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How did the indigenous people of Chicagoland understand what was happening in the Colonies in 1776?

Did the Declaration of Independence affect them in any way?

Of course, the City of Chicago was not founded until 1837, but this episode explores the lives of the inhabitants of the Chicago area and the effect of European colonization on their way of life during the Revolutionary War.

Our expert guest, Prof. Theodore Karamanski, walks us through the history of Chicagoland, focussing on the following points:

-Chicagoland during the Seven Years' War (French and Indian War)

-The differences in French and British methods...

In this episode, Andrew Sola and Tobias Brinkmann explore the history of the earliest Jews in the Colonies.

Topics include the following:

-The arrival in 1654 of the first Jewish ship in New Amsterdam, which was governed by Peter Stuyvesant (who is featured in the photo, arriving in New Amsterdam for the first time)

-The story of Asser Levy, perhaps the first Jewish inhabitant of the North American colonies

-The status of early Jews in Spanish, Dutch, and Portuguese colonies

-Jew and Puritans in the Massachusetts Bay Colony

-Roger Williams, the founder of Rhode Island, where religious freedom for Jews...

"We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men AND WOMEN are created equal." Declaration of Sentiments, Seneca Falls Convention

In this episode, Prof. Rosemarie Zagarri explores the legal, social, and political status of women from the Colonial Era through the Revolutionary War, the Seneca Falls Convention (1848), and beyond.

Topics include:

-The tensions between the ideals of the phrase "all men are created equal" and the lived reality of women

-"Coverture" and the legal status of women in the Colonies

-The evolving trans-Atlantic dialogue about women's rights from the Enlightenment through the Revolutionary War

-The incorporation of Colonial...

"He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures."

This Pride Month episode focuses on two questions.

First, why were American colonists increasingly frustrated with the presence of British troops in the Colonies?

Second, to what extent were Thomas Jefferson and the Founders aware of LGBTQ+ issues at the nation's founding?

Topics include the following:

-Grievances 11, 12, and 14 in the Declaration of the Independence

-The Quartering Act of 1774

-Evidentiary problems when trying to access LGBTQ+ history

-'Disordered' sexuality in the Colonies, including gay sex and master-slave sexual relations

-Similarities...

The Declaration of Independence uses the words 'God,' 'the Creator,' and 'Divine Providence,' but many of the Founders were highly skeptical of both Christianity and also organized religion, preferring the scientific and rational ideals of the Enlightenment.

In this episode, we explore the tensions between religion and reason in the Declaration of Independence.

Topics include the following:

-Theistic and deistic beliefs in the Founders, including Franklin and Jefferson

-The different religious groups in the Colonies, from Baptists and Catholics to Anglicans and Quakers

-Biblical and theological arguments for and against revolution as well as submission to the King

-Grievance #20...

"He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of the new Appropriation of Lands"

..."for cutting off trade with all parts of the world."

In this episode, Steven Pincus explores grievances against King George for restricting free trade and for preventing immigration to the colonies.

Topics include the following:

-The importance of the trans-Atlantic Patriot Party, which existed both in Great Britain and throughout the Empire and which criticized the policies of King George for...

"He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions."

How are we supposed to understand the phrase "merciless Indian Savages" in the Declaration of Independence?

In this episode, expert in American Indian history Prof. Matthew Kruer (U. of Chicago) gives a thorough analysis of indigenous-colonial relations from the Seven Years' War (1756-1763) through the Declaration of Independence (1776).

Topics include the following:

-The enormous diversity of the 574 indigenous nations recognized by...

Who was Thomas Jefferson and how did he come to write the Declaration of Independence at the tender age of 33?

In this episode, historian Robert McDonald (US Military Academy) discusses the genius of Thomas Jefferson. Topics include the following:

-Jefferson's evolution into a revolutionary

-The long tradition of self government in the Colonies

-The process of composing the Declaration of Independence

-The deletion of the passage condemning slavery (see the full passage below)

-Jefferson's reputation in his own time

In this introductory episode, you will learn about some key events leading up to the Declaration of Independence. Check out additional information at amerikazentrum.de.

If you have any thoughts, please share them on our YouTube channel: @declarationofindependence250.

Here is the timeline:

1756-1763: The Seven Years’ War AKA The French and Indian War

1763, 10 February: Treaty of Paris (ended the war)

1763, 7 October: Proclamation of 1763 (set the boundaries for Indian Territory)

1763-1766: Pontiac’s War (Native American Coalition vs. Britain)

1765: Stamp Act (Tax on Printed Material Used in Colonies)

1766-1767: Townshend Acts (Levied More Taxes on Colonies)

1770,...

In 2026, the United States of America is celebrating the 250-year anniversary of its founding, with the signing of the Declaration of Independence on the 4th of July, 1776.

Join us in commemorating this important milestone by learning more about the Declaration of Independence, including the historical reasons for its composition, the political philosophies that influenced it, its reception in Europe and the rest of the world, and its impact on independence movements around the world.

The series features scholars and experts in a variety of disciplines, from history and law to philosophy and culture.

It also features guests from...