Founding Fathers & American History
Essays and features on the Founding Fathers, constitutional principles, and how America’s heritage informs today’s political and cultural debates.
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opinion
Gordon Wood and the Historians Who Told the Real Story of the Founders
The sudden death of the historian Gordon Wood, just weeks before the celebration of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, is one more mark of the closure of a golden age of the historiography of the revolutionary era. It’s an occasion to reflect on the uniqueness, indeed the idiosyncrasy, of the emergence of… -
opinion
America at 250: The Roots of America’s Greatness
If you want to find out why our country has been so successful, you should study the people who built it. America is about to turn 250 years old. It should be easy to celebrate America. Aside from the healthy patriotic pride anyone should feel, we are the greatest country in the history of the… -
opinion
5 Things to Know About the SPLC’s Incoming CEO
The Southern Poverty Law Center has announced its next president and CEO amid a federal indictment into alleged fraud regarding payments to members of the Ku Klux Klan. Ryan P. Haygood, who serves as president and CEO of the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice, will formally join the SPLC in August, the center announced… -
news
What Does It Mean to Be American? 3 Defining Beliefs
What makes an American an American? Hillsdale College professor Matthew Spalding joined Heritage Foundation Executive Vice President Derrick Morgan on Monday to answer this question and to discuss Spalding’s new book, “The Making of the American Mind.” The Declaration of Independence offers a unique answer to this question, Spalding told Morgan. He laid out certain… -
opinion
The Left Gears Up for US 250th Anniversary by Dialing Up the America-Hating
Rolling into the 250th anniversary of the United States, liberals, leftists, Democrats, and democratic socialists are united behind one message: America stinks. At the counterprogramming to the White House UFC match over the weekend, a bunch of miserable-looking, aging celebrities held a “#resistance” rally or something like that. Robert De Niro, an aging Hollywood gazillionaire… -
opinion
Tall Ships Bring the Spirit of ‘76 to Virginia
Richmond SailFest kicked off last weekend as three sailing ships—Oosterschelde, Pride of Baltimore II, and Virginia—docked in the state capital. Richmond’s portion of the event was co-hosted by the Virginia Museum of History & Culture and featured reenactors, history and art exhibits, cultural performances, and live music, plus a fireworks and drone show. “This summer… -
opinion
Honoring the Declaration in Richmond
For the next month, Virginians can see a vital piece of our shared national history. A rare copy of the Declaration of Independence will be on display at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture. It should serve as a living reminder of the first 250 years of American history. Virginia has been central to… -
opinion
D-Day at 82: An American’s Experience at Normandy
This week, I had the honor of visiting Normandy, France, with Young America’s Foundation. Led by combat veteran Lt. Col. Allen West, our cadre of student leaders walked the five beaches of Normandy, which were hallowed 82 years ago by Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower’s soldiers, sailors, and airmen. After commemorating the anniversary of the D-Day landings, and… -
opinion
Lawsuit Exposes Virginia’s Neo-Confederate Approach to Immigration
Democrats of 2026 bear an uncanny resemblance to Democrats of 1861 when it comes to seeking to nullify federal law. In 1861, Democrats led efforts to “secede” from the Union to oppose Abraham Lincoln, a Republican who opposed the expansion of slavery into the Northern Territories, an expansion expressly forbidden by Congress in the Missouri… -
analysis
Catholic Bishops Consecrate US to Sacred Heart of Jesus for America 250
On the eve of the Catholic Church marking the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops honored America’s 250th birthday by consecrating the nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. What Is the Sacred Heart and Why Consecrate? As Louisville Archbishop Shelton J. Fabre shared, the Sacred Heart is… -
news
‘Young Washington’ Is Angel Studios’ Superhero Movie for American Youth
Before he became a general in the American Revolutionary War and the first president of the United States, George Washington was a young Virginian colonist who could not enlist in the British army because he was not a qualified English gentleman. Angel Studios’ film “Young Washington,” set to release in theaters July 3, captures how… -
exclusive
Daughters of the American Revolution to Vote on Definition of ‘Woman’ Amid Criticism of Transgender Policy
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—The Daughters of the American Revolution currently allows men who identify as women to join, but the group will vote on a resolution to reverse that policy and formally define “woman,” the Daily Signal has learned. “Members of the Daughters of the American Revolution will take an historic vote to define… -
opinion
We Owe American Security to Those Boys on the Beaches of Normandy
Editor’s note: This is a lightly edited transcript of today’s video from Daily Signal Senior Contributor Victor Davis Hanson. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to see more of his videos. Hello, this is Victor Davis Hanson for the Daily Signal. This past week was June 6, 2026. That’s the 82nd anniversary of the D-Day landings in World War II that took… -
opinion
Jonathan Mayhew and the Biblical Source of the American Revolution
John Adams once said the American Revolution began not on a battlefield but “in the minds and hearts of the people.” Among those who lit the fuse was the influential Boston preacher, Rev. Jonathan Mayhew. His 1750 sermon on the limits of obedience to government became, in Adams’ view, one of the founding texts of… -
opinion
The Story of Churchill’s Great Speech Before Congress
Winston Churchill made 16 visits to America in his lifetime. He traveled here as a soldier, a tourist, and a lecturer, but his winter visit to America in 1941 as a wartime leader was perhaps his most important. The story of that trip—and the speech he delivered to a joint session of Congress the day… -
opinion
Why the American Colonists Rebelled
The following is a lightly edited transcript of a speech delivered on May 28, 2026, at the “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death” Reenactment at The Heritage Foundation. Britain’s seven year war with France came at a great cost. Its consequences would alter the world. England accumulated a substantial amount of debt throughout the… -
news
Artists Pull Out of Great American State Fair, Citing Partisanship and ‘Threats’
Several musical artists scheduled to perform at the Great American State Fair in honor of America’s 250th birthday have withdrawn from the event after SPIN Magazine highlighted President Donald Trump’s connection to the fair. The Great American State Fair will showcase all 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia and U.S. territories. It… -
opinion
The Debate Over the Women’s Museum Was Never About Women
“House Democrats oppose a bill for a Smithsonian women’s history museum.” This is not a sentence I ever expected to read. Aren’t Democrats supposed to be the feminists? The champions of inclusion? The self-appointed defenders of the “disadvantaged”? And on top of that, they are the ones who pushed for the women’s museum to begin… -
opinion
Memorial Day and the Oft-Forgotten Dead
The rolling hills, dappled paths, and white crosses make Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia a place of quiet repose, deep emotion, and somber reflection. Dutifully, the nation honors its military dead there, and on this 158th Memorial Day, countless Americans will rightfully and respectfully pay homage to those who gave the last full measure of… -
opinion
America’s Love Affair With the Road Endures
BEDFORD, Pennsylvania—For the briefest of moments, a line of vintage Rolls-Royce automobiles chugged along the curving Cumberland Road. They passed over the Cumberland Run a handful of times and wound themselves down the mountains, away from Pennsylvania and toward the city of steeples, Cumberland. The sight gives the bystander a moment to imagine what it…