The Institute Of World Politics

Rebecca Burgess discussed the impact of the Constitution on spiritedness and the unique role of soldiers and citizens to defend it. This event is sponsored by the Jack Miller Center. About the Lecture: Soldier-Citizens and Citizen-Soldiers: Spiritedness and the Constitution - The Founding generation was famously concerned about the dangers to liberty that a standing army could pose. Less well remembered is how that generation’s general ambivalence about professional soldiers along with the government’s inability to pay them resulted in soldiers besieging Congress in Philadelphia’s Independence Hall, demanding redress. Congress fled to Princeton. But the “Pennsylvania Mutiny” resulted in long-lasting effects for both the nation’s civilians and military: It showcased significant cracks in the Articles of Confederation government, helping set in motion the Constitutional Convention and the inclusion of a constitutional provision for Congress to support federal armies and a navy. Later on, Alexis de Tocqueville