dlvr.it
WMQ Forum on the Dickinson-Barclay Documents
The William and Mary Quarterly has published a Forum on the "Dickinson-Barclay documents." From the introductory essay, by Jane E. Calvert (John Dickinson Writings Project) and Jonathan Gienapp (Stanford University):
This Forum introduces previously unknown documents written by John
Dickinson, the leading American revolutionary statesman, in mid-1775 and
explores their historical significance. The documents reveal one of the
last attempts to prevent American independence and the secret
diplomatic back channels used to carry it out. There are four documents:
two lengthy letters from Dickinson to David Barclay Jr., a British
merchant, and two nearly identical drafts of a legislative act for
Parliament to adopt to resolve the imperial crisis and restore harmony
in the empire. An introductory essay by Jane E. Calvert and Jonathan
Gienapp places these documents in their original context. Five
subsequent essays interpret their deeper significance: Calvert shows how
Dickinson's letters undermine John Adams's later portrayal of the
Second Continental Congress; Gienapp traces continuities between
Dickinson's struggle to preserve the British Empire and similar attempts
to hold together the new American federal union; David Como situates
Dickinson's peace bid in the context of contemporary British politics
and previous failed reconciliation attempts; William B. Ewald explores
how Dickinson used ambiguous wording and punctuation in his draft act to
navigate the irreconcilable principles of the two sides; finally, Jack
N. Rakove argues that Dickinson occupied an increasingly idiosyncratic
political position, but his bid for peace ultimately failed because
Britain's leaders would not rethink their inflexible imperial policy.
The full issue is available here. And according to Prof. Gienapp (via Bluesky), "the WMQ has generously made the issue open access for the next month."
-- Karen Tani
