Lucy Worsley Investigates The American Revolution – From The British Perspective

The popular British historian of the PBS television series, "Lucy Worsley Investigates", turns her focus towards The American Revolution in Season Three. While here in the USA a lot of Christian and independent film studios have and are releasing feature films to commemorate the 250th Anniversary of The Declaration of Independence this summer, in Season Three, Dr. Worsley unabashedly states that she is looking at The American Revolution from "The British Perspective." With the two-part series focusing on The American Revolution being available for streaming via PBS Passport and on PBS.org.

The American Revolution is described in the series as "the 18th century break up of Britain and America". Which seems a bit trifling to proud American patriots. But, Lucy Worsley does point out that in Thomas Jefferson's original draft of The Declaration of Independence he includes statements such as "We must endeavor to forget our former love". Statements that do have a touch of the breakup letter sentiment to them. However, those were quickly eliminated by the rest of the committee in charge of drafting The Declaration of Independence, in favor of a more matter of fact and "straight to the point" tone.

The series opens with Dr. Worsley describing the event on July 09th, 1776 in New York City when the American Revolutionaries attack the statue of King George III as "they hack off the head of the statue" and repurpose the gilded lead to make 42,000 musket balls. As Lucy Worsley points out, King George III had never been to America prior to that time. And, in fact, King George III of England never ever visited America during his nearly sixty-year-long reign. But, he did have a collection of 300 books about life in the American colonies. With the topics ranging from the local tax laws to which types of birds, one would hear "singing in Massachusetts".

Benjamin Franklin in the series is described as a "shrewd political operator" who maintained his routine of early morning sunbathing in the nude when he was living in his house in London on Craven Street. For Benjamin Franklin believed that his air baths where he would sit every morning with the windows open for a half-an-hour to an hour while absorbed Vitamin D was a more effective way for him to ward off any illnesses than taking a cold-water bath.

One of Benjamin Franklin's popular sayings is that "In this world, nothing is certain except death and taxes." And Lucy Worsley does point out that the Stamp Act in 1765 was a complete failure for the British. It was instituted to pay off the massive deficit the British government had incurred from the Seven Years' War among other expenses in the colonies. But, the act brought in little to no income before it was repealed in March of 1766. As Lucy Worsley points out in the show, had the British government stopped there, the entire war could have been averted.

However, after The Stamp Act was abolished, the British Parliament passed the Townshend Acts in 1767, which brought in new and wider spread tariffs on various goods that were imported into America. Ironically, the American colonials found a champion for their cause after these tariffs were instituted in a British politician, John Wilkes. As Wilkes argued that it went against the British Constitution for Parliament to tax the colonies without their consent. After King George III ordered him thrown into the Tower of London, John Wilkes became a rallying cry in the American colonies with slogans such as "Wilkes and Liberty!" and "No taxation without representation!"

One of the more interesting details presented in the "Lucy Worsley Investigates The American Revolution" series is how when the king dispatched 3,500 redcoats to what he considered the hotbed of discontent in the British colonies - Boston, they received very low pay. This led to the British redcoats taking on second jobs to supplement their income. Which, in turn, drove down the wages for the locals, creating even more discontent on their part. Ultimately, leading to "The Boston Massacre". A work of propaganda in how it was reported in the colonies, according to Worsley.

In the colonies, it was presented as an organized shooting on the part of the British against the colonials who were merely throwing snowballs at the sentry. By contrast, in the British press, Captain Preston reported that he refused to give the order to fire, even though, the colonists were hitting his men with sticks. Whether the official order to fire was given or not, five deaths resulted from that occasion with several more suffering wounds.

When the colonists dumped 342 chests of British Tea into the Boston Harbor in what has become known as "The Boston Tea Party", Lucy Worsley states that at this point the movement in the colonies was still largely a tax protest. With the British Prime Minister, Lord North, being determined to bring the colonies "into submission." However, his heavy-handed tactics ended up accelerating the onset of The American Revolution.

According to Lucy Worsley, Virginia was the oldest British colony in America at that time and one of the richest. However, when the British Royal Governor of Virginia, Lord Dunmore, in attempt to increase the number of British soldiers in the colony, offered freedom to any of those held in a position of involuntary servitude who joined up with the British, this angered the colonials. For "The Ethiopian Regiment" made them worried that all of those in human bondage would become forces against them.

However, in spite of all of these tax protests and concerns about the composition of British regimental forces in the colonies, most of the colonists still viewed themselves as Englishmen who merely wanted to be on a more equal footing with The British in their empire. That is until a corset maker from Lewes, England traveled to Philadelphia and wrote "the first American bestseller", Thomas Paine's, "Common Sense". Published in January of 1776, his pamphlet stated things such as, "We have it in our power, to begin the world over again." Which encouraged the American Colonials to envision themselves as not just Englishmen, but Patriots.

Luisa Reyes is a Tuscaloosa attorney, piano instructor, vocalist, poet, reporter, and columnist who write on current affairs, politics, and the arts.