Roger Sherman and the creation of the American republic

239 Pages·2013·1.465 MB·English

by  Hall, Mark David

Roger Sherman and the Creation
of the American Republic
Ralph Earl. R oger Sherman (1721–1793), M. A. (Hon.) 1768. Yale University Art
Gallery. Gift of Roger Sherman White, B. A. 1859, LL.B. 1862.
Roger Sherman
and the Creation
of the American
Republic
z

MARK DAVID HALL
1
1

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Hall, Mark David, 1966–
Roger Sherman and the creation of the American republic / Mark David Hall.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references (p.).
ISBN 978–0–19–992984–9
1. Sherman, Roger, 1721–1793. 2. Statesmen—United States—Biography.
3. United States. Declaration of Independence—Signers—Biography.
4. United States. Continental Congress—Biography. 5. Connecticut—History—
Colonial period, ca. 1600–1775. 6. Connecticut—History—Revolution, 1775–1783.
7. United States—History—Revolution, 1775–1783.
8. United States—Politics and government—1775–1783. I. Title.
E302.6.S5H35 2013
973.3092—dc23 [B] 2012018343
1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
To my son, Joshua, of whom I am very proud.
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Contents
Preface ix
1. The Old Puritan and a New Nation 1
2. Reformed Political Theory in the American Founding 12
3. Connecticut Politics and American Independence 41
4. Achieving Independence 63
5. “An Eel by the Tail” 92
6. Roger Sherman and the New National Government 122
7. “Philosophy May Mislead You. Ask Experience” 149
Notes 155
Appendix 213
Index 219
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Preface
i began this study with the belief that Roger Sherman’s contributions to
the founding of the American republic have been neglected, that he has
been ignored as a political thinker, and that the signifi cance of his reli-
gious convictions has been overlooked. Addressing these concerns remain
at the core of this book. However, as the work progressed, I was intrigued
by Sherman’s extensive knowledge of, and commitment to, Reformed
Christianity. (“Reformed,” in this context, refers to the theological and
broader cultural traditions that emerged from the Protestant Reformation,
especially that branch of the Reformation associated with John Calvin.
Accordingly, the terms “Reformed” and “Calvinist” are used interchange-
ably throughout this book.) As I delved into his correspondence and the
world in which he lived, I became convinced that there was a larger story
to tell. Sherman represents well the many founders infl uenced by the
Reformed political tradition, a tradition that dominated New England and
which had a signifi cant presence throughout the rest of the nation.1
As this study evolved from being a narrow account of Sherman to
include a broader argument for the infl uence of Reformed tradition in the
American founding, I found it necessary to trace the development of
Reformed political theory. Like many students of American political
theory, I was trained broadly in political philosophy and so was familiar
with great political philosophers such as Thomas Hobbes, John Locke,
and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Although I had read excerpts from Calvin’s
Institutes and Brutus’s V indiciae, Contra Tyrannos , I knew little about
Reformed political theory. Perhaps it is as a result of this shortcoming,
which I suspect is not uncommon among students of America’s founding,
that the infl uence of the Reformed tradition on American political theory
is neglected. There are notable exceptions to this rule which will be dis-
cussed in the chapters to come, but these works are lost in a sea of books
and articles contending that the founders were primarily infl uenced by