Thomas Paine

Thomas Paine (1737–1809) was an English-born American political writer, revolutionary, and intellectual whose works had a major influence on the American and French Revolutions. Born in Thetford, England, he worked in several occupations before moving to the American colonies in 1774, where he soon became involved in the growing independence movement. Paine gained widespread recognition with Common Sense (1776), a powerful pamphlet arguing that the American colonies should declare independence from Britain. Written in clear and accessible language, it helped popularize the revolutionary cause among ordinary colonists. During the American Revolution, he also wrote the influential series The American Crisis, beginning with the famous words “These are the times that try men's souls.” Paine later became involved in the French Revolution and wrote The Rights of Man (1791–1792), defending the principles of the Revolution and advocating representative government and individual rights. His The Age of Reason (1794–1807) expressed his deist religious views and criticized organized religion, while Agrarian Justice (1797) proposed ideas concerning poverty, property, and social welfare. Paine spent his later years in the United States, where his political and religious views made him increasingly controversial. He died in New York City in 1809. His writings helped shape modern ideas about democracy, republican government, individual liberty, and the rights of citizens, securing his place as an important thinker of the Enlightenment and revolutionary era.