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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC01796 |
| From Archive Folder | Catharine Graham Macaulay papers |
| Title | James Otis to Catharine Macaulay praising her work as a historian and discussing American affairs |
| Date | 27 July 1769 |
| Author | Otis, James (1725-1783) |
| Recipient | Graham, Catharine Macaulay |
| Document Type | Correspondence |
| Content Description | Praise's Macaulay's "The History of England from the accession of James I to that of the Brunswick line" and her skill as an historian. States that "God & Nature...have been equally kind to both sexes" and it is only the "Tyranny of Custom" that keeps more women from rivaling men in art and science. At her request, he discusses American affairs at length, denouncing greedy governors, oppressive revenue officers, and the damage being done to commerce by seizure of vessels owned by loyal Americans. He exclaims, "Good God! This is British liberty & felicity with a vengeance." Criticizes the Townshend Acts, commenting on the problem of Britain maintaining North America as a dependent and refuting the idea that it could be done in perpetuity. Discusses colonial history. |
| Subjects | Women's History Literature and Language Arts Global History and Civics Government and Civics Taxes or Taxation Law Freedom and Independence Revolutionary War Woman Author |
| People | Otis, James (1725-1783) Graham, Catherine Macaulay (1731-1791) |
| Place written | Boston, Massachusetts |
| Theme | Women in American History; Arts & Literature; The American Revolution |
| Sub-collection | The Gilder Lehrman Collection, 1493-1859 |
| Additional Information | James Otis (1725-1783), one of the early leaders in the American struggle for independence, informs Catharine Macaulay (1731-1791), an English liberal sympathetic to the colonists cause, about the situation in America. A year before he wrote this letter, Otis had outspokenly rejected the British demand that the Massachusetts assembly withdraw its appeal for colonists to repudiate the Townshend Acts. "We are asked to rescind?" he asked rhetorically. "Let Great Britain rescind her measures, or the colonies are lost to her forever." The colonists considered Macaulay, an eminent English historian with many valuable political connections, one of the most important figures in Britain to whom they could present their grievances. Steeped in the British historical traditions of revolution, Lady Catharine played a critical role in reviving knowledge of English radicalism. Many colonists likened their situation to that of seventeenth-century radicals who had sought to protect English liberties against the usurpations of the Stuart kings. Lady Catharine later toured an independent United States in 1787. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Settlement, Commerce, Revolution and Reform: 1493-1859 |
| Transcript | Show/hide |