The Founding Fathers

*Includes an original introduction and biography for each Founding Father. *Includes pictures of the Founding Fathers and important people, places and events in their lives. A lot of ink has been spilled covering the lives of history's most influential figures, but how much of the forest is lost for the trees? In Charles River Editors' American Legends series, readers can get caught up to speed on the lives of America's most important men and women in the time it takes to finish a commute, while learning interesting facts long forgotten or never known. The Founding Fathers have held a special place in American society since the nation gained its freedom, and many of them had become national heroes even before then. Over 200 years later, Americans still look with reverence to these men, often debating with each other what the Founding Fathers would think about a certain issue, or how they would judge a certain law or legislation. In many respects, these men have become icons, whose words, thoughts and deeds are rarely questioned. Every American is taught a pristine narrative of the life and legacy of George Washington and can easily recite the highlights and myths of Washington's life. Thomas Jefferson was instrumental in authoring the Declaration of Independence, laying out the ideological groundwork of the notion of states' rights, leading one of the first political parties, and overseeing the expansion of the United States during his presidency. Before the United States of America even existed, the first American celebrity was Benjamin Franklin, who dabbled throughout his life in many fields as an author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat. Despite being one of the youngest delegates at the Constitutional Convention, James Madison was the Convention's most influential thinker, and the man most responsible for the final draft of the U.S. Constitution, forever earning the name "Father of the Constitution). And if the American Dream has come to represent the ability to climb the social ladder with skill and hard work, no Founding Father represented the new America more than Alexander Hamilton, an orphan who rose to become one of the influential Founding Fathers at the Constitutional Convention, the driving force behind the Federalist Papers, and the leader of a political party before engaging in the country's most famous duel. Like all legends, the staggering accomplishments of the Founding Fathers not only earned them monuments and memorials but helped enshrine their legacies, to the point that they are looked at almost as demigods above reproach. The Founding Fathers examines all of the colossal events and actions these men took, but it also analyzes what these men were really like, and how their personalities and passions helped shape the destiny of the country they founded and led. Along with pictures of the Founding Fathers and important people, places and events in their lives, you will learn about the Founding Fathers like you never have before, in no time at all.