READING GUIDE
INTRODUCTION
1. Why were major accomplishments of the Founding Brothers during the Revolution unprecedented? (3 Reasons) 2. What were the assets and liabilities of the men in New York in 1789 as they began to govern under the new Constitution? The assets and liabilities of men in New York in 1789 as they began to govern the New Constitution states on the asset side bountiful continent an ocean away from European conflict; young population of nearly 4 million, about half of it sixteen years of age or younger and to grow exponentionally and on the liabilities side no one established republican government on the scale of the US and judgment of the most respected authorities was that it couldn’t be done, second dominant intellectual legacy of Revolution, in the Declaration of Independence, stigmatized all political power depicted any energetic expression of governmental authority. 3. What distinguishes the American Revolution from most, if not all subsequent revolutions? Explain. "What distinguishes the American Revolution from most, if not all, subsequent revolutions worthy of the name is that in the battle for supremacy, for the "true meaning" of the Revolution, neither side defeated, the revolutionary generation found a way to keep the debate in the form of an ongoing argument or dialogue that was eventually rendered safe by creating political parties. 4. According to Ellis, why were the Founding Brothers successful? (He offers 4 reasons.) The Founding Brothers were successful and the reasons were, one was the Brothers all had extremely different personalities, collaborating led to cooperating. The second reason was that all the Founding Brothers were part of every aspect of each other’s lives. The third reason is that they knew that some problems, such as slavery, couldn’t not be covered at the time. The fourth reason is that they knew making history would be criticized by future generations which kept them on