Thomas Paine

A citizen of three countries – USA, Britain and France -

Tom Paine left a legacy as a man with two contrasting
reputations. The most widely read author of his day,
the time of both the American and French Revolutions,
he aroused both admiration and hate. To many he was
an unselfish idealist fighting for the cause of freedom.
To others he was an immoral atheist and a vicious
radical.

Later writers have reflected these conflicting opinions.

To one 19th-century historian Paine was repugnant. To
Theodore Roosevelt he was "a dirty little atheist." But
to others Paine was "the greatest pamphleteer ever,
and one a great idealist.

The truth is that Paine was neither repugnant nor an

atheist. He was a great man passionate in his beliefs. But he was a troubled man, possibly as a
result of a poor and humble background, and somewhat “wayward” in his personal behavior,
unafraid to express his views—to not be politically correct, in modern parlance. He was a
crusader for democracy at a time when most countries were governed by monarchies. His talent
for words, earned him many followers including Washington, Jefferson and Franklin. He is
credited with giving the United States of America its name. His chief weakness was an inability
to conform or to compromise, which explains why he was ostracized in later life.

Early Years

Paine was born on January 29, 1737, at Thetford, England, the son of a poor corset maker. His
father was a Quaker, but Paine never became a Quaker himself. He explained later that when, at
the age of 8, he heard a sermon on the Redemption, but the cruelty of Christianity repelled him.
At the age of 13 Paine was an apprentice corset maker but left home 6 years later, spending the
next 17 years in various English towns, doing odd jobs. His two brief marriages ended in failure.
He was depressed by a life of ugliness and monotony, relieved only by his avid reading.

By a stroke of luck, Paine met Benjamin Franklin in London. Franklin, impressed by Paine’s
keen mind, gave him letters of introduction to Americans. When he emigrated to America, in
1774. He had never published a word before. But soon he was caught up in the political
excitement of the time concerning American independence from Great Britain.

Common Sense

In 1776 Paine published a 47-page pamphlet called Common Sense, which became a sensational
success and one of the most influential publications in history. It was read by nearly everybody.
Common Sense, a call for independence from England, sparkled with unforgettable phrases.
"Everything that is right or reasonable," Paine wrote, "pleads for separation.” His words inspired
the colonists in the words and influenced the Declaration of Independence.

At 38, Paine joined Washington's army and was with it during the harsh winter of 1776, in New
Jersey. During this time—the army had low morale and was losing to the British—he wrote the
pamphlet Crises. “These are the times that test Man’s soul,” the pamphlet began. General
George Washington held this sole literary piece as responsible for the success of the revolution.
The new government of the United States rewarded Paine with a series of important jobs. One of
them was membership in the diplomatic mission to France, which was just beginning a
revolution of its own.

The French Revolution

In 1787 Paine went to France and then to England. After the outbreak of the French Revolution
in 1789, he traveled between London and Paris, acting as a defender of the new revolutionary
cause. In 1791 Paine published his Rights of Man. The book was outlawed in monarchist
England and Paine, wanted for arrest, fled to France. There he became an honorary French
citizen and a member of the Revolutionary Convention. In the rival between political factions,
the Reign of Terror began. People were arrested and executed without trial. Paine himself was
arrested and barely escaped the guillotine. After a year in jail, he was freed in November, 1794.

While in prison Paine had begun his famous book The Age of Reason. The book brought
widespread hostility upon him for its rejection of orthodox religion. In the first chapter Paine
stated his beliefs: "I believe in one God, and no more; and I hope for happiness beyond this life. I
believe in the equality of man; and I believe that religious duties consist in doing justice, loving
mercy, and endeavoring to make our fellow creatures happy."

Paine returned to the United States in 1802, where he spent the last 7 years of his life, socially
rejected and suffering from poverty and ill health. Because of his book Age of Reason, he was
deserted by Washington, Jefferson and others in America who had admired his early writings.
Age of Reason contradicted the narrative of the new Christian nation. His home in America was
firebombed by people intolerant of his views. He died on June 8, 1809, and was buried in New
Rochelle, New York. Only six people attended his funeral, two of them former slaves. In 1819
his bones were exhumed with the intention of being reburied in England. But his bones came up
missing and were never recovered.

Time is softening the undeserved hostility to Paine. He deserves to be remembered as a man

whose motto was, "My country is the world, and my religion is to do good."

Source: Padover, Saul K. "Paine, Thomas (1737–1809)." The New Book of Knowledge. Grolier
online