The Revolutionary Lives of Catharine Macaulay and Mercy Otis Warren

We the People

National Constitution Center

News, News Commentary, History

4.6 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 19 March 2026

⏱️ 51 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

As the Center marks the 250th anniversary of the nation, we’re taking a closer look at the people, events, and ideas that set the American Revolution in motion and ultimately led to the creation and adoption of the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution. This moment invites us to broaden the story of the founding by exploring not only the familiar figures we often study, but also the wider community of thinkers who helped shape the principles of our constitutional democracy. In this episode Mary Sarah Bilder of Boston College Law School and Sara Georgini of the Massachusetts Historical Society join the program to discuss two remarkable women central to 18th-century intellectual life whose ideas influenced many of the era’s most notable figures: Catharine Macaulay and Mercy Otis Warren. Julie Silverbrook, Chief Content and Learning Officer at the National Constitution Center, moderates. Resources Mary Sarah Bilder, Madison's Hand: Revising the Constitutional Convention (2017) Mary Sarah Bilder, The Transatlantic Constitution: Colonial Legal Culture and the Empire (2008) Mary Sarah Bilder, Female Genius: Eliza Harriot and George Washington at the Dawn of the Constitution (2022) Mary Sarah Bilder, Hater of Kings: Catharine Macaulay’s Constitutional Regicide and the Declaration of Independence,” Boston College Law School Legal Studies Research Paper No. 654, (July 23, 2025) Sara Georgini, Household Gods: The Religious Lives of the Adams Family (2022) Sara Georgini (series editor), Adams Papers Digital Edition, Massachusetts Historical Society Karen Green (editor), The Correspondence of Catharine Macaulay (2019) Mercy Otis Warren Letter to Catharine Macaulay, August 24, 1775, Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History Stay Connected and Learn More Questions or comments about the show? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠podcast@constitutioncenter.org⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Continue the conversation by following us on social media @ConstitutionCtr Explore the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠America at 250 Civic Toolkit⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sign up⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate Subscribe, rate, and review wherever you listen Join us for an upcoming ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠live program⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or watch recordings on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Support our important work ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Donate

Transcript

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0:00.0	From the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, this is We the People.
0:07.5	I'm Julie Silverbrook, Chief Content and Learning Officer.
0:10.8	The National Constitution Center is a nonpartisan nonprofit chartered by Congress
0:14.8	to increase awareness and understanding of the Constitution among the American people.
0:19.8	As the center marks the 250th anniversary of the nation,
0:23.1	we're taking a closer look at the people, events, and ideas
0:26.2	that sent the American Revolution in motion
0:28.5	and ultimately led to the creation and adoption
0:31.3	of the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution.
0:35.2	This moment invites us to broaden the story of the founding
0:38.2	by exploring not only the familiar figures we often study,
0:42.1	but also the wider community of thinkers
0:44.1	who help shape the principles of our constitutional democracy.
0:47.9	In this episode, we look at the lives of two remarkable women
0:51.2	who were central to the intellectual life of the 18th century and whose ideas
0:55.7	influenced many of the most notable and consequential figures of the era, Catherine McCauley,
1:01.2	and Mercy Otis Warren. To help us explore their lives, ideas, and enduring influence,
1:06.5	we're joined by two leading scholars of early American history. Mary Sarah Builder is Founder's Professor
1:12.2	of Law and Michael and Helen Lee distinguished scholar at Boston College Law School. She is the author
1:17.7	of three books, including Madison's Hand, Revising the Constitutional Constitution,
1:22.6	the Transatlantic Constitution, Colonial Legal Culture, and the empire, and most recently female genius,
1:28.8	Eliza Harriet and George Washington at the dawn of the Constitution.
	...

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