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Featured Essays
As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of American independence, our founding charter remains central to our national life, unifying us and paving the way for what we have long called “the American Dream.”
America’s extraordinary success is directly related to its unique form of government embodied in the Constitution.
America 250!
The Battle that Led to Victory at Yorktown | Fall 2019 - George Washington Prize Books, Vol 64, No 5
By Nathaniel PhilbrickLargely overlooked in histories of the Revolution, the Battle of the Chesapeake is in fact one of the most important naval engagements in history, leading to the American victory at Yorktown.
They Turned the World Upside Down | Winter 2026, Vol 71, No 1
By Richard BellAmerican patriots began a conflict that spread around the globe.
“The Die is Now Cast” | November/December 2024, Vol 69, No 5
By Joseph J. EllisAmerican resistance to British authority developed with stunning speed 250 years ago in response to George III’s inflexibility.
Rethinking the Boston Massacre | Special Issue - George Washington Prize 2018, Vol 63, No 2
By Eric HinderakerIt is one of the most notorious incidents in American history, and also one of the least understood.
The Turning Point in the Revolutionary War | October 1997, Vol 48, No 6
By Richard M. Ketchum
Classic Essays from the Archives
Lincoln As Commander in Chief | Winter 2009, Summer 2025, Vol 70, No 3
By James M. McPhersonEven though he had no military training, Lincoln quickly rose to become one of America’s most talented commanders.
Columbus and Genocide | October 1975, Vol 26, No 6
By Edward T. StoneThe discoverer of the New World was responsible for the annihilation of the peaceful Arawak Indians
“The Miraculous Care Of Providence” | February/March 1982, Vol 33, No 2
By James Thomas FlexnerGeorge Washington’s Narrow Escapes
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