Origins of the American Civilization: Franklin's Albany Plan of Union

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Origins of American Civilization
Summary of the source
In 1754, the majority of the Northern America region was under the British rule. However, during this period France was also showing interest in establishing its rule in North America amid the British presence and the blooming Indian trade. As a result, Britain was facing increased pressure to protect its colonies from French invasion as well as take charge of the commercial activities in these colonies. To resolve this, Benjamin Franklin proposed that the Albany plan of union would create an integrated government for all the British colonies in Northern America in order to ensure economic empowerment and enhance defense in the event of any attack from outsiders.
Author’s historical background
The Albany plan of union was written by Benjamin Franklin, who is one of the most revered founding fathers of America (Franklin 1). Benjamin Franklin was an inventor, scientist, and he was also a profound writer and critical thinker who played an active role in American politics. Born in 1706, Benjamin Franklin wrote the Albany Plan of Union when he was 48 years old and he was considered to be a senior figure in American politics.
Why did he produce it?
The source was published in July 1754 when the author served as a clerk of the Pennsylvania assembly, member of the assembly and he was also a deputy postmaster for the colonies. Franklin anticipated that there would be hostilities and possibly of open war where the Indians had been allied with the French. Therefore, he played an active role in the events described and had clear knowledge of the activities he was describing. During this period, he engaged in a lot of civic duties that were aimed at unifying people through activities such as the establishment of a library, a college, volunteering, and fundraising. The creation of the Albany plan union was also a result of his engagement in America’s civic duties (Burlingame 171). Moreover, his position in the Pennsylvania assembly required him to present his views and participate directly in politics. It was unlikely that the author was biased in his observations while he wrote the Albany plan of union since he pointed out the various issues northern colonies faced as they were governed individually, as some of the commissioners from these colonies were in favor of unification.
Analysis of the source
Whereas the source contains the writer’s opinions on how the unification of Northern America colonies would, it also provides a clear historical presentation of the (Franklin 2). From the text, the British crown and the colonists were persistent trying to retain the control of their colonies in America. This is due to the fact that the author proposed the unification of the Northern American colonies with the aim of ensuring that the British would have a stronger defense force against the French who also wanted to control some of the regions occupied by the British. In this case, as the colonists and crown rejected the idea by the author to have a unified government, they supported proposals such as creation of new colonies We...