vThe Declaration of Independence

● The Declaration of Independence

On July 4, 1776, the 13 American colonies declared independence from Great

Britain. And they did so via the Declaration of Independence, one of the most
critical documents in American history.

● Common Sense

Some influential documents and their impact on history, one of which was
Thomas Payne's pamphlet Common Sense, which was published at the beginning
of 1776. This pamphlet prepared people for the ideas expressed in the Declaration
of Independence. Common Sense was published on January 10, 1776. The
Founding Fathers finished the Declaration in July, so Jefferson read Common
Sense. It's believed that it influenced many of his ideas in the Declaration and
some of the ideas the Founding Fathers had. And you can see some of those big
ideas reflected in the Declaration. That's about one copy read for every five people
living in the colonies.

It argued for American independence. And it also declared that all men were
created equal.

● Early Influences

● Influences On The Declaration Of Independence

One document that influenced the Founding Fathers was the Iroquois
Constitution or the Great Law of Peace. It had existed for hundreds of years, and
before it was written down, it had been passed down through the generations by
spoken word. The Iroquois Constitution laid out how the peoples of the five
Iroquois Nations would work together and establish a joint government for them.
These five nations existed on the border between Upstate New York and Canada
around 1650: the Mohawk, the Oneida, the Onondaga, the Cayuga, and the
Seneca. The Iroquois Constitution influenced many leaders in American history,
including Ben Franklin and James Madison. At the Albany Congress in 1754,
Franklin shared part of a speech given by Onondaga leader

Canassatego in 1744.

In the speech, the Iroquois leader urged the colonies to unite as one nation, just
as the Iroquois had done. After the meeting, Franklin continued to consider the
Iroquois, an example of unity among the colonies. Franklin invited leaders of the
Iroquois Convention to attend and observe the Continental Congress in 1776 as
the colonists prepared to declare independence from Britain. Another document
that influenced the Declaration of Independence was the Mayflower Compact,
which the pilgrims drafted to govern the Plymouth Colony. Even though it was
short, the Mayflower Compact contained some fundamental ideas. One was that
government should be for the common good. It also stated that all signers had to
 agree to submit to the laws of the new colony equally.

This idea of equality under the law is a vital part of a democracy and is one of the
foundations of our government today.

● The Enlightenment

Many of the ideas that our Founding Fathers came out of the Enlightenment. The
Enlightenment period was a time of new ideas in Europe's 17th and 18th
centuries. Now, it revolves around art, science, philosophy, and politics.
Enlightenment thinkers and many of their ideas were based on the concept of
reason, the power to understand the universe and to improve one's situation, and
it's really in the power of human beings to do this. According to reason, some of
the goals they wanted to attain were knowledge, freedom, and happiness. The
Enlightenment ideas influenced American thinkers.

● John Locke (1632-1704)

One individual who is credited with having a great deal of influence at this time is
John Locke. He was an Enlightenment philosopher from England. Now, he argued
that citizens entered into a social contract with the government, meaning that
citizens agreed to submit to the laws but that the government also had to submit
to those laws and protect the rights of the citizens. So, both sides have clear
rights and responsibilities, and citizens consented to their government. They had
to agree with that government in that they put their faith in their government to do
the right things for them. But that government had a responsibility to protect
citizens. It also said that citizens can create new governments to meet their needs.

● The English Bill of Rights

The English Bill of Rights was another influential document. It was signed by the
joint monarchs, William III and Mary II, in 1689. It limited the powers of the king
and queen or the monarchy. It gave Parliament the power to make laws, called for
free elections of parliamentary members, and gave parliamentary members
freedom of speech. These ideas laid a foundation for the Declaration of
Independence.

● The Virginia Declaration of Rights

The Virginia Declaration of Rights was another influential document on our

founding fathers. Jefferson referred to it when he wrote the Declaration of
Independence: " All men are born equally free and independent, and have certain
inherent natural rights, among which are the Enjoyment of Life and Liberty
Pursuing Happiness." Many of those words were written into the Declaration of
Independence that Jefferson later wrote, which came out in July 1776. It was also
a model for the US Bill of, and it described certain freedoms, including freedom of
the press, freedom of religion, and the freedom only to be arrested if you broke
the laws and then to have a trial by a jury of your peers.
● Colonists' Complaints

● Taxes in the Colonies

Tensions between the American colonists and the British government increased
during the mid-1700s, 1760s, and 1770s when the British government started to
impose taxes, which caused significant issues in the colonies. Britain was in debt
due to the French and Indian War, part of the larger 7 Years' War being fought in
Europe. The French and Indian Wars were fought on American soil. Canada, and
in the American colonies. King George the 3rd and Parliament felt that the
colonists should pay for that partly because it occurred in some of those colonies.

Parliament raised taxes in the colonies, including taxes on sugar, tea, and legal
documents. And they were all raised. Now, the colonists resented these taxes.
They were upset because they weren't represented in Parliament. No American
colonial representatives in Parliament voted for or against the passage of these
taxes, and they felt that this isolated the English Bill of Rights.

● The Stamp Act of 1765

One example is the Stamp Act of 1765. It forced colleges to pay a tax on legal and
trade documents, such as playing cards, books, and newspapers. Many colonists
called for "No Taxation Without Representation."

● The Boston Tea Party

In 1767, the British Parliament passed the Townsend Acts, a series of taxes
enacted on stamps, paper, and tea. Later, the British repealed the Townsend Acts
but left the tax on tea. Many American colonists, in protest, chose not to purchase
tea from British merchants. Instead, they bought illegal or smuggled tea from
some colonial merchants who had brought the tea in. In 1773, the British
government passed the Tea Act. The British government did this because they
wanted to try to help out some of the British merchants who were losing money
because of this boycott that many of the colonists were doing. Now, this gave a
unique advantage to the British East India Company.

It said they didn't have to deal with this tax on tea. So, it would make their tea
cheaper so that colonists would buy legal tea instead. But many colonists,
especially those in Massachusetts, were outraged by this, which hurt the colonial
Merchants. And so, in response to this, a group of colonists boarded the East
India Company ships and threw the tea into Boston Harbor. Sam Adams and the
Sons of Liberty led this. The Boston Tea Party happened during nighttime. And
they Dressed as Native Americans.
● The Intolerable Acts

These acts became known as the Intolerable Acts; others were passed by the
British government in 1774 in response to these protests. The British government
placed many restrictions on the colonies. They really wanted to hammer down on
these colonists, who they felt were getting out of control. They closed the port of
Boston and said that it would remain closed until the colonists replaced the value
of the tea that had been destroyed by throwing it into the harbor. The British also
changed the Massachusetts charter. This meant that they could take away some
control of the Massachusetts governor and put it in the hands of the king.The
Intolerable Acts also prohibited town meetings, took away the rights of the
citizens to elect their executive council, and stated that the king would now
appoint colonial officials.

It also allowed British officials who had been charged with crimes, including
crimes of murder, to no longer be charged and sent to court in the colonies. They
could now be sent back to England to have their trial heard. Another law required
colonists to feed and house British soldiers, the Quartering Act. Many colonists
felt as though they were becoming occupied by their government. It felt like a
government that was not representing them. It felt like a government that had
invaded them.

● The Continental Congress

Now, other colonies rallied to support Massachusetts and resented these

intolerable Acts. Colonies and other colonists imagined if the government could
do this to Massachusetts, what would stop the British government from coming
down on them, closing their ports, and trying to devastate their economy?So,
other colonies were also worried about this exact thing happening to them. So the
colonies organized the First Continental Congress, which met in 1774. They met in
Philadelphia, and some delegates included Samuel Adams and George
Washington.The Congress sent King George III a request to relieve them from this
unfair and harsh treatment. The Colonists thought that this was really Parliament
acting against them.

And they were appealing to the king to step in. They didn't go to this congress
with the idea that, we're going to try to get our independence. They wanted their
government to do something about what they thought Parliament was getting out
of control. The Congress also called for the colonists to boycott or stop buying
British goods until the King answered these complaints. The last thing they did
was establish a follow-up meeting for May of 1775, the Second National Congress.

● Drafting the Declaration

● The Second Continental Congress

The Second Continental Congress met in May of 1775. And two months later, it
 broke out. George Washington was also named Commander in Chief of the
Continental Army. Despite being at war, the colonies still had not declared
independence, but that would change by April 1776. At this point, Thomas Paine's
common sense had spread ideas of American independence throughout the
colonies, and many people supported it. With the colonies debating what they
wanted to do, Jefferson began to draft the document that would become the
Declaration of Independence. Eventually, all the delegates, except New York, even
though their delegates wanted to vote yes, were waiting on confirmation from
their colonial government, and they declared their independence. Jefferson's draft
underwent some revisions but was finally approved on July 4, 1776.

● Drafting the Declaration

The Second Continental Congress created a committee to outline reasons for

breaking ties with Britain. Some of the influential founding fathers who were part
of that five-man committee included Ben Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas
Jefferson. Jefferson wrote the first draft at Adams' request, putting into words the
feelings of most Americans. He really wanted to avoid making it sound like it was
in his voice. He was trying to speak for what he felt were the American people and
what they wanted. It included essential principles that were included in the
preamble. Many historians think Jefferson should be given credit specifically for
those ideas in the preamble, uniquely his area and voice.

● The Declaration of Independence

The Declaration of Independence had three primary purposes. They wanted to

explain the problems the colonists had with British rule. They tried to describe the
principles of a new kinda of government. And they wanted to declare that the
colonies were going to be independent.

● The Original Rough Draft

Jefferson's first attempt is now known as the Original Rough Draft. It was revised
first by Adams, then Franklin, and finally by the full committee. There were about
47 changes that historians can identify. Many of those changes were grammatical
or sentence structure changes. However, overall, the committee expanded some
of the included grievances against the King. So, that list of complaints against the
King was widened.

● Declaring Independence

The final draft was reviewed and edited by the Continental Congress as a whole.
Another 39 changes were made, many of which Jefferson opposed, but ultimately,
he agreed to them. Then, the delegates voted. Nine delegations voted yes, which
was enough to pass the Declaration. However, the founders wanted a unanimous
vote. After more discussion and debate, the Declaration passed with 12 yes votes
and one vote withheld. New York's delegation still needed to get permission to
vote for independence. On July 4, 1776, American colonies declared their
independence from Britain.
● The Consequences

The Declaration of Independence was read aloud outside the State House in
Philadelphia. Riders on horseback spread the news throughout the colonies, and
cannons were fired to announce the new document. George Washington had the
Declaration read to his soldiers. When the Declaration reached King George, he
thought it little more than a nuisance. He assigned a lawyer to draft a response
that dismissed each of the Declaration's grievances. However, in the American
Colonies, the Declaration won support from many people who needed clarification
on what they had been fighting for. Many historians see the Declaration of
Independence as an essential turning point in the American Revolution.