Ken Burns’ ‘American Revolution’ immerses viewers in late 18th-century America
Ken Burns’ latest documentary series for PBS, “The American Revolution,” a sprawling six-episode, 12-hour examination of our nation’s beginnings, premieres Sunday, Nov. 16, and airs through Friday, Nov. 21.
While visiting Dallas in June, Burns and co-director Sarah Botstein (third director David Schmidt was unable to make the trip) talked about the 10 years it took them, their co-producers and production staff to make “The American Revolution.” That decade of work resulted in a documentary that doesn’t just focus on famous names and historic events but immerses viewers in late 18th century America.
In other words, this is not the film you saw in history class. Through meticulous research, with the help of primary sources like diaries and letters, Burns, Botstein and Schmidt tell the story through the lens of ordinary soldiers and everyday people who witnessed the carnage and destruction that eventually led to an unlikely American victory and the emergence of a new country that, in due course, would rival the great European powers.
Of course, you can’t tell the story of the American Revolution without spending some time on the 24-carat names like Washington, Jefferson and Franklin. But Burns, Botstein and Schmidt don’t give them the hagiography treatment. Indeed, as history scholar and author Rick Atkinson said when he spoke in Dallas alongside Burns and Botstein, our founding fathers’ imperfections are what make them interesting. So do the more obscure aspects of their lives and characters, which “The American Revolution” goes to some lengths to explore.
It’s common knowledge that George Washington commanded the Continental Army during the revolution and led the siege on Yorktown that ultimately led to the British surrender. Fewer people, however, know he rated poorly as a military tactician and suffered various defeats before his ultimate victory. Even fewer know Washington allegedly fired the first shot against French troops to kick off the Seven Years’ War between Britain and France nearly 30 years before the events at Yorktown, when Washington was a Virginia militia commander.
Details like that will stick with viewers of “The American Revolution,” as will the perspectives of women, African Americans, Native Americans and others who have traditionally been overlooked.
In June, Burns told his Dallas audience the American Revolution was the most significant historical event since the birth of Jesus Christ. It ushered in a new era of human rights and self-governance, radical ideas at the time that have become commonplace to the point of being eroded.
As Burns put it in June, in some ways we as a nation have reverted toward the “superstitious peasantry” the revolution sought to obliterate. As far as a mission statement, Burns said he wanted “The American Revolution” to show people what we can accomplish when we stand together and oppose tyranny.
“We hope to put the ‘us’ back into the United States,” he said.
“The American Revolution” also offers an opportunity for reflection on where we came from. In the series’ first episode, Atkinson said the stories around the revolution show us “what our forebears believed and what they were willing to die for.”
And that, Atkinson said, is “the most profound question any people can ask themselves.”
“The American Revolution” premieres at 7 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 16 on KERA Channel 13 and runs six consecutive nights.
This story was originally published November 13, 2025 at 2:20 PM.