  That the speed of light is a universal constant is a logical consequence of
Maxwell's equations. Here we show the converse is also true. Electromagnetism
(EM) and electrodynamics (ED), in all details, can be derived from two simple
assumptions: i) the speed of light is a universal constant and, ii) the common
observations that there are the so-called charged particles that interact with
each other. Conventional EM and ED are observation based. The proposed
alternative spares all those observational foundations, only to reintroduce
them as theoretically derived and empiricism-free laws of Nature. There are
merits to simplicity. For instance, when one learns that Poisson's equation
emerges as a corollary of the formalism, one immediately concludes that
Coulomb's $1/r^2$ law of force is exact. Or, if it turns out that
$\nabla.\mathbf{B}=0$ follows from the theory, then non-existence of (at least
classical) magnetic monopoles will be an exact law of Nature. The list is
longer than the these two examples.
