America (Benjamin Franklin)

The United Colonies of America
Map by ExplosiveWatermelon
Leader	Benjamin Franklin
Start Bias	None
Religion	Protestantism Calvinism (HR)
Geography & Social Data
Capital	Philadelphia
Mod Support
Government	???
Culture	Colonial (American)
Civilopedia
Civilopedia	Here

America led by Benjamin Franklin is a custom civilization by ExplosiveWatermelon.

This mod requires Brave New World.

Overview

America

The United States of America is a world "super-power" (which more or less means that it possesses weapons capable of destroying everything on the planet). A relatively young civilization, the United States formed in the 18th century, nearly self-destructed in the 19th century, and became the most powerful and dominant military, technological, cultural and economical civilization in the 20th. One can hardly guess what will happen to it in the 21st.

Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin was an American polymath and statesman who was considered one of the Founding Fathers of the United States.

Benjamin Franklin was born January 17th, 1706, in the colonial city of Boston. The eighth child of Josiah and Abiah Franklin, Benjamin Franklin was taught at Boston Latin School, but ultimately did not pursue greater education after 10 years of age. Initially, Franklin started writing under the pseudonym of 'Silence Dogood,' a middle-aged widow whose controversial correspondence was published in his unknownign brother's newspaper: the New-England Courant. However, when Franklin's brother was jailed, he inherited the New-England Courant. However, Benjamin Franklin quickly left his apprenticeship, becoming a fugitive in the process. At age 17, Ben Franklin ran away to Philadelphia. Franklin was greatly involved in newspapers and libraries throughout Philadelphia, and founded a group known as the Junto, a discussion group for social matters. Ben Franklin rose to prominence in Philadelphia's political scene and was thrust into social life as he matured. During King George's War, Franklin raised a militia to defend Philadelphia. In 1747, Franklin retired from printing to pursue other endeavors, becoming a councilman in Philadelphia in 1748. By 1751, he had become a member of the Pennsylvania Assembly.

In 1757, Franklin was sent to London by the Pennsylvania assembly to protest the Penn family, the descendants of William Penn, who had exerted a tremendous amount of influence in the colony. After his return, in 1764, Franklin was elected Speaker of the Pennsylvania House- a position he held for only 5 months before losing his election. Sent back to London to continue his efforts against the Penn family, Franklin found himself protesting another cause- the 1765 Stamp Act. Although he was initially a supporter, Benjamin Franklin learned that it was greatly unpopular in the colonies, and soon testified against it- leading to the repeal of the act. Because of this, Franklin emerged as a spokesman for American interests, which had fallen on deaf ears in British parliament for a long time. From the mid-1750s onwards, Franklin remained in Europe and spent a large amount of time in London. Among the nations he visited was Ireland, Germany, and France.

Eventually, British Parliament began to argue that heavy taxes should be levied against the Americans to share in the costs of the French and Indian War. Benjamin Franklin spoke in parliament that Americans had contributed greatly towards the British cause already, and in 1772 Franklin obtained the private letters of governor Thomas Hutchinson of Massachusetts Bay. Appalled by Hutchinson's actions against Bostonians, whose protests Hutchinson intended to crack down on, Benjamin Franklin sent these letters to North America, where the Boston Gazette eventually published them, greatly escalating tensions between the Americans and the Colonial Government. This caused great ire in the eye of British parliament, eventually resulting in Franklin returning to Philadelphia in 1775. In 1773, Franklin published two satirical essays celebrating the American cause: "Rules by Which a Great Empire May Be Reduced to a Small One", and "An Edict by the King of Prussia."

By the time Franklin returned to Philadelphia in 1775, the American revolution had begun. The Pennsylvania Assembly chose Benjamin Franklin to represent them as their delegate to the Second Continental Congress. In June of 1776, Benjamin Franklin was appointed as a member of the Committee of Five, which would draft the United States Declaration of Independence. Although unable to attend most meetings, Franklin made small but significant contributions to the draft sent to him by Thomas Jefferson. After this, in October of 1776, Franklin served as Ambassador to France. In 1778, he secured a crucial military alliance with the French, and in 1783, Franklin provided a signature to the Treaty of Paris. During this time, Franklin also served as ambassador to Sweden, although he made no visits to Sweden. Franklin returned to the United States in 1785, serving as President of Pennsylvania from then until 1788. However, poor health had plagued Franklin for the final years of his life, and he was rarely seen until his death on April 17th, 1790. His last words, a response to his daughter, were "a dying man can do nothing easy." His funeral was attended by approximately 20,000 individuals, and he was buried in Philadelphia. A period of mourning was also declared for 3 days in France, where he had served as ambassador previously. A psychological effect where a person likes an individual more after doing a favor is named the Ben Franklin effect, who observed the effect while practicing politics.

Beyond politics, Benjamin Franklin was a prominent inventor and scientist. Franklin never patented any of his inventions, but is credited to several inventions such as the lightning rod, the Franklin stove, the pros and cons list, and bifocal glasses. Franklin also conducted research into electricity, and proposed that lightning was electricity; this theory was later proven by an experiment conducted by Thomas-Francois Dalibard using a 40-foot-tall iron rod instead of a kite. However, Franklin may have also conducted his own experiment using a kite, as he described this experiment in The Pennsylvania Gazette. Although this experiment was dangerous, it later led to his invention of the lightning rod, which were then installed on the Academy of Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania State House. Among other scientific interests of Franklin was his interest in thermodynamics, oceanography, meteorology, and even demography.

Dawn of Man

May you snatch lightning from the sky, and the scepter from tyrants, Benjamin Franklin. Though you’ve gone by many names in your life- such as that of Richard Saunders or Silence Dogood- your identity is best known as the First American, a proud inventor, scholar, and statesman of the fledgling United States. Your diplomatic endeavors garnered America one of their closest allies, France, and with your words and actions you paved the way for a democracy like none the world has seen before.

Art by ExplosiveWatermelon

Alas, Mr. Franklin, American democracy faces a familiar threat- that of kings and despots. It is up to you to restore guidance to these troubled peoples in such perilous times. Can you represent those with no-one else to guide them? Can you pen a new chapter in history? Can you build a Civilization that stands the test of time?

Introduction:

"Greetings, and welcome to these United Colonies of America. I am Benjamin Franklin, and I'll be handling matters of diplomacy for today."

"Hello there, I am Benjamin Franklin, representing the United Colonies in these diplomatic matters. Democracy is the will of the people, and you may either join, or die."

Defeat: "Though we may end up food for worms, the work I have done shall not be truly lost."

Unique Attributes

America (Benjamin Franklin)
Art by ExplosiveWatermelon Appeal to Heaven Upon adopting a Social Policy or Ideology Tenet, may levy Units in each City based on the Culture spent. Political Treatises grant equal amounts Science to Culture generated.
Art by ExplosiveWatermelon Sons of Liberty (Musketman) May pillage your own Plantations. Pillaging an improvement grants additional Gold and Culture.
Art by ExplosiveWatermelon Printing House (Zoo) +1 Local Happiness for every 2 Cities with a Printing House. Excess Local Happiness is converted into Great Writer points

City List Philadelphia New York Boston Charleston Baltimore Providence Williamsburg Newport Norfolk Savannah Salem Hartford Albany Richmond New Bern Gloucester Wilmington Dover Annapolis Falmouth New Castle Trenton Portsmouth Greenville Edenton New Haven Reading Petersburg Kingston Staunton Concord

Spy List Cousin Felix Dennis Edward Prof. Rex Eliza Mary Virginia Scarlett Barbara

Strategy

Music

Peace Theme	War Theme
"Quartet for 3 Violins and Cello in F Major" by Benjamin Franklin.	"America - Modern Civ Theme for Civ 7" by Geoff Knorr.

Mod Support

Mod Support
Additional Achievements	Unknown
Civ IV Traits	Yes
Cultural Diversity	Yes
Enlightenment Era	Yes
Ethnic Units/R.E.D.	Yes
Events and Decisions	No
Historical Religions	Yes
Map Labels	Yes
Rise to Power	Yes
Unique Cultural Influence	Yes
YnAEMP	Yes

Full Credits List

Steam Workshop
Latest Version:	v 1
Last Updated:	27 October 2025

• ExplosiveWatermelon: Lead Author, Art, Code