Robert Morris and the Sinews of War

FAIN: TP-50040-06

New River Education Fund (Washington, DC 20036)
Eugene Burton Shirley (Project Director: November 2005 to April 2008)

Planning of a two-hour documentary film on the life of Robert Morris and his role during the Revolutionary War and the early founding period (1735-1806).

For two centuries the pantheon of Founding Fathers has ignored a controversial figure labeled the nation’s Founding Financier by fans and its Founding Finagler by critics. In either case, Robert Morris played a singular role in American history on social, economic and political levels. As self-made merchant, Revolutionary leader, financial savior to a bankrupt Congress, alleged war profiteer, advocate of strong national government and ultimately as denizen of debtor’s prison, Morris helped shape the country’s enduring economic and political framework. ROBERT MORRIS AND THE SINEWS OF WAR (1 x 120), a documentary film targeting PBS, furnishes a fresh lens on the Revolution and a personal legacy with profound impact on American life today.