Uploaded February 2015 | Updated September 2026, 3 hours ago
"The Founding Fathers Reconsidered," by Professor Richard B. Bernstein.
Professor Richard B. Bernstein is a constitutional historian and the author of The Founding Fathers Reconsidered. In this video, he examines the significance of John Adams and James Madison “in an age of revolution and constitution.”
Through writings such as the Congressional Resolutions of May, 1775 and Thoughts on Government, Adams helped to ensure that the American people moved from the destructive revolution embodied in the Declaration of Independence to the constructive revolution resulting in the Constitution. Madison’s reasoned analysis of constitutional principles, as articulated in the Federalist Papers and, most especially, in Federalist #10 and Federalist #37, reflected his thinking as a political technologist. Bernstein analyzes the similarities and differences between Adams and Madison, concluding that although Adams advocated classical political theory and Madison rejected it, resulting in different understandings of principles such as checks and balances, separation of powers, and federalism, their views ultimately complemented each other. “We need them both.”
American History Videos are sponsored by the James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation. These videos are offered to help teachers, students and the general public learn more about America's founding and the Constitution of the United States. www.jamesmadison.gov.
0:00 Intro
3:20 Revolutions and constitutions
11:15 Thoughts on government
16:20 Republican constitutions
23:17 Four great challenges
31:11 Adams' and aristocracy
"The Founding Fathers Reconsidered," by Professor Richard B. Bernstein.
Professor Richard B. Bernstein is a constitutional historian and the author of The Founding Fathers Reconsidered. In this video, he examines the significance of John Adams and James Madison “in an age of revolution and constitution.”
Through writings such as the Congressional Resolutions of May, 1775 and Thoughts on Government, Adams helped to ensure that the American people moved from the destructive revolution embodied in the Declaration of Independence to the constructive revolution resulting in the Constitution. Madison’s reasoned analysis of constitutional principles, as articulated in the Federalist Papers and, most especially, in Federalist #10 and Federalist #37, reflected his thinking as a political technologist. Bernstein analyzes the similarities and differences between Adams and Madison, concluding that although Adams advocated classical political theory and Madison rejected it, resulting in different understandings of principles such as checks and balances, separation of powers, and federalism, their views ultimately complemented each other. “We need them both.”
American History Videos are sponsored by the James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation. These videos are offered to help teachers, students and the general public learn more about America's founding and the Constitution of the United States. www.jamesmadison.gov.
0:00 Intro
3:20 Revolutions and constitutions
11:15 Thoughts on government
16:20 Republican constitutions
23:17 Four great challenges
31:11 Adams' and aristocracy
