US EditionAmerica’s Revolution Was Steeled by ‘Common Sense’
Self-published in Philadelphia, Thomas Paine's pamphlet sold about 130,000 copies in three months and reshaped colonial views from reconciliation to full independence.
- On Jan. 10, 1776, Thomas Paine self-published Common Sense in Philadelphia, instantly reshaping colonial opinion and becoming the most influential political work in American history.
- Paine argued that reconciliation was futile and independence was necessary to secure foreign aid, urged by Benjamin Rush and advised by Benjamin Franklin and Samuel Adams.
- In 1776, Thomas Paine's Common Sense was widely distributed, with over 130,000 copies sold, read aloud in taverns and churches, and ordered to be read to George Washington's troops.
- Soon town councils petitioned the Second Continental Congress to declare independence as public opinion shifted, and less than six months after publication the Declaration of Independence was signed in Philadelphia.
- Over the long term Paine's arguments helped define American civic identity and democratic norms, popularizing self-government, equality, freedom of conscience, separation of church and state, and the Bill of Rights.
28 Articles
28 Articles
Tulsa World
America’s revolution was steeled by ‘Common Sense’
While Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence turned the smoldering embers of rebellion into the glorious fireworks of independence and revolution, it was a short pamphlet published six months earlier, in January 1776, that ignited the colonies’ revolutionary zeal and crowded…
The Uncommon Sense of a Partisan Patriot — Minding The Campus
Note: The newest installment of The Road to the American Revolution is now live on Substack. Follow the series on Facebook, Instagram, and X to keep up with new essays and join the conversation. An excerpt from the article appears below. On January 10, 1776, Thomas Paine’s Common Sense struck America like an earthquake. It appeared first in Philadelphia, the capitol of Pennsylvania and meeting-place […] The post The Uncommon Sense of a Partisan …
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