“Benjamin Franklin: Glimpses of the Man”
This site is a very credible website dedicated to Benjamin Franklin and how he shaped the economy of today, and impacted the world of his time. It includes a short biography that has several links that connect it with other educational sites that share information about Benjamin Franklin. The biography goes into detail on the numerous aspects that Benjamin Franklin became famous for; things such as being a scientist, an inventor, a statesman, a printer, a philosopher, a musician, and an economist. What I like most about this webs site is that it has a movie that plays a slideshow of the old portraits of Benjamin Franklin and plays some old English music in the background. This slideshow, along with the website, helps to show everyone the importance of this man and how he impacted the American democracy that it is today.
http://www.rjgeib.com/thoughts/montesquieu/montesquieu-bio.html
“Baron De Montesquieu”
This website explains, in detail, the biography of Charles Louis de Secondat, otherwise known as Montesquieu. He argued that the best form of government would be one in which power was balanced among three groups of officials. And although Montesquieu believed in the principles of democracy, he didn’t feel that all people were created equal; Montesquieu approved of slavery. He also thought that women were weaker than men and had to obey the commands of their husbands (even though he also believed that women had the ability to govern). This theory would prove to also be the opinions of other philosophers for many years to come; women would not become equals with men for a long time. Montesquieu’s ideas about separation of powers would later become the basis for the United States Constitution.
http://www.surfnetkids.com/declaration.htm
“Declaration of Independence”
Although this website is meant for children to read, it is somewhat nice to have an educational site be straightforward and easy to understand. Some of the topics discussed in this web site are “America’s Freedom Documents”, which talks about the day that the Declaration of Independence was published in 1776. Another topic discussed is “Declaring Independence: Drafting the Documents”, this one talks about how Thomas Jefferson wrote the declaration of Independence. The last topic discussed is “Today in History: July 4”, which explains how Americans today celebrate the Fourth of July extravagantly. This web site explains how, back in the late 1700s, when people were fighting to survive, the independence from Great Britain was a very big deal. Not only were they the “owners” of the thirteen colonies at the time, but they were also the most powerful country! When people think of the fourth of July, they usually think of fireworks and the colors red, white, and blue. What people should really think of is all of the hard work and hundreds of thousands of lives that were taken to achieve the independence of this country.