Political Writing
Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
See also : Autograph Manuscript Prints Ancient prints Renaissance Ancient England US Independence Development of USA US Civil War
Chronology : 1776 1780-1789 1820-1829 1860-1869
See also : Autograph Manuscript Prints Ancient prints Renaissance Ancient England US Independence Development of USA US Civil War
Chronology : 1776 1780-1789 1820-1829 1860-1869
1297 The Magna Carta
2007 SOLD for $ 21.3M by Sotheby's
The Magna Carta contains the seeds of modern political regimes and announces the decline of the absolutisms.
In 1215 the English barons revolted against King John. Financial and military demands had not prevented the scathing failures. In a situation of civil war, the king is forced to accept the Magna Carta by which the barons take control of the taxes.
The Magna Carta undergoes several modifications, because the political circumstances change. De facto rejected by King John, the Council of Barons, which was the forerunner of a parliamentary regime, was canceled in 1216 when the child Henry III acceded to the throne. In 1225 Henry III simplified the Magna Carta to facilitate its legal application.
The idea of a Parliament is gaining ground. Edward I takes the habit of summoning his advisers to make decisions concerning taxes and their collection. The operating rules are defined from 1283. It only remained to give force of law to the Magna Carta, which the king assisted by the Parliament solemnly does on October 12, 1297. It is stipulated in 1300 that a copy will be available in each county to be read four times a year.
17 manuscript copies from the 13th century have survived. 15 of them are in British institutions and one in the Australian Parliament.
The 17th document is a copy from 1297. It was bought in 1984 by the US billionaire Ross Perot, who entrusted it for display at the National Archives in Washington DC. It was sold for $ 21.3M by Sotheby's on December 18, 2007. Its new owner, David M. Rubenstein, returned it to the Archives for a new long-term loan. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
In 1215 the English barons revolted against King John. Financial and military demands had not prevented the scathing failures. In a situation of civil war, the king is forced to accept the Magna Carta by which the barons take control of the taxes.
The Magna Carta undergoes several modifications, because the political circumstances change. De facto rejected by King John, the Council of Barons, which was the forerunner of a parliamentary regime, was canceled in 1216 when the child Henry III acceded to the throne. In 1225 Henry III simplified the Magna Carta to facilitate its legal application.
The idea of a Parliament is gaining ground. Edward I takes the habit of summoning his advisers to make decisions concerning taxes and their collection. The operating rules are defined from 1283. It only remained to give force of law to the Magna Carta, which the king assisted by the Parliament solemnly does on October 12, 1297. It is stipulated in 1300 that a copy will be available in each county to be read four times a year.
17 manuscript copies from the 13th century have survived. 15 of them are in British institutions and one in the Australian Parliament.
The 17th document is a copy from 1297. It was bought in 1984 by the US billionaire Ross Perot, who entrusted it for display at the National Archives in Washington DC. It was sold for $ 21.3M by Sotheby's on December 18, 2007. Its new owner, David M. Rubenstein, returned it to the Archives for a new long-term loan. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
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1776 The Dunlap Broadside
2000 SOLD for $ 8.1M by Sotheby's
The Dunlap broadside is the earliest surviving example of the final text of the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America.
On July 4, 1776 the original manuscript of the Declaration was signed by John Hancock, president of the Continental Congress and especially of this memorable session, and by Charles Thomson, secretary of the Congress. From then they had to act in a hurry to propagate the information in the thirteen colonies and to the army. They had no time left for preparing a clean copy of that draft amended during the debates or a fortiori to have it signed by the delegates who have just approved its text.
The manuscript is forwarded to John Dunlap, a printer operating in Philadelphia who is the usual contractor for official Congress documents. The broadside is printed during the night of July 4 to 5. The manuscript no longer matters : it is lost in this operation. Hancock organizes the distribution of the document while urging each recipient to disclose the text by any appropriate means.
The quantity of copies of the Dunlap broadside is not known although the figure of 200 seems fair. 25 copies survive. Almost all are in US institutions or museums.
One of them was found in 1989 by a bargain hunter in the backside of the frame of a torn painting that he had just bought. It was sold for $ 8.1M by Sotheby's on June 29, 2000, a record at the time for an Internet auction.
The buyer was the television producer Norman Lear supported by Internet entrepreneur David Hayden. Lear is not a collector. He immediately organized the Declaration of Independence Road Trip, a non-profit organization committed for displaying this historic document to as many people as possible through tours from city to city.
On July 4, 1776 the original manuscript of the Declaration was signed by John Hancock, president of the Continental Congress and especially of this memorable session, and by Charles Thomson, secretary of the Congress. From then they had to act in a hurry to propagate the information in the thirteen colonies and to the army. They had no time left for preparing a clean copy of that draft amended during the debates or a fortiori to have it signed by the delegates who have just approved its text.
The manuscript is forwarded to John Dunlap, a printer operating in Philadelphia who is the usual contractor for official Congress documents. The broadside is printed during the night of July 4 to 5. The manuscript no longer matters : it is lost in this operation. Hancock organizes the distribution of the document while urging each recipient to disclose the text by any appropriate means.
The quantity of copies of the Dunlap broadside is not known although the figure of 200 seems fair. 25 copies survive. Almost all are in US institutions or museums.
One of them was found in 1989 by a bargain hunter in the backside of the frame of a torn painting that he had just bought. It was sold for $ 8.1M by Sotheby's on June 29, 2000, a record at the time for an Internet auction.
The buyer was the television producer Norman Lear supported by Internet entrepreneur David Hayden. Lear is not a collector. He immediately organized the Declaration of Independence Road Trip, a non-profit organization committed for displaying this historic document to as many people as possible through tours from city to city.
1787 US Constitution
2021 for sale on November 23 by Sotheby's
waiting for catalogue
I will not discuss the U.S. Constitution without mentioning the great legislator who designed the mechanism for implementing such a political masterpiece. His name was James Madison. His unsignificant presidential output undervalues him in the American memory, and it is a pity. The U.S. Constitution is still in force today without fundamental changes, while the French Revolution, which began two years later, is mostly leaving an emotional memory.
Sotheby’s will auction off a rare copy of the U.S. Constitution, one of just 11 surviving copies from the official first printing produced for the delegates to the Constitutional Convention and for the Continental Congress. https://t.co/RtgId25Kkv
— The Associated Press (@AP) September 17, 2021
Sotheby’s is auctioning an extremely rare official first-edition printed copy of the U.S. Constitution. The auction house estimates its value at $15-20 million pic.twitter.com/D2lVfOLemW
— Reuters (@Reuters) September 22, 2021
1787 Autograph Letter by Washington
2009 SOLD for $ 3.2M by Christie's
In the United States, 1787 is the year of the Constitution. It became vital to build a strong government and to end the risk of opposition between these former colonies whose respective histories were so varied.
George Washington, the hero of the War of Independence, is one of the most active proponents of this reform. In a letter written to his nephew on November 9, he explains that power is not given to people but will always be with the people.
This autograph letter of four large pages was sold for $ 3.2M from a lower estimate of $ 1.5M by Christie's on December 4, 2009. It is illustrated in the pre sale release by AuctionPublicity.
George Washington, the hero of the War of Independence, is one of the most active proponents of this reform. In a letter written to his nephew on November 9, he explains that power is not given to people but will always be with the people.
This autograph letter of four large pages was sold for $ 3.2M from a lower estimate of $ 1.5M by Christie's on December 4, 2009. It is illustrated in the pre sale release by AuctionPublicity.
1789 Acts of Congress
2012 SOLD for $ 9.8M by Christie's
During the ten years following the Declaration of Independence of the United States, the Congress sets up a code known as the Articles of Confederation to manage the relations between the states. Too idealistic, this first law is a failure.
The founders of the nation are now trying to redefine the delicate balance between the executive and legislative branches while considering also the need for autonomy of each state. Their work is outstanding, since the system defined between 1787 and 1789 is still the foundation of the US law.
George Washington is one of the key figures in this success. On June 22, 2012, Christie's sold for $ 9.8M his personal copy of the main acts of Congress, lot 1. It gathers the Constitution, various acts including the creation of major Executive Departments, and the first draft of twelve articles known as the Bill of Rights for an effective and pragmatic definition of freedoms.
This collection was a working document for the new President. It is also a much valuable autograph : signed on the title page, it includes handwritten notes in the margin of several acts.
These 53 sheets 30 x 19 cm from 1789 are assembled in a binding probably made in the same year. They are in excellent condition.
Please watch the video shared by Fox News :
The founders of the nation are now trying to redefine the delicate balance between the executive and legislative branches while considering also the need for autonomy of each state. Their work is outstanding, since the system defined between 1787 and 1789 is still the foundation of the US law.
George Washington is one of the key figures in this success. On June 22, 2012, Christie's sold for $ 9.8M his personal copy of the main acts of Congress, lot 1. It gathers the Constitution, various acts including the creation of major Executive Departments, and the first draft of twelve articles known as the Bill of Rights for an effective and pragmatic definition of freedoms.
This collection was a working document for the new President. It is also a much valuable autograph : signed on the title page, it includes handwritten notes in the margin of several acts.
These 53 sheets 30 x 19 cm from 1789 are assembled in a binding probably made in the same year. They are in excellent condition.
Please watch the video shared by Fox News :
1824 Facsimile of the US Declaration of Independence
2021 SOLD for $ 4.4M by Freeman's
On July 19, 1776, a resolution from the US Congress decided that a manuscript duplicate of the Declaration of Independence had to be prepared for signature by every Congress member. It was made on parchment with the title The Unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America. The original copy signed on July 4 by John Hancock and Charles Thomson had not resurfaced, probably lost or scraped in the process of preparation of the Dunlap broadside.
The duplicate signed by the 56 delegates in early August, 1776 was becoming a symbol of the American liberty. Unfortunately it was badly deteriorating. In 1820 the Secretary of State and future President John Quincy Adams commissioned the printer William J. Stone to print an exact facsimile.
The engraving was made with a wet ink process by which some of the original ink was transferred to a copper plate which was etched. The engraving was completed and dated in 1823 and the printing was made in 1824 in 200 copies on 80 x 70 cm vellum. Approximately fifty are located.
Two copies were presented to one of the three surviving original signers, Charles Carroll of Carrollton, former delegate and senator of Maryland, aged 87. They were presented by Carroll to his grandson-in-law in 1826 after the death of the last two other signers, former Presidents John Adams and Jefferson.
One of them, inscribed by Carroll, went in 1844 to the Maryland Historical Society. The grandson-in-law copied this inscription on the other document with a reference to the autographed Carroll copy.
This second Carroll copy was discovered in a Scottish attic by Cathy Marsden, specialist of rare books at the Edinburgh auction company Lyon and Turnbull, and transferred for auction to their sister company Freeman's based in Philadelphia. It was sold by Freeman's on July 1, 2021 for $ 4.4M from a lower estimate of $ 500K, lot 1. Please watch the video shared by Freeman's.
The duplicate signed by the 56 delegates in early August, 1776 was becoming a symbol of the American liberty. Unfortunately it was badly deteriorating. In 1820 the Secretary of State and future President John Quincy Adams commissioned the printer William J. Stone to print an exact facsimile.
The engraving was made with a wet ink process by which some of the original ink was transferred to a copper plate which was etched. The engraving was completed and dated in 1823 and the printing was made in 1824 in 200 copies on 80 x 70 cm vellum. Approximately fifty are located.
Two copies were presented to one of the three surviving original signers, Charles Carroll of Carrollton, former delegate and senator of Maryland, aged 87. They were presented by Carroll to his grandson-in-law in 1826 after the death of the last two other signers, former Presidents John Adams and Jefferson.
One of them, inscribed by Carroll, went in 1844 to the Maryland Historical Society. The grandson-in-law copied this inscription on the other document with a reference to the autographed Carroll copy.
This second Carroll copy was discovered in a Scottish attic by Cathy Marsden, specialist of rare books at the Edinburgh auction company Lyon and Turnbull, and transferred for auction to their sister company Freeman's based in Philadelphia. It was sold by Freeman's on July 1, 2021 for $ 4.4M from a lower estimate of $ 500K, lot 1. Please watch the video shared by Freeman's.
A historic discovery! Our sister auction house, Freeman’s, is pleased to announce the sale of a signer’s copy of William J. Stone’s 1823 printing of the #DeclarationofIndependence recently rediscovered in Scotland by Lyon & Turnbull. Find out more: https://t.co/RiosDcVn4k pic.twitter.com/xSL20pV2Do
— Lyon & Turnbull (@LyonandTurnbull) June 24, 2021
1864 Emancipation Proclamation
2010 SOLD for $ 3.8M by Sotheby's
On 22 September 1862, President Lincoln issued an ultimatum to the secessionist states : slavery shall be abolished on January 1 in all states that will not come back into the Union before that date.
At the promised date, January 1, 1863, Lincoln proclaimed an executive order abolishing slavery in the ten states on which he had no control.
Of course, this statement was not sufficient to end the US Civil War. In mid 1864, charity gatherings organized by the US Sanitary Commission are held everywhere to support the Union troops.
The President, always ready for personal commitment, then accepts the project of the authorized edition of the Emancipation Proclamation, one of the initiatives to raise funds.
The document consists of a title and 52 lines of text printed in a single page on a watermarked Whatman paper sheet 55 x 44 cm. 48 copies bear the three autograph signatures of Abraham Lincoln, of the Secretary of State William Seward and of John Nicolay, private secretary to the President.
This strategy confirms that in the mind of Lincoln the end of slavery is the main issue of the Civil War. Without alienating the states loyal to the Union, it gave such a boost to the slaves that their emancipation had no more obstacles, entering into the constitution through the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865.
In the next century the Kennedy brothers are considering new advances for civil rights. The murder of the President does not slow down the ardor of his brother. In 1964, Robert Kennedy bought at auction at Parke-Bernet a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation signed by Lincoln and Seward.
This ex Kennedy document was sold for $ 3.8M on December 10, 2010 by Sotheby's, Parke-Bernet's successor.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's :
At the promised date, January 1, 1863, Lincoln proclaimed an executive order abolishing slavery in the ten states on which he had no control.
Of course, this statement was not sufficient to end the US Civil War. In mid 1864, charity gatherings organized by the US Sanitary Commission are held everywhere to support the Union troops.
The President, always ready for personal commitment, then accepts the project of the authorized edition of the Emancipation Proclamation, one of the initiatives to raise funds.
The document consists of a title and 52 lines of text printed in a single page on a watermarked Whatman paper sheet 55 x 44 cm. 48 copies bear the three autograph signatures of Abraham Lincoln, of the Secretary of State William Seward and of John Nicolay, private secretary to the President.
This strategy confirms that in the mind of Lincoln the end of slavery is the main issue of the Civil War. Without alienating the states loyal to the Union, it gave such a boost to the slaves that their emancipation had no more obstacles, entering into the constitution through the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865.
In the next century the Kennedy brothers are considering new advances for civil rights. The murder of the President does not slow down the ardor of his brother. In 1964, Robert Kennedy bought at auction at Parke-Bernet a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation signed by Lincoln and Seward.
This ex Kennedy document was sold for $ 3.8M on December 10, 2010 by Sotheby's, Parke-Bernet's successor.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's :
1864 Answer by Lincoln to the Children's Petition
2008 SOLD for $ 3.4M by Sotheby's
The abolition of slavery is the major issue of Lincoln's presidency and of the Civil War. Proclaimed by the executive order of September 22, 1862, it is a political act based on the interpretation that slavery is a non-conformity with the Constitution of the United States. The application is delayed and the abolitionists are getting impatient.
The President received a great deal of mail which was carefully handled by his secretaries. Amidst thousands of requests for favors, he was moved by a letter forwarded to him in early April 1864 by Charles Sumner, senator from Massachusetts, more radical than him for an immediate emancipation.
The document is a children's petition prepared and annotated by Mrs Mann, a widow who had founded a school in Concord MA. 195 boys and girls under 18 wrote their names under a simple and short text : "Children's Petition to the President asking him to free all the little slave children in this country".
The President prepares an autograph draft, which is kept at the Library of Congress. He replies to Mrs Mann : "Please tell these little people I am very glad their young hearts are so full of just and generous sympathy, and that, while I have not the power to grant all they ask, I trust they will remember that God has, and that, as it seems, He wills to do it ".
This answer is very important to the President, who himself copies his draft onto an 8 x 5 inch letterhead page of the Executive Mansion in Washington. Dated April 5, 1864, the letter is addressed to Mrs Mann to whom it is transmitted through the good care of the Senator. It was sold for $ 3.4M by Sotheby's on April 3, 2008, lot 85.
On April 20, Mrs Mann thanks the President for his "sweet words to the children" for whom she was going to have facsimiles prepared, replacing her name as a precaution with the identification of the place of origin, Concord MA. She insists in her abolitionist demand by courteously calling out to the President : "You who can hasten it must be the happiest of men, for in saving the colored man you will feel that you are doing equal service to the white man".
The President received a great deal of mail which was carefully handled by his secretaries. Amidst thousands of requests for favors, he was moved by a letter forwarded to him in early April 1864 by Charles Sumner, senator from Massachusetts, more radical than him for an immediate emancipation.
The document is a children's petition prepared and annotated by Mrs Mann, a widow who had founded a school in Concord MA. 195 boys and girls under 18 wrote their names under a simple and short text : "Children's Petition to the President asking him to free all the little slave children in this country".
The President prepares an autograph draft, which is kept at the Library of Congress. He replies to Mrs Mann : "Please tell these little people I am very glad their young hearts are so full of just and generous sympathy, and that, while I have not the power to grant all they ask, I trust they will remember that God has, and that, as it seems, He wills to do it ".
This answer is very important to the President, who himself copies his draft onto an 8 x 5 inch letterhead page of the Executive Mansion in Washington. Dated April 5, 1864, the letter is addressed to Mrs Mann to whom it is transmitted through the good care of the Senator. It was sold for $ 3.4M by Sotheby's on April 3, 2008, lot 85.
On April 20, Mrs Mann thanks the President for his "sweet words to the children" for whom she was going to have facsimiles prepared, replacing her name as a precaution with the identification of the place of origin, Concord MA. She insists in her abolitionist demand by courteously calling out to the President : "You who can hasten it must be the happiest of men, for in saving the colored man you will feel that you are doing equal service to the white man".
1864 Re-election Speech of President Lincoln
2009 SOLD for $ 3.4M by Christie's
1864 was a decisive year. Until June, Lincoln, the outgoing president, was considered a loser. The popular opinion was in favor of McClellan calling to enter into negotiations to end the civil war.
In August the fall of Atlanta happened, and supporters of Lincoln saw that a military victory was possible. On November 8, Lincoln won the election, one of the most important in the history of his country : his anti-slavery ideas would now be able to overcome. The end of the war came also very soon afterwards.
On 10 November 1864, at the White House, the reelected president made an important speech to celebrate his political victory. The paper he wrote with his hand for reading it on that day was sold for $ 3.4M by Christie's on 12 February 12, 2009. Those four pages in excellent condition were owned by the heirs of Lincoln before going into a library that sold them at that auction.This sale was made on the very day of the 200th anniversary of Lincoln, who was born on 12 February 1809.
In August the fall of Atlanta happened, and supporters of Lincoln saw that a military victory was possible. On November 8, Lincoln won the election, one of the most important in the history of his country : his anti-slavery ideas would now be able to overcome. The end of the war came also very soon afterwards.
On 10 November 1864, at the White House, the reelected president made an important speech to celebrate his political victory. The paper he wrote with his hand for reading it on that day was sold for $ 3.4M by Christie's on 12 February 12, 2009. Those four pages in excellent condition were owned by the heirs of Lincoln before going into a library that sold them at that auction.This sale was made on the very day of the 200th anniversary of Lincoln, who was born on 12 February 1809.
1865 The Thirteenth Amendment
2016 SOLD for $ 2.4M by Sotheby's
The founding fathers of the USA stated that all men are created equal. The slavery of the Negroes is seen as a disgrace by President Lincoln, not for moral or economic reasons but indeed because it opens up the possibility for a persecution of other minorities.
The thirteenth amendment to the Constitution was a major political achievement by Lincoln. It was not an easy operation, especially as the President did not want to wait for the end of the Civil War.
On 8 April 1864 the Senate voted at 38 against 6 a resolution in favor of the thirteenth amendment, but its embedding into the Constitution also required the approval of the House of Representatives and of 3/4 of the States.
In the House, the required 2/3 majority of voters was impossible to achieve in 1864 but the new elections have strengthened the power of Lincoln. The text was accepted on January 31, 1865 after a first negative vote followed by a change of opinion of some voters.
The joint resolution of both chambers is signed on the next day. In the joy of this event, some manuscript duplicates are prepared on the official paper of the Congress.
One of these copies was sold for $ 2.4M by Sotheby's on May 25, 2016, lot 79. This document 55 x 40 cm is signed by 36 senators from the historic proclamation of 1864 and by Abraham Lincoln himself who endorse it as "Approved".
Slavery was abolished in the United States of America in December 1865 when Georgia becomes the 27th state to ratify the thirteenth amendment, eight months after the death of the President.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's for introducing the sale, featuring also a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation.
The thirteenth amendment to the Constitution was a major political achievement by Lincoln. It was not an easy operation, especially as the President did not want to wait for the end of the Civil War.
On 8 April 1864 the Senate voted at 38 against 6 a resolution in favor of the thirteenth amendment, but its embedding into the Constitution also required the approval of the House of Representatives and of 3/4 of the States.
In the House, the required 2/3 majority of voters was impossible to achieve in 1864 but the new elections have strengthened the power of Lincoln. The text was accepted on January 31, 1865 after a first negative vote followed by a change of opinion of some voters.
The joint resolution of both chambers is signed on the next day. In the joy of this event, some manuscript duplicates are prepared on the official paper of the Congress.
One of these copies was sold for $ 2.4M by Sotheby's on May 25, 2016, lot 79. This document 55 x 40 cm is signed by 36 senators from the historic proclamation of 1864 and by Abraham Lincoln himself who endorse it as "Approved".
Slavery was abolished in the United States of America in December 1865 when Georgia becomes the 27th state to ratify the thirteenth amendment, eight months after the death of the President.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's for introducing the sale, featuring also a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation.
Not 1 but 2 important documents signed by Abraham Lincoln are coming to auction this month: https://t.co/RioDqJhUnY pic.twitter.com/rfhKXhKwj6
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) May 14, 2016
1939 Alcoholics Anonymous
2018 SOLD for $ 2.4M by Profiles in History
Alcoholism was a social problem of the utmost importance. In the United States the Prohibition had tried to take the root harm by banning the production but the side effects went worse when adulterated liquor was provided by the underworld. It is repealed in 1933.
In 1934 a heavy drinker considered as incurable by the doctors tries to recover. He understands that alcoholism is a mental and physical illness but not a sin. After failing in a spiritual approach, he conceives that only a former alcoholic can help a patient disavowed by his family and friends.
He stops drinking but that is not enough. During a professional visit that goes very badly at Akron OH, he feels that he will relapse and looks in the city for another incurable for a mutual help. He finds a surgeon whom he heals and persuades. Bill W and Dr. Bob consciously launched a chain of healing from that disabling illness, without a doctor, without a psychoanalyst, without a priest, simply by ordinary people helping other ordinary people.
They reached at the first attempt a balanced practice, based on the instinctive desire of drinkers to group together for avoiding their natural surroundings, on the protection against relapsing simply brought by the pride of helping another victim, on the anonymity and the absence of a guru which allow the patient to keep his freedom of thought.
They have founded a fraternity without registration and without obligation, without fees and without sponsoring, operating through regular local meetings where it is forbidden to debate anything else than the healing from alcohol. They are the Alcoholics Anonymous.
The method is pragmatic and the early successes are blatant. That deserves a book in which the two founders actively participate. This is another achievement. The first typed draft is sent to a large number of sympathizers invited to comment from their personal experience.
The modifications are written on a reference copy that is considered suitable for publication early in 1939. This 161-page document is a unique example of a collective text serving a great cause. It was sold for $ 1.58M by Sotheby's on June 18, 2004 and for $ 2.4M by Profiles in History on May 5, 2018, single lot of the sale here linked on iCollector bidding platform.
The book titled Alcoholics Anonymous is also known by its nickname The Big Book. Its basic principles are applied in all countries of the world.
In 1934 a heavy drinker considered as incurable by the doctors tries to recover. He understands that alcoholism is a mental and physical illness but not a sin. After failing in a spiritual approach, he conceives that only a former alcoholic can help a patient disavowed by his family and friends.
He stops drinking but that is not enough. During a professional visit that goes very badly at Akron OH, he feels that he will relapse and looks in the city for another incurable for a mutual help. He finds a surgeon whom he heals and persuades. Bill W and Dr. Bob consciously launched a chain of healing from that disabling illness, without a doctor, without a psychoanalyst, without a priest, simply by ordinary people helping other ordinary people.
They reached at the first attempt a balanced practice, based on the instinctive desire of drinkers to group together for avoiding their natural surroundings, on the protection against relapsing simply brought by the pride of helping another victim, on the anonymity and the absence of a guru which allow the patient to keep his freedom of thought.
They have founded a fraternity without registration and without obligation, without fees and without sponsoring, operating through regular local meetings where it is forbidden to debate anything else than the healing from alcohol. They are the Alcoholics Anonymous.
The method is pragmatic and the early successes are blatant. That deserves a book in which the two founders actively participate. This is another achievement. The first typed draft is sent to a large number of sympathizers invited to comment from their personal experience.
The modifications are written on a reference copy that is considered suitable for publication early in 1939. This 161-page document is a unique example of a collective text serving a great cause. It was sold for $ 1.58M by Sotheby's on June 18, 2004 and for $ 2.4M by Profiles in History on May 5, 2018, single lot of the sale here linked on iCollector bidding platform.
The book titled Alcoholics Anonymous is also known by its nickname The Big Book. Its basic principles are applied in all countries of the world.
