You read about the American Revolution, and it’s usually connected to something about the military – Lexington and Concord, Bunker Hill, Valley Forge, Yorktown. But it wasn’t all about battles. One of the seeds leading to the revolution was the Peter Zenger trial, which had to do with the freedom of the press. Then there were artists promoting the American rebels’ cause – in Britain of all places. And Robert Morris figured out what was needed to transfer the weaponry Gen. Washington needed to undertake the Yorktown campaign. Speaking of Washington, this past week was the 250th anniversary of his taking command of the Continental Army in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
In 1837, a large group gathered to commemorate the Battle of Lexington and Concord, the Declaration of Independence, and the American Revolution. And Ralph Waldo Emerson read a poem that contained one of the most famous lines in American history and poetry.
By the way, not everyone living in America liked the Declaration of Independence. Tories and Loyalists objected, and two of them actually penned and published a response. Back in England, in the nave of Westminster Abbey, you can find a memorial to Major John Andre, ordered by General Washington to be executed for spying; the memorial commends his zeal for his country. We forget that for those who signed the Declaration of Independence, they were risking everything, including execution for treason. (I discovered, courtesy of Family Search, that I am related to one of the signers, Robert Treat Paine; he’s a second cousin seven times removed.)
A couple of contrarian views about poetry surfaced this week. Steve Knepper at New Verse Review explained why he’s against publishing the “selected poems” of poets, at least somewhat against. And former English teacher Susan Spear took issue with how poetry is taught in schools, focusing on “meaning” rather than “versecraft.”
More Good Reads
American Stuff
American Regeneration – Bari Weiss at The Free Press.
What to expect for the big 2-5-0 – Chloe Veltman at National Public Radio.
I’m Finally Hanging My American Flag – Larissa Phillips at The Free Press.
Why I’m a Patriot – Bradley Birzer at The Imaginative Conservative.
The Many Declarations of Independence – Ben Franklin’s World.
A Prayer from Africa for America – Tim Cantrell at The Cripplegate.
Music
George Frederic Handel: A Belated Appreciation – Michael De Sapio at The Imaginative Conservative.
Poetry
“Home Thoughts, From Abroad,” poem by Robert Browning – Anthony Esolen at Word & Song.
Thank God for ‘Doubting’ Thomas! – Malcolm Guite.
“Tichborne’s Elegy,” poem by Chidiock Tichborne – Sally Thomas at Poems Ancient and Modern.
Writing and Literature
Monseigneur Bienvenu’s Lesser-Known Meeting – Andrew Roycroft at New Grub Street.
Do You Want What You Want? Edith Wharton’s Age of Innocence – Joel Miller at Miller’s Book Review.
Mahmoud v. Taylor, Winnie the Pooh, and Why Children in Public Schools Deserve Beautiful Books – Nadya Williams at Mere Orthodoxy.
British Stuff
It was right to deny Communion to Chris Coghlan MP – Niall Gooch at The Critic Magazine.
The UK is no longer an “open” country for free expression – Freddie Attenborough at The Critic Magazine.
Life and Culture
You Don’t Need the Same Politics to Surf Together – David Litt at The Free Press.
Faith
How to Survive Prosperity: On Ministry Scandals and David’s Fall – Owen Strachan at To Reenchant the World.
Why Study the Declaration of Independence? – Dave Landry at Christian Americanism.
Country Roads – Life in 3D
Painting: An Amusing Story, oil on canvas by Louis Emile Adan (1839-1937).
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