The state of Virginia began its storied history as a charter colony and didn't become a British crown colony until 1624 when the charter holder went bankrupt. The largely fragmented colony began to see success with the arrival of Colonel Richard Lee I in 1639. A society developed, an aristocracy of wealthy landowners formed, and political machinations became a focal point of aristocratic life.
The complex social and political structure in Virginia likely contributed to the colony's significant role in the American Revolution. Revolutionary leaders including George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, and Richard Henry Lee of the famous Lee family, were of Virginia stock. Virginians were instrumental in the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution, cementing a place in American history for eternity.
The Birth of Virginia's Aristocracy by James C. Thompson II explores the evolution of Virginian society from a fledgling colony to a powerful commonwealth. The book zeroes in on the political machinations of the Lee family and other Virginian landowners as they play powerful leaders against each other and take sides in British civil disputes. The first installment in the Pocketbook Illustrated Histories series masterfully weaves a tapestry of intrigue, politics, and alliances.
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History textbooks are usually written from supposedly dispassionate third-person perspectives. This choice of perspective is intended to lend an air of impartiality to the description of events in human history. However, nothing could be further from the truth.
The Greek historian Thucydides, who scoffed at "the compositions of the chroniclers that are attractive at truth's expense" (The History of the Peloponnesian War), could not avoid the bias of interpretation. Every person absorbs and interprets information uniquely, thus no two accounts can ever be exactly alike.
Commonwealth Book Publishers of Virginia fervently believes that non-fiction narratives provide a less biased and more vivid description of historical events. The reader is not handed some historian's version of the events as indisputable fact. Instead, the reader is taken on a journey to accompany the historical figures as they live through these pivotal moments. The reader has the freedom to test the veracity of the account firsthand.
Stop by our website and take a look at some of the American history works our book publishing service has produced. Experience the power of our unique and powerful approach to history.
History is generally understood as the study of the past events in human development. If we specify the history of philosophy or art, we are narrowing the scope to events that define these two fields.
The flaw in many written works on history is their tendency to overemphasize the events that directly affected societies, such as wars, alliances, plagues, and revolutions. In doing so, they overlook two important fields which influence and give context to the course of human events: art and philosophy.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau's ideas influenced the French Revolution and were twisted by Maximilien Robespierre and Saint-Just to justify their Reign of Terror. At the same time, his philosophical ideas reflected a mindset among philosophers of the Enlightenment.
In a similar vein, Jacques-Louis David was a Jacobin who used paintings like "The Death of Marat" to defend his views. Its subsequent popularity among the leaders of the Reign of Terror is indicative of a frame of mind.
Commonwealth Book Publishers of Virginia publishes books that meld these three distinct, yet related, dimensions into a vivid portrayal of human events. We believe this approach provides a truly comprehensive understanding of the events under discussion.Topics covered by our book publishing service range from tales of American history to memoirs of Chinese life.
