The pamphlet shown here is a collection of speeches by Robert Smalls spoken during the Constitutional Convention in South Carolina, where many of the proposed changes to the constitutions were designed with the intention of disenfranchising African-Americans residing in South Carolina. Smalls was a district representative from South Carolina, and is also known as a publisher, businessman, and maritime pilot. Born into slavery in Beaufort, South Carolina, he freed himself, his crew, and their families during the American Civil War by commandeering a Confederate transport ship, CSS Planter, in Charleston harbor, on May 13, 1862, and sailing it from Confederate-controlled waters of the harbor to the U.S. blockade that surrounded it.

Winner of the Bancroft Prize Winner of the James Bradford Best Biography Prize, Society for Historians of the Early American Republic Finalist, Literary Award for Nonfiction, Library of Virginia Finalist, George Washington Prize James Madison’s Notes on the 1787 Constitutional Convention have acquired nearly unquestioned authority as the description of the U.S. Constitution’s creation. No document provides a more complete record of the deliberations in Philadelphia or depicts the Convention’s charismatic figures, crushing disappointments, and miraculous triumphs with such narrative force. But how reliable is this account? “[A] superb study of the Constitutional Convention as selectively reflected in Madison’s voluminous notes on it...Scholars have been aware that Madison made revisions in the Notes but have not intensively explored them. Bilder has looked closely indeed at the Notes and at his revisions, and the result is this lucid, subtle book. It will be impossible to view Madison’s role at the convention and read his Notes in the same uncomplicated way again...An accessible and brilliant rethinking of a crucial moment in American history.” —Robert K. Landers, Wall Street Journal

Return to the nation's founding to rediscover the dramatic original debates--on presidential power, religious liberty, foreign corruption, and more--that still shape our world today When the Constitutional Convention adjourned on September 17, 1787, few Americans anticipated the document that emerged from its secret proceedings. James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and the other framers had fashioned something radically new, a strong national government with broad powers. A fierce storm of argument soon broke out in advance of the state ratifying conventions that would decide the new plan's fate as Federalist supporters, Antifederalist opponents, and seekers of a middle ground praised, condemned, challenged, and analyzed the new Constitution. Here, in chronological order, are more than sixty newspaper articles, pamphlets, speeches, and private letters written or delivered during this ratification debate. Along with familiar figures such as Madison, Hamilton, and Patrick Henry, are dozens of lesser-known but equally engaged and passionate participants. The most famous writings of the period--especially the key Federalist essays--are placed in context alongside the arguments of insightful Antifederalists such as "Brutus" and the "Federal Farmer." Crucial issues quickly take center stage--the need for a Bill of Rights, the controversial compromises over slavery and the slave trade, whether religious tests should be imposed--and on questions that continue to engage and divide Americans: the relationship between the national government and the states, the dangers of unchecked presidential power and the remedy of impeachment, the proper role of the Supreme Court, fears of foreign and domestic corruption, and the persistent challenge of making representative government work in a large and diverse nation.

There were many writers other than John Jay, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton who, in 1787 and 1788, argued for the Constitution's ratification. In a collection central to our understanding of the American founding, Friends of the Constitution brings together forty-nine of the most important of these "other" Federalists' writings. Colleen A. Sheehan is Professor of Political Science at Villanova University. Gary L. McDowell is the Tyler Haynes Interdisciplinary Professor of Leadership Studies, Political Science, and Law at the University of Richmond in Virginia. From 1992 to 2003 he was the Director of the Institute of United States Studies in the University of London.

This two-volume set brings together a collection of writings and speeches by James Wilson, one of only six signers of both the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution. His works had a significant impact on the deliberations that produced the cornerstone documents of American democracy.

Conceived and written by three of the most successful and talented National Forensic League coaches and educators, this text brings together current best practices for Public Forum and Congressional Debate.

Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death is widely considered to be one of the top 100 greatest books of all time. For many, Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death is required reading for various courses and curriculums and for others, who simply enjoy reading timeless pieces of classic literature, this gem by Patrick Henry is highly recommended.

What did America's greatest orators say regarding significant issues and concerns throughout United States history? This three-volume set examines hundreds of the most historically significant speeches from colonial times to the modern era, allowing readers to consider exactly what the speakers said—and to better understand the motivations behind each speech as well as the effect on the audiences that heard them. This essential reference work presents the most important and historically significant speeches delivered since colonial times, providing in essence a documentary history of the United States through these public utterances. Readers can witness American history unfold firsthand through these stirring and at times controversial speeches—from Patrick Henry's fiery words calling for an American revolution, through the words of the 19th-century abolitionists and Lincoln's immortal Gettysburg Address, and up through the 20th century with President Wilson's famous "Fourteen Points," FDR reminding Americans that the only thing they had to fear was fear itself, and George W. Bush responding to the attacks of September 11. For students, teachers, librarians, and general readers, this indispensable work provides essential reference resources on the speeches of great significance in American history. Each speech is prefaced by a contextual headnote that provides essential background information and specific details about the speech. This three-volume set also includes a timeline, a historical review of each era, biographical sketches of each speaker, and anecdotal sidebars containing additional information about the speech or speakers.