In April 1775, the Battles of Lexington and Concord fired the “shot heard round the world,” as Massachusetts militiamen pushed back against British forces. These are historically considered the first battles of the Revolutionary War, but it’s important to understand that the concept of independence from the mother country was not yet the powerful idea the Declaration would enshrine. There were still a sizeable number of, frankly, reasonable colonial Americans who thought declaring independence was national and political suicide. Besides the obvious cost of war against the world’s most impressive military, there were rational concerns about how the economic divorce might irreparably harm the welfare of the colonies.
The Second Continental Congress was convened after Lexington and Concord to forge a path forward. A full year before that body instructed Thomas Jefferson and his committee to pen our Declaration, they submitted the Olive Branch Petition to King George III in a last-ditch effort to avoid war. Of course, the Mad King rejected their pleas and proclaimed the Congress traitors. Colonialists became more and more inflamed with the idea of independence, but few could articulate their passion as well as Thomas Paine.
His January 1776 work in Common Sense did more to clarify the intellectual and moral argument for liberty and separation from Great Britain than any other writing. In a time without speedy communication, it sold 120,000 copies in three months. Washington had it read to all soldiers in the Continental Army. It is still to this day one of the best-selling American titles.
But Paine’s contribution does not end there. Knowing that any insurgent cause for liberty needed a reason to fight in desperate times, he wrote in December 1776 the first of 13 pieces that form The American Crisis. It contains the famous line, “These are the times that try men’s souls: The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.” The succeeding twelve would form a powerful rationale for American Independence and self-government. Thomas Paine, in the first and last months of that fateful year, helped ignite and sustain the Revolution.
Mountain States Legal Foundation carries on the spirit of Paine and the Revolution. We—MSLF and every American—are called to write a grand chapter in the story of our Republic. A chapter that not only harkens back to an age of magnanimity and principle, but also toward the refreshing spirit of liberty. We are called to take up the great enterprise of fighting for the natural and constitutional rights of our fellow man and citizens, both in the courtroom and the court of public opinion.
We’re excited today to launch our new online publication, The Pamphlet, a title in recognition of the format Thomas Paine used to lead Americans to liberty.
You will read from our unmatched attorneys, staff, and partners as they share their expertise in ways both accessible and compelling. And you will enjoy our commentary on matters specifically related to our line of work in the hope you can use it to influence those in your own circle.
We invite you to join us as we go forth to good for liberty.