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Start giftingNovus Ordo Seclorum
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Learn moreThe title, taken from the Great Seal of the United States (which is seen on the reverse side of the dollar bill), means “a new order for the ages.” In this major new interpretation of the framing of the US Constitution, Forrest McDonald brilliantly explains the philosophical origins from which this “new order” was born.
McDonald deftly recreates the intellectual world of the amazing fifty-five men whose genius and passion gave to us the United States Constitution. He explains their understanding of law, history, political philosophy, and political economy, and how these perspectives played out in the Constitutional Convention. Above all this ideology, he shows how the Framers were guided by their own experience, wisdom, and common sense.
Forrest McDonald is a professor of history at the University of Alabama and distinguished senior fellow at the Center for the Study of Southern History and Culture.
Daniel Laurence holds a BFA in acting from Ithaca College. He currently lives on the East coast and works at the Shakespeare Theatre Company of New Jersey.
Reviews
“A witty and energetic study of the ideas and passions of the Framers.”
“Bristles with wit and intellectual energy.”
“A masterpiece. McDonald’s status as an interpreter of the Constitution is unequaled—magisterial.”
“As provocative as it is difficult to put down.”
“Thoroughly impressive. A book that is consistently enlightening and one that, more than any of McDonald’s previous works, stands as a monument to his remarkable talents.”
“The best single volume on the origins of the Constitution.”
“An important, comprehensive statement about the most fundamental period in American history. It deals authoritavely with topics no student of America can afford to ignore.”
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