academic. It becomes even more convoluted by the constant use of run on sentences. Sentences that last 10-12 lines of text are common. The acknowledgments indicate that there was an editor. Neither the author or the editor have even a passing knowledge of a semicolon. Phrase after phrase are linked by commas. If the author had to read his text out loud, he would faint before he came to a period.
Yet, in one rare and concise sentence, he explained that power to Boston was mercantile, trade, and commerce. Power to the South was land. Amazing! He managed to summarize most of our antebellum history in a single sentence.
Chapter 10 is a stroll through the wilderness. A bunch of twenty year old Bostonians go to Germany to round out their education. Given the state of Harvard at that time, it would be better said that they went to get an education. They did not do well. Germany had been at the game much longer than the US. Plus, they met Germans who were trying to be Greeks. This entire chapter was designed to show that they all returned, got jobs at Harvard and wasn’t that great.
I finished the book. Did I learn a lot? Yes I did, but it was a struggle. If the author write again, shorten the sentences."
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The CityState of Boston The Rise and Fall of an Atlantic Power 16301865 eBook Mark Peterson Reviews :
The CityState of Boston The Rise and Fall of an Atlantic Power 16301865 eBook Mark Peterson Reviews
- I expected a social history of the city of Boston. The book is a political history told primarily through the actions and deeds of its leaders and politicians. The author has a complete command of the subject. Whether he has displayed that knowledge effectively will be for you to judge. You will learn a lot from the book. I just don’t know if you will like the effort it takes to get through the entirety of the discussion.
The reader is 300 pages into the book before you get to the American Revolution. You have learned that Bostonians are fiercely independent. They border on the rebellious side and have exercised those traits frequently and consistently since the founding of the colony. Their role in the Revolution should be expected. It is in their DNA. Likewise, the fact that the concept of secession originates with them should be no surprise.
There are only two chapters on the Revolution, which is a surprise given the role that the city played. The author starts chapter 6 by saying that the reader may be surprised that he is going to use Phillis Wheatley as the person central to this chapter. He admits that since she was a slave, a female and a teenager her impact on the Revolution may be small. Well, at least he has a good grasp on the obvious. Then, throughout the chapter he is almost apologetic for selecting Wheatley. It appears that whenever someone died, Wheatley wrote an Ode to the family of the deceased. Not to make light of the expression of sympathy but Odes are only going to get you so far in the middle of a war. It was a colossal misstep by the author. The entire chapter appears artificial and contrived.
The next chapter on the Revolution focuses on John Adams, and rightful so. However, there is no mention of the dozens of other Bostonians that made huge contributions to the Revolution. I was hoping for some narrative about the city’s experience during the war. There was very little. The author feels that we all know the story of the War and there was no need to repeat it. Actually, there was no need to include a chapter on Wheatley.
There is a long winded discussion of the difference between Federalism and federalism. The discussion is far too academic. It becomes even more convoluted by the constant use of run on sentences. Sentences that last 10-12 lines of text are common. The acknowledgments indicate that there was an editor. Neither the author or the editor have even a passing knowledge of a semicolon. Phrase after phrase are linked by commas. If the author had to read his text out loud, he would faint before he came to a period.
Yet, in one rare and concise sentence, he explained that power to Boston was mercantile, trade, and commerce. Power to the South was land. Amazing! He managed to summarize most of our antebellum history in a single sentence.
Chapter 10 is a stroll through the wilderness. A bunch of twenty year old Bostonians go to Germany to round out their education. Given the state of Harvard at that time, it would be better said that they went to get an education. They did not do well. Germany had been at the game much longer than the US. Plus, they met Germans who were trying to be Greeks. This entire chapter was designed to show that they all returned, got jobs at Harvard and wasn’t that great.
I finished the book. Did I learn a lot? Yes I did, but it was a struggle. If the author write again, shorten the sentences.
