The Enlightenment and the American Revolution: What Was the Impact?

Updated: April 7, 2026 Intellectual Foundations of the American Revolution — Part III The Enlightenment played a significant—but not exclusive—role in shaping the American Revolution, especially among its leading thinkers. Figures like Thomas Jefferson and James Madison drew on Enlightenment ideas, but blended them with other intellectual and political traditions. Concepts such as natural rights […]