HAMILTON and Ron Chernow to Receive National Constitution Center’s 37th Annual Liberty Medal
The recognition honors their impact in bringing the story of the U.S. Constitution to life for generations of Americans.
By: Stephi Wild Jul. 01, 2025
The National Constitution Center will award its 37th annual Liberty Medal to the Broadway hit Hamilton, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, and the historian and biographer Ron Chernow, whose book inspired the musical. The recognition honors their impact in bringing the story of the U.S. Constitution to life for generations of Americans and inspiring a deeper public engagement with the principles of the founding era. As America prepares to mark the 250th anniversary of its founding, the National Constitution Center will celebrate Hamilton and Chernow and their transformational contributions to civic education at a ceremony overlooking Independence Mall on October 17, 2025.
“The National Constitution Center is thrilled to present the Liberty Medal to Hamilton and to the great American historian Ron Chernow,” said National Constitution Center President and CEO Jeffrey Rosen. “Chernow’s definitive biographies of Alexander Hamilton, George Washington, and others have brought American history to life for millions around the world, and Hamilton has inspired a renewed passion for civic education and learning about the constitutional ideals that unite us.”
Based on Ron Chernow’s acclaimed biography and set to a score that blends hip-hop, jazz, R&B, and Broadway, Hamilton has had a profound impact on culture, politics, and education. In addition to its 11 Tony Awards, it has won Grammy and Olivier Awards, the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and an unprecedented special citation from the Kennedy Center Honors. Hamilton features a book, music, and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda, direction by Thomas Kail, choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler, and musical supervision and orchestrations by Alex Lacamoire. Hamilton’s portion of the Liberty Medal prize will benefit Gilder Lehrman’s Hamilton Education Program.
“I’m deeply honored that Hamilton is a recipient of the Liberty Medal from the National Constitution Center—an institution that celebrates the document that shaped our nation and continues to shape our struggles, our progress, and our promise,” said Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda. “In creating Hamilton, I set out to tell the story of one of our most complicated Founding Fathers, but more importantly, to invite new generations into the story of America. The Constitution is not just a historical artifact—it’s a challenge. A call to participate. To speak up, to imagine better, and to work, every day, toward that more perfect union.”
Ron Chernow, a masterful storyteller of American history, brings our nation’s past vividly to life through his award-winning biographies of extraordinary figures. His debut, The House of Morgan, received the National Book Award, while Washington: A Life earned the Pulitzer Prize for Biography. His celebrated Alexander Hamilton won the George Washington Book Prize. A two-time finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award, Chernow is one of only three living biographers to be honored with the Gold Medal for Biography from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. A former president of PEN America, he has also been awarded nine honorary doctorates. His most recent biography of Mark Twain was published in May and debuted as number one on The New York Times bestseller list. The Times of London hailed the book as “a model biography, one of the finest of recent years.”
“To receive the Liberty Medal from the National Constitution Center is an extraordinary honor—especially for someone who has spent a lifetime trying to illuminate the lives of extraordinary Americans who shaped the liberties we cherish,” said biographer Ron Chernow. “In writing about Hamilton, Washington, and Grant, I’ve come to see that liberty is not a gift passed down through generations—it’s a responsibility. One that demands courage, compromise, and commitment. These men were imperfect, but they dared to envision something greater than themselves.”
The Liberty Medal, established in 1988 and hosted by the National Constitution Center since 2006, recognizes individuals who strive to secure the blessings of liberty to people around the globe. Recent recipients have included Ken Burns, Judy Woodruff and David Rubenstein, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, U.S. Senator John McCain, U.S. Representative John Lewis, the Dalai Lama, and Malala Yousafzai, among others.
