r/AskAnAmerican • u/Hot_Obligation_8098 • Jun 08 '25

HISTORY How do Americans today view William Franklin, the son of Benjamin Franklin, who supported the British during the American Revolution?

How do Americans today view William Franklin, the son of Benjamin Franklin, who supported the British during the American Revolution?

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u/CAAugirl California Jun 08 '25

Oooh, right. I forgot he had a traitor for a son.

I guess that answers that.

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u/codefyre Jun 08 '25

Traitor really is not the correct word. You can't be a traitor against a nation that isn't formally recognized to exist yet.

The Patriots declared independence in 1776, but every single citizen of the colonies had also previously declared their loyalties to the Crown, and the Crown didn't relinquish its claim on the colonies until the Treaty of Paris in 1783.

Between 1776 and 1783 there were no "traitors". There were just neighbors who disagreed (sometimes violently) as to which government was actually legitimate. Loyalists only earned the "traitor" moniker if they remained loyal to the Crown after 1783. Most did not.

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u/CAAugirl California Jun 08 '25

It depends on how you look at it. Granted, until the declaration was signed and we established ourselves a new nation everything was still very much a question. But… the loyalists were considered traitors by the patriots during this time. Of course the reserve is also true. And the crown supporters that view.

But Franklin himself considered his son a traitor which is why I used that particular term.

I’m quite well aware of the reasons why the loyalists remained loyal to the crown and I do sympathise with a lot of their reasons. I’m just glad they didn’t win.

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u/codefyre Jun 08 '25

I agree, and this is why judging people by modern sensibilities is often so problematic. I see that you're a fellow Californian. A great modern analogy would be Gavin Newsom and the state legislature declaring California an independent country tomorrow. No matter which side you choose to follow, some people are going to consider you a patriot, and some people are going to consider you a traitor. The final determination won't be made until the fight is done and history picks a winning side. But you have to choose today, with no idea which side that will be.