Years That Changed History: 1776

In this first lecture, step into a world on the brink. As George Washington faces the collapse of his army in January 1776, discover a revolution far bigger than America. From the Boston Tea Party to global trade empires and Enlightenment ideas, witness how politics, economics, and philosophy collided-turning a near-funeral for rebellion into the birth of a daring new vision for government.

Trace the coming of the American Revolution to conditions within both India and China, in their dealings with the British East India Company. Learn how the actions of its directors left the Company with both massive debts and huge surpluses of tea, which were then sold into the American colonies. Relive the events of the Tea Act of 1773, which led to the civil defiance of the Boston Tea Party.

Thomas Paine's famous pamphlet, Common Sense, was a critical document of revolutionary ideology. Grasp its debt to the thinking of the Enlightenment, as it articulated and advanced the idea of independence, and the oppressive nature of monarchy. Mark the reactions and controversy surrounding it, its wide readership and influence, and gauge its effects on the ground as the Revolution unfolded.

Smallpox was a pervasive and devastating problem in 1776 America. Follow the virus and its effects through many theaters of the American Revolution, and into Lakota country, Texas, Mexico, and beyond. Note that the spread of the epidemic across the whole of North America proves that the communities on the landmass were linked coast to coast long before Lewis and Clark crossed the continent.

The year 1776 saw the rise of a major Native American nation. Trace how the Lakota reclaimed the Black Hills of the Great Plains, central to their cosmology, establishing trade and a horse-based rule, and subduing other Native nations in the process. Grasp the power of the Lakota Confederacy, with the center of the continent under its domination.

Take stock of the revolution in thought known as the Scottish Enlightenment of the 18th century, largely led by clergy and university professors. Encounter the work of important philosophers such as David Hume and Thomas Reid. Then delve into The Wealth of Nations, published in 1776 by Adam Smith, who argued for the societal benefits of free trade, and created the field of modern economics.