DOC The King's Three Faces: The Rise and Fall of Royal America; 1688-1776 (Published by the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture and the University of North Carolina Press) by Brendan McConville in History

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0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. An Eye-Opening Examination of Attitudes During the American RevolutionBy RDDIn The King’s Three Faces: The Rise Fall of Royal America; 1688 – 1776 (2006); historian Brendan McConville sought to examine “how provincials’ thinking about monarchy changed in the short century between the Glorious Revolution of 1688 and the American Revolution.” Contrary to previous historical understanding that framed colonial America as leading inevitably toward the Revolution and democracy; McConville argues; “In the royal America that existed between the Glorious Revolution and 1776; that which we call political culture; the milieu in which politics takes place; was decidedly monarchical and imperial; Protestant and virulently anti-Catholic; almost to the moment of American independence.” McConville structures his argument into three sections; examining first the origins of the colonial cult of personality that developed around the Protestant king; secondly “the fragmentation in understanding of the monarchy and the imperial order;” and finally the collapse of England’s empire in America. McConville states in his first section; “The growth of a political culture focused on the monarchy brought stability to the settler colonies in the four decades after the Glorious Revolution.” This led “individuals and groups” to repeatedly reconceive “their relationship to the king and the British constitution” along a spectrum running “from forms of divine-right monarchy to belief in an extralegal; extrainstitutional monarch at one with his meanest subjects.” Unfortunately; “the cult of monarchy; designed to link subjects harmoniously to the empire; often intensified rather than alleviated the stresses caused by these transformations.” McConville attributes to this the misunderstanding colonists had of the relationship between king and Parliament. As McConville writes; the colonists “demanded that the imperial father of their imagination restrain a tyrannical Parliament” and “the king’s failure to do so led to a collapse of royal institutional legitimacy in 1773 and 1774.” The result of the collapse of legitimacy in the eyes of the colonists was a series of “symbolic regicides conducted in numerous communities [that] announced the end of royal America and the first British empire to a startled world.” McConville summarizes his argument; stating; “What began as an effort to preserve the nation; honor the constitution; and revere the king by collectively resisting Parliament ended in terror and imperial dissolution.” Despite this dissolution; American culture continued to maintain elements of the monarchical cult until the Jacksonian era. McConville argues; “The American democracy that emerged in the 1820s was a fusion of past and present and future” containing an eighteenth-century style of patronage system under Jacksonian democracy and a craving for European cultural and fashion. To McConville; this trend has continued throughout American culture; reaching to the present and allowing the past to be “historically recoverable.” McConville; using primary sources such as journals; personal letters; and pamphlets; is able to demonstrate the prevalence of the cult of monarchy prior to the Revolution and how the American understanding of the monarchy was different than that in the British Isles; eventually leading to the sense of betrayal at the beginning of the Revolution.0 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Fantastic title but lacks the documentation and for that matter ...By CustomerNever really clearly understand just exactly what the King's three faces are. Fantastic title but lacks the documentation and for that matter a CLEAR THESIS to back it up.2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. The King's Three FacesBy J. LindnerIn the King's Three Faces; author Brendan McConville takes the traditional whig approach to the American Revolution and sets it aside and looks at our colonial past as an imperial British past and not a predestined march towards patriotism and liberty. Actually; patriotism and liberty were always part of the colonial era but the emphasis was first to king and country instead of freedom and independence. McConville examines nearly every aspect of society; from toasting the king on his birthday to religious expression to gender relations to race relations and beyond then combines them all into his recipe that emerged as the United States. But it was a long and arduous process not a fast track to July 4; 1776.History was alive in the world of colonial America. And it was predominantly British history complete with oaths to king; the impact of the Glorious Revolution; fear of papacy and Catholicism; and trust that the king would look out for all of his children. It was the King who most colonials saw as the representative of empire; not parliament and certainly not the prime minister. The King's likeness appeared in colonial halls of justice; on colonial tableware; in art; on public documents; and other places. Counties; roads; even entire colonies were named in his honor. The empire was as embedded in America equally as much as it was in England; and possibly more embedded than it was in Scotland; given the Scots' tendencies towards supporting the former Stuart pretenders.McConville weaves an intricate history that touches so many parts of the imperial relationships becuase those relationships were so strongly connected. It wasn't alwasy that way and McConville starts by showing how Puritan New England; much to the chagrin of their religious consciences; had to make room for king and empire to enter into their daily lives. He goes on to show how the transformation of America from remote outposts to imperial integration took place. Even when the bonds of empire began to crumble after 1763; many in America looked to the King to protect their interests and constitutional rights. Reformers put forth plans to solve imperial problems; but it was the imperial officials who failed to recognize that problems existed and thus did far too little to sustain the empire's existence.Readers will likely be surprised by much of this book. McConville cites sources that are contrary to many traditional liberal teachings of liberty and independence. He shows how "British" colonial American truly was. He then furhter breaks with tradition when he describes the realities of revolutionary America. He covers the violence citizens had towards one another; he shows how the rejection of the King led to destruction of property. Violence against churches and clergy; against public officials that included their houses and possessions; against anything that reminded people of a love affair gone bad all were present at every level of revolutionary society. Committees authorized violence and the legal system really had nothing in place to prevent the destruction.The King's Three Faces is really a bit of a misnomer. The King had far more than three faces; perhaps he had dozens of faces depending on who was considering the royal personna. But McConville is a master at the historian's craft and his work should become an important part of our understanding of our colonial past. I once heard a college professor say to his students that colonial America is perhaps the most difficult part of our history to understand because of its complexities and dynamics. McConville's book will not simplify understanding of colonial America; indeed it will likely muddy the waters even more. But for those of us who appreciate just how complex American society truly is; this book is a necessary contribution into our historical knowledge.