“Self-defense is a primary law of nature, which no subsequent law of society can abolish.”
That’s how the great Mercy Otis Warren put it. But this wasn’t just a philosophical view for the Founders and Old Revolutionaries. They knew an armed society was essential to preserving liberty – because they lived it firsthand.
In fact, it was one of the most critical gifts they passed down to us.
Natural Rights: A Gift
The Founders grounded their defense of an armed citizenry in the principle of natural rights. As the Declaration of Independence famously declares:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
Four years earlier, Samuel Adams articulated this principle in The Rights of the Colonists (1772), asserting that “among the natural rights” of the people are life, liberty, and property, “together with the right to support and defend them in the best manner they can.”
Adams described these “as evident branches of … the duty of self-preservation, commonly called the first law of nature.”
Freedom and Independence
George Washington, in his Sentiments on a Peace Establishment (1783), emphasized that a well-armed and disciplined populace was critical to preserving “the happiness, dignity, and Independence” of the young union. His goal was to make it “universally reputable to bear arms.”
Washington and others knew freedom and independence only existed because the people were well-armed and willing to exercise those rights—even against the mighty British Empire.
As Thomas Jefferson and John Dickinson put it in the Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms, passed unanimously by the Second Continental Congress, just over two months after Lexington and Concord and the “shot heard ‘round the world.”
“In our own native land, in defence of the freedom that is our birth-right, and which we ever enjoyed till the late violation of it; for the protection of our property, acquired solely by the honest industry of our forefathers and ourselves, against violence actually offered, we have taken up arms. We shall lay them down when hostilities shall cease on the part of the aggressors, and all danger of their being renewed shall be removed, and not before.”
First Line of Defense
The Founders understood that a well-armed people would continue to serve as the first line of defense in a free society. General Henry Knox, the first Secretary of War, recommended to Pres. Washington:
“An energetic national militia is to be regarded as the Capital security of a free republic; and not a standing army, forming a distinct class in the community.”
Importantly, the militia wasn’t a select group but the entire populace. As George Mason famously declared, “I ask, who are the militia? They consist now of the whole people, except a few public officers.”
Likewise, the Anti-Federalist writer Federal Farmer asserted, “A militia, when properly formed, are in fact the people themselves.”
Everyone Armed
Since the militia was considered the “capital security of a free republic,” and the militia consisted of “the whole people,” it’s no surprise that President Washington underscored this in his First Annual Address to Congress.
“A free people ought not only to be armed, but disciplined.”
Patrick Henry emphasized the same principle during the Virginia Ratifying Convention:
“The great object is that every man be armed.”
Federal Farmer echoed this sentiment, writing:
“To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms, and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them”
Yet, St. George Tucker warned that governments often have different goals:
“This may be considered as the true palladium of liberty. … The right of self defense is the first law of nature: in most governments it has been the study of rulers to confine this right within the narrowest limits possible.”
He also warned of a dangerous combination.
“Wherever standing armies are kept up, and the right of the people to keep and bear arms is, under any color or pretext whatsoever, prohibited, liberty, if not already annihilated, is on the brink of destruction.”
A Defense Against Tyranny
For the Founders, an armed society wasn’t just about defending against criminals or foreign invaders – it was also the ultimate defense against domestic tyranny.
Noah Webster captured this clearly: “before a standing army can rule, the people must be disarmed.”
Luther Martin explained that the militia served as “the only defence and protection which the States can have for the security of their rights against arbitrary encroachments of the general government.”
Writing in Federalist No. 46, James Madison argued that the natural right to bear arms, combined with the structure of federalism under the Constitution, created a powerful check against centralized power and tyranny.
“Besides the advantage of being armed, which the Americans possess over the people of almost every other nation, the existence of subordinate governments, to which the people are attached, and by which the militia officers are appointed, forms a barrier against the enterprises of ambition, more insurmountable than any which a simple government of any form can admit of.”
Taken together, the 2nd and 10th Amendments form a one-two punch in defense of liberty – a stark reminder of the Founders’ distrust of centralized power and standing armies.
A Forgotten Legacy
As the old saying goes, “use ‘em or lose ‘em.”
The Founders understood that preserving liberty required an engaged and self-reliant populace, ready, willing and able to defend their rights against all threats. Madison, Mason, and others made this abundantly clear: a well-armed militia, made up of the whole people, is the cornerstone of a free society.
John Hancock put it simply, “the powers reserved by the people render them secure.”
But here’s the hard truth: those reserved powers mean nothing if the people fail to use them.
Unfortunately, these widely-held principles from the founding generation have been almost completely ignored in modern times. Where previous generations emphasized marksmanship and self-defense as essential skills, today’s society has moved further and further from these values.
Samuel Adams summed it up best.
“Instead of sitting down satisfied with the efforts we have already made, which is the wish of our enemies, the necessity of the times, more than ever, calls for our utmost circumspection, deliberation, fortitude and perseverance.
Let us remember, that “if we suffer tamely a lawless attack upon our liberty, we encourage it, and involve others in our doom.” It is a very serious consideration, which should deeply impress our minds, that millions yet unborn may be the miserable sharers in the event.”
We’ve all been given some incredible gifts – something to be thankful for every single day of the year. The gift of natural rights from our Creator, the wisdom and principles of the Founders, and the tools to preserve freedom.
The question is whether we’ll honor those gifts by staying vigilant, learning from their warnings, and standing firm in defense of liberty – for ourselves and for generations to come.
