The American Revolution - Ken Burns

[CT_Shooter]

I was surprised by how little I actually knew about the founding of our country before watching this extraordinary documentary. It's embarrassing, actually.

I never considered that the long eight year conflict was a bloody, vengeful, and passionate civil war, too, with half the population remaining loyal to King George III, including many of the officers who eventually led the continental army; among them George Washington. It was a period of deep distrust among family members, former friends, and neighbors who violently and cruelly opposed each other.

The events that followed the gunshots fired in Concord and Lexington were extremely complicated and driven by so much more than just opposition to the military authority and laws imposed by the King and British Parliament.

When it was finally resolved, the American revolution had inspired similar uprisings across Europe and Africa and Asia, forever changing the political and economic landscape.

I recorded and binge-watched the entire series over four days and highly recommend it. The storytelling is compelling and without a single mention of the almost trite, shouted alarm that I learned as a child, "The British are coming. The British are coming." With the exception of the millions of indigenous people and some French and Spanish explorers, everyone on the eastern continent was British.

[cooperhawk]

A few years back Ken Burns was producing a series about Vietnam and I and some of my friends were contacted to see if we would participate. They held several breakfast meetings which we and many more attended where we were made aware of what he wanted to convey.

All of us declined to participate as it was apparent that he had his slant and the truth be damned. I now look at his productions warily. I did watch a lot of the series you are describing and did enjoy it however. There is always something to be learned.

[Cowboy Gun Fan]

It seems like a lot of history out there is "slanted" and I find that my personal researches seem to discover the truth more than anything.

I've spent a lot of time researching the Civil War.

[cooperhawk]

It seems like a lot of history out there is "slanted" and I find that my personal researches seem to discover the truth more than anything.

I've spent a lot of time researching the Civil War.

When we travel we often visit Civil War Battlefields. We both love history.

[Cowboy Gun Fan]

It seems like a lot of history out there is "slanted" and I find that my personal researches seem to discover the truth more than anything.

I've spent a lot of time researching the Civil War.

When we travel we often visit Civil War Battlefields. We both love history.

"Like"

[RanchRoper]

Don’t spoil the ending, I haven’t seen it.

[CT_Shooter]

Don’t spoil the ending, I haven’t seen it.

No one else has seen it yet, either. I actually hope I don't live that long. As Shakespeare said, "All the world's a stage..." The writers finished the script a long time ago, but the young editors are still scratching their heads and changing bits of the storyline, and too many of the critical players are still finding their marks and learning their roles. The ending will surely be an epic nail biter.

[JEBar]

back when we were able to travel around the country we made it a point to visit as many historic battlefields as possible .... from Fort Ticonderoga to the Alamo and the Little Bighorn and Gettysburg .... we found all of them to be very interesting

[The Wiz]

I caught one of the episodes at the end. I did not realize the divide between the rebels and the loyalist was so deep. And I was appalled by the some of a actions on both sides AFTER the surrender at Yorktown. I learned a lot.