For more than one-fifth of his life, Benjamin Franklin lived in London. He dined with prime ministers, members of parliament, even kings, as well as with Britain’s most esteemed intellectuals—including David Hume, Joseph Priestley, and Erasmus Darwin. In this fascinating history, George Goodwin gives a colorful account of Franklin’s British years. The author offers a rich and revealing portrait of one of the most remarkable figures in U.S. history, effectively disputing the commonly held perception of Franklin as an outsider in British politics. It is an enthralling study of an American patriot who was a fiercely loyal British citizen for most of his life—until forces he had sought and failed to control finally made him a reluctant revolutionary at the age of sixty-nine.

George Goodwin is the author of numerous articles and two previous histories, “Fatal Colours: Towton 1461” and “Fatal Rivalry: Henry VIII, James IV, and the Battle for Renaissance Britain.” He is currently Author in Residence at the Benjamin Franklin House in London.

Description courtesy of Yale University Press.

Watch PA Books and more PA History & Culture on cable and the PCN Select Streaming Service.