Brent Tarter – författare

Many are aware that gerrymandering exists and suspect it plays a role in our elections, but its history goes far deeper, and its impacts are far greater, than most realize. In his latest book, Brent Tarter focuses on Virginia’s long history of gerrymandering to uncover its immense influence on the state’s politics and to provide perspective on how the practice impacts politics nationally.Offering the first in-depth historical study of gerrymanders in Virginia, Tarter exposes practices going back to nineteenth century and colonial times and explains how they protected land owners’ and slave owners’ interests. The consequences of redistricting and reapportionment in modern Virginia—in effect giving a partisan minority the upper hand in all public policy decisions—become much clearer in light of this history.Where the discussion of gerrymandering has typically emphasized political parties’ control of Congress, Tarter focuses on the state legislatures that determine congressional district lines and, in most states, even those of their own districts. On the eve of the 2021 session of the General Assembly, which will redraw district lines for Virginia’s state Senate and House of Delegates, as well as for the U.S. House of Representatives, Tarter’s book provides an eye-opening investigation of gerrymandering and its pervasive effect on our local, state, and national politics and government.

Histories of Virginia have traditionally traced the same significant but narrow lines, overlooking whole swathes of human experience crucial to an understanding of the commonwealth. With Virginians and Their Histories, Brent Tarter presents a fresh, new interpretive narrative that incorporates the experiences of all residents of Virginia from the earliest times to the first decades of the twenty-first century, affording readers the most comprehensive and wide-ranging account of Virginia's story.Tarter draws on primary resources for every decade of the Old Dominion's English-language history, as well as a wealth of recent scholarship that illuminates in new ways how demographic changes, economic growth, social and cultural changes, and religious sensibilities and gender relationships have affected the manner in which Virginians have lived. Virginians and Their Histories interweaves the experiences of Virginians of different racial and ethnic backgrounds and classes, representing a variety of eras and regions, to understand what they separately and jointly created, and how they responded to economic, political, and social changes on a national and even global level. That large context is essential for properly understanding the influences of Virginians on, and the responses of Virginians to, the constantly changing world in which they have lived.This groundbreaking work of scholarship—generously illustrated and engagingly written—will become the definitive account for general readers and all students of Virginia's diverse and vibrant history.

A new look at the Black Virginians who defined and realized their freedom after the collapse of slavery“Verily, the work does not end with the abolition of slavery,” wrote Frederick Douglass in 1862, “but only begins.” The Emancipation Proclamation and the Thirteenth Amendment altered a legal status; to make freedom a reality represented a different challenge altogether.Justice for Ourselves tells the stories of remarkable Black men and women in post–Civil War Virginia who persevered in the face of overwhelming barriers to seek their freedom and create a new world for themselves and future generations. Drawing on the life stories of individuals from all regions of the state—political leaders, teachers, ministers, journalists, and entrepreneurs—Justice for Ourselves recounts their quests to attain full American citizenship and economic independence before the onset of Jim Crow repression. Centering Black voices, this book includes tales of opportunities seized and opportunities lost and will reshape the narrative of Black history and the history of Virginia in the second half of the nineteenth century.

Illuminating stories of colonial life from the dean of Virginia history How did ordinary people experience life in the colonial era, from the humdrum happenings of the day-to-day to the extraordinary events still familiar to millions? In his latest book, renowned historian Brent Tarter paints a vibrant, colorful portrait of the Old Dominion in the era before the Revolution, presenting a new collection of stories culled from the depths of his unparalleled career in archival research. Using the language of his historical subjects, Tarter brings the experience of the past to life in his own inimitable but readily accessible style. Vignettes of Colonial Virginia encompasses thirty-three episodes in total, ranging chronologically from 1607 to the eve of the War for Independence, and features stories of Virginians of all backgrounds and stripes, told with startling immediacy. With the 250th anniversary of the declaration of American independence upon us, this book situates the reader among the ordinary people who lived on the eve of those extraordinary times.

Illuminating stories of colonial life from the dean of Virginia history How did ordinary people experience life in the colonial era, from the humdrum happenings of the day-to-day to the extraordinary events still familiar to millions? In his latest book, renowned historian Brent Tarter paints a vibrant, colorful portrait of the Old Dominion in the era before the Revolution, presenting a new collection of stories culled from the depths of his unparalleled career in archival research. Using the language of his historical subjects, Tarter brings the experience of the past to life in his own inimitable but readily accessible style. Vignettes of Colonial Virginia encompasses thirty-three episodes in total, ranging chronologically from 1607 to the eve of the War for Independence, and features stories of Virginians of all backgrounds and stripes, told with startling immediacy. With the 250th anniversary of the declaration of American independence upon us, this book situates the reader among the ordinary people who lived on the eve of those extraordinary times.

The first biography of a neglected but crucial revolutionary figure and fascinating window into his worldStudy the American Revolution and you might miss the name Robert Carter Nicholas; study Robert Carter Nicholas and you will see the entire revolution. This is the first biography of the Virginia patriot who served in the House of Burgesses and has gone down in history as an opponent of Patrick Henry—though the reality is more complicated.In reconstructing Nicholas's life, Brent Tarter recovers late colonial Virginian society in all of its complexity, showing how men and women of the upper classes lived; how they depended on slavery for their wealth and social status; how they were surrounded by enslaved people almost all of the time; how they brought up and educated their children; how the complex international tobacco economy operated; and how the institutions of government functioned.The life of Robert Carter Nicholas illustrates like few others how a decade of profoundly important challenges and changes culminated in the decision of elite leaders—who at first glance appear to have had nothing to gain and much to lose by risking a revolution—to vote for independence from Great Britain in 1776.

The first biography of a neglected but crucial revolutionary figure and fascinating window into his worldStudy the American Revolution and you might miss the name Robert Carter Nicholas; study Robert Carter Nicholas and you will see the entire revolution. This is the first biography of the Virginia patriot who served in the House of Burgesses and has gone down in history as an opponent of Patrick Henry—though the reality is more complicated.In reconstructing Nicholas's life, Brent Tarter recovers late colonial Virginian society in all of its complexity, showing how men and women of the upper classes lived; how they depended on slavery for their wealth and social status; how they were surrounded by enslaved people almost all of the time; how they brought up and educated their children; how the complex international tobacco economy operated; and how the institutions of government functioned.The life of Robert Carter Nicholas illustrates like few others how a decade of profoundly important challenges and changes culminated in the decision of elite leaders—who at first glance appear to have had nothing to gain and much to lose by risking a revolution—to vote for independence from Great Britain in 1776.

Illuminating and captivating stories of life in the American Revolutionary era, from the dean of Virginia historyBrent Tarter knows how to make history come alive. More than that, he knows that the best histories encompass everyone, not just "great men" making speeches in domed statehouses. Drawing on a celebrated career's worth of experience in the archive, producing scholarship aimed not at the ivory tower but at the general reader, Vignettes of Revolutionary Virginia gathers together the most dramatic, poignant, and compelling tales of ordinary people who lived through the extraordinary days of the American Revolution.As in Vignettes of Colonial Virginia, Tarter relates the incredible stories of his subjects in their own words. They show how life for everyone in Virginia then was radically different from life for anyone in Virginia now. They illuminate the differences that emerged between the struggle for independence and the revolution that it set in motion, and they illustrate the consequences of the disconnect between the Revolutionary language of liberty of 1776 and the continuing existence of slavery and of the hierarchical society of the colonial period. The past may be a foreign country, but Tarter is a handy, engaging guide.

Illuminating and captivating stories of life in the American Revolutionary era, from the dean of Virginia historyBrent Tarter knows how to make history come alive. More than that, he knows that the best histories encompass everyone, not just "great men" making speeches in domed statehouses. Drawing on a celebrated career's worth of experience in the archive, producing scholarship aimed not at the ivory tower but at the general reader, Vignettes of Revolutionary Virginia gathers together the most dramatic, poignant, and compelling tales of ordinary people who lived through the extraordinary days of the American Revolution.As in Vignettes of Colonial Virginia, Tarter relates the incredible stories of his subjects in their own words. They show how life for everyone in Virginia then was radically different from life for anyone in Virginia now. They illuminate the differences that emerged between the struggle for independence and the revolution that it set in motion, and they illustrate the consequences of the disconnect between the Revolutionary language of liberty of 1776 and the continuing existence of slavery and of the hierarchical society of the colonial period. The past may be a foreign country, but Tarter is a handy, engaging guide.

This is the only modern comprehensive constitutional history of any state, and as a history of Virgina, it is one of the oldest and most complex. Virginia’s state legislature is the Virginia General Assembly, which was established in July 1619, making it the oldest current lawmaking body in North America. Brent Tarter’s Constitutional History of Virginia covers over three hundred years of Virginia’s legislative policy, from colony to statehood, revealing its political and legal backstory.From the very beginning in 1606, when James I chartered the Virginia Company to establish a commercial outpost on the Atlantic coast of North America, through the first two decades of the twenty-first century, the fundamental constitutions of the colony and state of Virginia have evolved and changed as the demographic, economic, political, and cultural characteristics of Virginia changed. Elements of the colonial constitution influenced the character of the state’s first constitution in 1776, and changing relationships between the people and their government, as well as relationships between the state and federal governments, have influenced how the state’s constitution has evolved. Tarter explores that evolution and taps into its relevance to the people who have lived and still live in Virginia.

This is the only modern comprehensive constitutional history of any state, and as a history of Virgina, it is one of the oldest and most complex. Virginia’s state legislature is the Virginia General Assembly, which was established in July 1619, making it the oldest current lawmaking body in North America. Brent Tarter’s Constitutional History of Virginia covers over three hundred years of Virginia’s legislative policy, from colony to statehood, revealing its political and legal backstory.From the very beginning in 1606, when James I chartered the Virginia Company to establish a commercial outpost on the Atlantic coast of North America, through the first two decades of the twenty-first century, the fundamental constitutions of the colony and state of Virginia have evolved and changed as the demographic, economic, political, and cultural characteristics of Virginia changed. Elements of the colonial constitution influenced the character of the state’s first constitution in 1776, and changing relationships between the people and their government, as well as relationships between the state and federal governments, have influenced how the state’s constitution has evolved. Tarter explores that evolution and taps into its relevance to the people who have lived and still live in Virginia.