Benjamin Franklin

Franklin and Adams: Rivals on the Same Diplomatic Mission

Benjamin Franklin and John Adams served the United States together as diplomats to France during the American Revolution, but they frustrated each other with their conflicting approaches to the job. Adams was impatient and did not recognize that Franklin’s popularity was an important asset in securing vital French support for the war effort.

Franklin and Adams: Rivals on the Same Diplomatic Mission

4m 3s

  • “An American” (1775-1790): asset-mezzanine-16x9

    “An American” (1775-1790)

    S1 E2 - 1h 54m

    Benjamin Franklin leaves London and returns to wartime Philadelphia where he joins Congress and helps Thomas Jefferson craft the Declaration of Independence. In Paris, he wins French support for the American Revolution then negotiates a peace treaty with Britain. He spends his last years in the new United States, working on the Constitution and unsuccessfully promoting the abolition of slavery.

  • “Join or Die” (1706-1774): asset-mezzanine-16x9

    “Join or Die” (1706-1774)

    S1 E1 - 1h 55m

    Leaving behind his Boston childhood, Benjamin Franklin reinvents himself in Philadelphia where he builds a printing empire and a new life with his wife, Deborah. Turning to science, Franklin's lightning rod and experiments in electricity earn him worldwide fame. After entering politics, he spends years in London trying to keep Britain and America together as his own family starts to come apart.

WETA Passport

Stream tens of thousands of hours of your PBS and local favorites with WETA Passport whenever and wherever you want. Catch up on a single episode or binge-watch full seasons before they air on TV.