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Published: February 10th 2010
Memorial plaque - new
You can read just the last sentence - "two kindred nations, now happily long united by peace"A major part of the history of Boston and the area is related to the start of the American Revolution. Here the Boston Tea party was held (years later they sell tea and tea related stuff to make up for it, I think) here Paul Revere rode to warn the colonists that the British are coming, here the first shots fired by colonists on the King soldiers were heard.
So naturally a major part of the museums and monuments I saw depict those events. The thing I found interesting, beside the actual history itself, is the way they relate to the British. In almost no place they are depicted as the "Enemy", or considered as a ruthless foreign power. More than that, the feelings of the colonists themselves as loyal subject of the English king are stressed, explaining how they only wanted to have their rights. In one monument even the writing on the plaque concluded with a statement on the brotherhood of the two nations today.
Basically, the truth is the UK is considered a close ally here for so long, they really do have to present the story like this. And it's reasonable and all, only the dissonance is
very evident to my eyes. Especially when I saw an old monument to that first battle of the Revolution, from the 19th century, back when the British soldiers were still the "invading army", vanquished in battle.
Well, it's probbaly no surprise but when you think about current national struggles you know it's not so easy to imagine that they are just circumstantial.
Hmm, probably a lesson to be learned here somewhere.
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Avner
non-member comment
From what I remember studying, these feelings of amity towards the British empire are rather recent - starting from the first World War at the earliest. Before that, there was quite a lot of animosity towards them. Especially throughout the 19th century, when the US was busy expanding across the continent, while the British kept hovering about trying to nab bits for themselves.