“The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution,” Bernard Bailyn challenges traditional views by arguing that the Revolution was primarily driven by intellectual and ideological factors, rather than economic or social ones. He contends that colonists, influenced by Enlightenment thinkers and Whig ideology, saw themselves as defenders of English liberties against British corruption and tyranny. Bailyn emphasizes the centrality of “liberty” and the emergence of American exceptionalism, revealing the Revolution as a profound ideological transformation that shaped the nation’s founding principles and continues to influence American thought and politics.