The historical revolution of a single colony in the United States was the topic of last week’s lecture as part of the Fanfare Then and Now Lecture Series.
Dr. Benjamin Price, history instructor, presented “Revolution in the Vineyard of the Lord: The Glorious Revolution in Massachusetts” on Wednesday, Oct. 16 in Pottle Auditorium.
Price received his master’s degree in classical history from Louisiana State University and earned his doctorate in American colonial history, specializing in late 17th century American and British history. His credentials allowed him the opportunity to share his interest in history with the students of Southeastern.
“Massachusetts colonists, unhappy with their rule under Edmund Andros, rebelled against Andros in an attempt to fight a ‘Glorious Revolution in Massachusetts’ comparable to the Glorious Revolution in England,” said Price. “The only problem was that, in order for the colonists to equate Andros with James II, they had to prove that Andros posed a Roman Catholic threat to the colonists, which he didn’t, so they made up a ‘Popish Plot’ based solely on Andros’ Indian policies. Finally, Massachusetts became a Royal Colony in 1691 that required them to accept toleration of Anglicans and acceptance of the king as a part of their government.”  
Price’s interest and research in the Glorious Revolution extends beyond the information presented in the lecture. He delved even further into the details of the Glorious Revolution in his book “Nursing Fathers: American Colonists’ Conception of English Protestant Kingship, 1688-1776.”
“I was actually interested in defining the differences over time between folks who would become rebels (Patriots) and people who would remain loyal to the king (Tories) in the American Revolution,” said Price. “Problem was that those differences didn’t seem to emerge until fairly late, really until the summer of 1776. My primary research materials included newspapers, pamphlets, sermons, (both English and American), diaries, records of the colonial assemblies and lots of other stuff. The book begins with the Glorious Revolution in England and the ideologies that developed in England as a result of ideas about the meaning of the revolution and follows English political ideas up to the mid-1700s. Then I looked at the Glorious Revolution in Massachusetts, New York and Maryland. Then I looked at Americans’ conceptions of what a good king is and how the king of England (and the American colonies) fit into the Constitutional and political frameworks of American thought up to the American Revolution.”
Next in line for the Then and Now Lecture Series is “Austen, Bronte, Shakespeare and Meyer (Oh My!): ‘Twilight’ in the Literary Tradition,” to be presented by English instructor Tasha Whitton on Wednesday, Oct. 23 at 1 p.m. in Pottle Auditorium.