Thomas Paine

Thomas Paine (b. 1737–d. 1809) was born in Thetford, England. He apprenticed with his father as a staymaker, and later worked briefly as a privateer. Paine then had a tumultuous career as an excise officer, losing and subsequently regaining his job. That experience inspired Paine’s first self-proclaimed publication, Case of the Excise Officers (1772). However, increasing evidence suggests Paine actively participated in the Junius cabal, co-authoring numerous politically motivated newspaper articles throughout the 1760s. Carrying a letter of recommendation from Benjamin Franklin, Paine sailed for America in late 1774. By the start of 1775, Paine had become editor of the Pennsylvania Magazine, where he remained until August. Common Sense, Paine’s most famous pamphlet, was published in January 1776 and persuasively argued for American independence from Britain. During the Revolutionary War, Paine was as an aide-de-camp to General Nathanael Green and also served as secretary to the Congressional Committee of Foreign Affairs. There, concerned about the possible corruption of congressional members, Paine leaked details of secret arms deals with France, and was expelled as secretary. Paine’s Crisis papers, modeled on a British essay series of the same name, became the premier chronicle of the Revolutionary War, spanning sixteen essays written and published between 1776 and 1783. After the war, Paine turned his attention to bridge-building and other scientific projects, which brought him to England and France. Paine lived in England at the outbreak of the French Revolution and moved to France to support the revolution and avoid persecution for Rights of Man (1791). Paine was allied to moderate Girondists, granted honorary French citizenship, and named as a representative to the National Convention. Paine could not, however, escape the Reign of Terror, and was imprisoned in the Luxembourg Prison from late 1793 through to the end of 1794. Paine’s French Revolutionary experiences produced many of his well-known works: Age of Reason (1794), Agrarian Justice (1796) and Letter to George Washington (1796). Paine’s reputation in America suffered because of these works, and he remained in exile until 1802. Unsurprisingly, Paine immediately re-entered the American political scene on his return and wrote a series of Letters to the Citizens of the United States (1802–1805). Paine moved frequently between his farm in New Rochelle, NY, his home in Bordentown, NJ, and dwellings in New York City during the final years of his life. He died in New York City and was buried on his farm in New Rochelle.