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Title: The Framers' Coup

Subtitle: The Making of the United States Constitution

Author: Michael J. Klarman

Narrator: Mike Chamberlain

Format: Unabridged

Length: 31 hrs and 45 mins

Language: English

Release date: 10-31-17

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 3 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

Americans revere their Constitution. However, most of us are unaware how tumultuous and improbable the drafting and ratification processes were. As Benjamin Franklin keenly observed, any assembly of men bring with them "all their prejudices, their passions, their errors of opinion, their local interests and their selfish views." One need not deny that the Framers had good intentions in order to believe that they also had interests. Based on prodigious research and told largely through the voices of the participants, Michael Klarman's The Framers' Coup narrates how the Framers' clashing interests shaped the Constitution - and American history itself.

The Philadelphia convention could easily have been a failure, and the risk of collapse was always present. Had the convention dissolved, any number of adverse outcomes could have resulted, including civil war or a reversion to monarchy. Not only does Klarman capture the knife's-edge atmosphere of the convention, he populates his narrative with riveting and colorful stories: the rebellion of debtor farmers in Massachusetts; George Washington's uncertainty about whether to attend; Gunning Bedford's threat to turn to a European prince if the small states were denied equal representation in the Senate; slave staters' threats to take their marbles and go home if denied representation for their slaves; Hamilton's quasi-monarchist speech to the convention; and Patrick Henry's herculean efforts to defeat the Constitution in Virginia through demagoguery and conspiracy theories.

Members Reviews:

Exhautive History of the Formation of the Constitution

This book is not for the casual reader or faint at heart. Nevertheless, it is an exhaustive and detailed account of how the U.S. Constitution came to be, starting with the failed Confederation and through the ratification process. No stone is left unturned in terms of the debates throughout this entire period. The greatest fault of the book is that, in the author's desire to be thorough, the excerpts from the debates are overly repetitive. However, if one wants an authoritative history of the Constitution's formation, this is it. After reading this book, one understands, more than has been generally understood before, how many, if not most, of the provisions of the Constitution were the result of compromise that often ended ambiguously in exhaustion after interminable debate. It unintentionally make a mockery of "original intent." With a few exceptions, such as where the trade-off was clear, as in two Senate seats for each state, the end result was reached primarily to avoid a breakdown and to move on to the next subject, leaving implementation and interpretation for future generations.

A masterpiece

Klarman's work is a comprehensive, beautifully written account of the founding of the constitution. It is a wonderful single-volume account. Brilliantly researched and heavily footnoted, it is a must read for those interested in this area of history and the law.

Five Stars

Very interesting to read the "backroom" discussions that led to the final draft of the Constitution.

A Masterpiece that Will Become a Classic; First Comprehensive History of America's Founding Documents

This book is a masterpiece and a must read for anyone seriously interested in American Constitutional government.