Benjamin Franklin in London

Benjamin Franklin in London PDF Author: George Goodwin
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300220243
Category : Americans
Languages : en
Pages : 396

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Book Description
An account of Franklin's British years.

Benjamin Franklin in London

Benjamin Franklin in London PDF Author: George Goodwin
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300220243
Category : Americans
Languages : en
Pages : 396

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Book Description
An account of Franklin's British years.

Benjamin Franklin in London

Benjamin Franklin in London PDF Author: George Goodwin
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300222947
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 396

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Book Description
An “enthralling” chronicle of the nearly two decades the statesman, scientist, inventor, and Founding Father spent in the British imperial capital (BBC Radio 4, Book of the Week). For more than a fifth of his life, Benjamin Franklin lived in London. He dined with prime ministers, members of parliament, even kings, as well as with Britain’s most esteemed intellectuals—including David Hume, Joseph Priestley, and Erasmus Darwin—and with more notorious individuals, such as Francis Dashwood and James Boswell. Having spent eighteen formative months in England as a young man, Franklin returned in 1757 as a colonial representative during the Seven Years’ War, and left abruptly just prior to the outbreak of America’s War of Independence, barely escaping his impending arrest. In this fascinating history, George Goodwin gives a colorful account of Franklin’s British years. The author offers a rich and revealing portrait of one of the most remarkable figures in U.S. history, effectively disputing the commonly held perception of Franklin as an outsider in British politics. It is an absorbing study of an American patriot who was a fiercely loyal British citizen for most of his life—until forces he had sought and failed to control finally made him a reluctant revolutionary at the age of sixty-nine. “[An] interesting, lively account of Franklin’s British life.” —The Wall Street Journal

The Devious Dr. Franklin, Colonial Agent

The Devious Dr. Franklin, Colonial Agent PDF Author: David T. Morgan
Publisher: Mercer University Press
ISBN: 9780865546745
Category : Americans
Languages : en
Pages : 292

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Book Description


The Making of a Patriot

The Making of a Patriot PDF Author: Sheila L. Skemp
Publisher: Critical Historical Encounters
ISBN: 0195386574
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 201

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Book Description
In The Making of a Patriot, renowned Franklin historian Sheila Skemp presents a insightful, lively narrative that goes beyond the traditional Franklin biography--and behind the common myths--to demonstrate how Franklin's ultimate decision to support the colonists was by no means a foregone conclusion.

The Fortunes of Francis Barber

The Fortunes of Francis Barber PDF Author: Michael Bundock
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300213905
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 291

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Book Description
This compelling book chronicles a young boy’s journey from the horrors of Jamaican slavery to the heart of London’s literary world, and reveals the unlikely friendship that changed his life. Francis Barber, born in Jamaica, was brought to London by his owner in 1750 and became a servant in the household of the renowned Dr. Samuel Johnson. Although Barber left London for a time and served in the British navy during the Seven Years’ War, he later returned to Johnson’s employ. A fascinating reversal took place in the relationship between the two men as Johnson’s health declined and the older man came to rely more and more upon his now educated and devoted companion. When Johnson died he left the bulk of his estate to Barber, a generous (and at the time scandalous) legacy, and a testament to the depth of their friendship. There were thousands of black Britons in the eighteenth century, but few accounts of their lives exist. In uncovering Francis Barber’s story, this book not only provides insights into his life and Samuel Johnson’s but also opens a window onto London when slaves had yet to win their freedom.

Young Benjamin Franklin

Young Benjamin Franklin PDF Author: Nick Bunker
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 1101872802
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 466

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Book Description
In this new account of Franklin's early life, Pulitzer finalist Nick Bunker portrays him as a complex, driven young man who elbows his way to success. From his early career as a printer and journalist to his scientific work and his role as a founder of a new republic, Benjamin Franklin has always seemed the inevitable embodiment of American ingenuity. But in his youth he had to make his way through a harsh colonial world, where he fought many battles with his rivals, but also with his wayward emotions. Taking Franklin to the age of forty-one, when he made his first electrical discoveries, Bunker goes behind the legend to reveal the sources of his passion for knowledge. Always trying to balance virtue against ambition, Franklin emerges as a brilliant but flawed human being, made from the conflicts of an age of slavery as well as reason. With archival material from both sides of the Atlantic, we see Franklin in Boston, London, and Philadelphia as he develops his formula for greatness. A tale of science, politics, war, and religion, this is also a story about Franklin's forebears: the talented family of English craftsmen who produced America's favorite genius.

Experiments and Observations on Electricity, Made at Philadelphia in America

Experiments and Observations on Electricity, Made at Philadelphia in America PDF Author: Benjamin Franklin
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Electric power
Languages : en
Pages : 102

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The Papers of Benjamin Franklin

The Papers of Benjamin Franklin PDF Author: Benjamin Franklin
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780300061093
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 712

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Book Description
Sponsored by the American Philosophical Society and Yale University, this edition of 'The Papers Of Benjamin Franklin' contains everything that Franklin wrote that can be found, and for the first time, in full or abstract, all letters addressed to him, the whole arranged in chronological order.

Benjamin Franklin and the American Revolution

Benjamin Franklin and the American Revolution PDF Author: Jonathan R. Dull
Publisher: U of Nebraska Press
ISBN: 0803230338
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 184

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Book Description
The inventor, the ladies? man, the affable diplomat, and the purveyor of pithy homespun wisdom: we all know the charming, resourceful Benjamin Franklin. What is less appreciated is the importance of Franklin?s part in the American Revolution:øexcept for Washington he was its most irreplaceable leader. Although aged and in ill health, Franklin served the cause with unsurpassed zeal and dedication. Jonathan R. Dull, whose decades of work on The Papers of Benjamin Franklin have given him rare insight into his subject, explains Franklin?s role in the Revolution, what prepared him for that role, and what motivated him. ø The Franklin presented here, a man immersed in the violence, danger, and suffering of the Revolution, is a tougherøperson than the Franklin of legend. Dull?s portrait captures Franklin?s confidence and self-righteousness about himself and the American cause. It shows his fanatical zeal, his hatred of King George III and George?s American supporters (particularly Franklin?s own son), and his disdain for hardship and danger. It also shows a side of Franklin that he tried to hide: his vanity, pride, and ambition. Though not as lovable and avuncular as the person of legend, this Franklin is more interesting, more complex, and in many ways more impressive.

Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin PDF Author: Edmund Sears Morgan
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 9780300101621
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 356

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Book Description
Draws on Franklin's extensive writings to provide a portrait of the statesman, inventor, and Founding Father.