The Columbian Patriot

The name of Mercy Otis Warren is generally not included among those of the founders of the American republic. Yet there were few individuals of her day who were more consistently dedicated in both deeds and words to the proposition that the new nation should be founded on republican principles. She deserves a preeminent position among the active participants in the American Revolution. She was a significant force in the debates leading to the ratification of the Constitution and to the eventual adoption of the Bill of Rights. She was the only contemporary woman to write a comprehensive history of the American Revolution, and she was the only historian of the time to write from a republican viewpoint. She successfully balanced traditional femininity with principled political and intellectual activism. Her contemporary influence makes her truly a participating founder of the nation.