Benjamin Franklin

Publisher Marketing: John Abbott was a well-known historian in the mid-19th century, and this is his biography of Founding Father Benjamin Franklin. Before the United States of America even existed, the first American celebrity was Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790). In his career, Franklin was an author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat. After having his hand in all kinds of community service in Philadelphia, and inventing important devices like lightning rods, Franklin used his unique status as an international celebrity to become the colonies' best diplomat, first as an ambassador to Britan and then as an ambassador to France during the American Revolution. Franklin was particularly revered in Enlightened France, where he skillfully negotiated French entry into the Revolutionary War in a manner that practically bankrupted them, a critical step that helped the colonists win their independence. After negotiating the Treaty of Paris, Franklin played a role at the Constitutional Convention in his adopted home town of Philadelphia during the twilight of his life. Like other Founding Fathers, Franklin's lengthy career and magnificent exploits have been heavily embellished, to the point that some of the myths of Franklin's life are better known than the man himself. From the intro: "Next to George Washington, we must write, upon the Catalogue of American Patriots, the name of Benjamin Franklin. He had so many virtues that there is no need of exaggerating them; so few imperfections that they need not be concealed. The writer has endeavored to give a perfectly accurate view of his character, and of that great struggle, in which he took so conspicuous a part, which secured the Independence of the United States. Probably there can no where be found, within the same limits, so vivid a picture of Life in America, one hundred years ago, as the career of Franklin presents. This volume is the twelfth of the Library Series of Pioneers and Patriots. The series presents a graphic history of our country from its discovery." Contributor Bio:  Abbott, John John Abbott is president of the 21st Century Learning Initiative, a transnational association of educational researchers and practitioners based in the UK. Following a long career as a teacher and headteacher in England, John became director of Education 2000, spearheading nine community-wide education projects in the UK. He lectures around the world on new understandings about learning and is the author of several books including Learning Makes Sense (1994) and The Child is Father of the Man: How Humans Learn and Why (1999).