Envoy to the terror : Gouverneur Morris & the French Revolution / Melanie Randolph Miller.
"The story of Gouverneur Morris, the brilliant and unconventional Founding Father from New York, is a forgotten jewel in the crown of early American national history. Although he was an important contributor to our Constitution, Morris has generally received little respect or attention from his...
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| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Book |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Dulles, Va. :
Potomac Books,
©2005.
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| Edition: | 1st ed. |
| Subjects: |
| Summary: | "The story of Gouverneur Morris, the brilliant and unconventional Founding Father from New York, is a forgotten jewel in the crown of early American national history. Although he was an important contributor to our Constitution, Morris has generally received little respect or attention from historians. The reason for this long indifference lies primarily in the most powerful but misunderstood episode of Morris's life: his experience as American minister to France during the height of the French Revolution. Envoy to the Terror is the first in-depth study of Morris's time in France, and it discredits many long-standing myths about his performance as a diplomat." "Melanie Randolph Miller's research reveals that, contrary to the charges of Morris's contemporaries, which have been adopted by many historians, Morris conducted himself throughout one of history's greatest cataclysms with superb diplomatic skill, compassion, and a determination to preserve French-American amity. While conventional wisdom has been that Morris was recalled due to misconduct and inability, this book establishes that it was instead the result of unfounded denunciations by secret adversaries, including Thomas Paine and John Adams's son-in-law, who viewed Morris as an obstacle to their ambitions and schemes in France."--BOOK JACKET. |
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| Item Description: | Based on author's thesis (doctoral)--George Washington University, 2000. |
| Physical Description: | xiv, 284 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 24 cm. |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references (pages 275-279) and index. |
| ISBN: | 1574887866 (alk. paper) |