Housed in the College of Liberal Arts at UNH, the Rutman Distinguished Lecture Series on the American Presidency is generously supported by J. Morgan ’84 and Tara Rutman. The series focuses on American political history with an emphasis on the modern and historical context of the American presidency.
This year’s lecture, “The Making of the First President: America and George Washington at 250,” will be delivered by best-selling author and three-time Pulitzer Prize winner, Rick Atkinson.
He is the author of the New York Times best-selling The British Are Coming, the first volume of his acclaimed Revolution Trilogy, which has earned numerous honors including the George Washington Prize and the New-York Historical Society’s Zalaznick Book Prize. The second volume in the trilogy, The Fate of the Day: The War for America, Fort Ticonderoga to Charleston, 1777–1780, continues the sweeping narrative of the American Revolution, capturing the conflict’s critical middle years with vivid storytelling and deep historical insight. Atkinson also serves as a historical advisor for Ken Burns’ PBS documentary series The American Revolution, which commemorates the Revolution’s 250th anniversary.
He is also the author of the Liberation Trilogy, a definitive narrative history of the liberation of Europe in World War II. Its third volume, The Guns at Last Light, became a #1 New York Times best-seller in 2013 and was hailed as “history written at the level of literature.” Exclusively represented by Leading Authorities speakers bureau, Atkinson shares compelling stories and insights drawn from military history, illuminating timeless lessons about leadership, sacrifice, and the enduring demands of democracy.
