This concise and elegant book reintroduces us to the history that shaped the founding fathers, the history that they made, and what history has made of them. It gives the reader a context within which to explore the world of the founding fathers and their complex and still-controversial achievements and legacies.

In a scholarly, yet accessible work, Bernstein reveals the Founding Fathers not as shining demigods but as imperfect human beings who nevertheless achieved political greatness.