When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation… Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson wrote it in four days, but he didn’t finish it yet. Thomas Jefferson was given the job of writing the Declaration of Independence by Congress. That is why the United States of America celebrates its independence on July 4th. It took two days for the document to be ready. The Committee of Five (John Adams, Roger Sherman, Robert Livingston, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson) spent time coming up with the Declaration Of Independence in draft form.
To finalize the decision, they needed to have a document explaining what happened. John Adams thought that this day would be a national holiday for many generations to come. It was really on July 2, 1776, that the Continental Congress declared its freedom from Britain. Nevertheless, the decision to declare independence was made.
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The chances of winning this war were slim because Americans would be cutting themselves off from the biggest free empire in the world if they won! The colonists had a sentimental attachment to their homeland which made them nervous about leaving it behind. The colonies were poorly prepared for war because they did not have weapons to fight.If they failed, the leaders of the Revolution might be executed as traitors.Americans might lose friends in Britain whosupported their cause but not independence.On the other hand, being independent had some disadvantages: Independence would unite different areas of the colonies that had been arguing with each other about what they wanted.This would make it hard for King George III to make an example out of them and stop other colonists from fighting against him. The soldiers captured might not be seen as spies or rebels.France might help Americans with the fight.Here are some of the advantages of being independent of the British: Some people thought that they should take action and some said no, but finally the Committee of Five wrote a letter to tell King George III that they did not want to be British colonies anymore.
Europe was called “the Continent”, that is why this congress was called like that. Representatives from each colony went to the Second Continental Congress and had important discussions. The 13 colonies wanted to talk about how England was treating them. They now had a cause to fight for, and their hearts and hands could work together. They had been trying to make peace with the king, but now they know they need to fight against him. Americans didn’t want to obey British laws without any representation in Parliament.Įvents changed when people knew they were fighting against a king. They were tired of feeding and housing British soldiers without compensation. The colonists were being unfairly taxed to fund British wars. They wanted independence from Britain because it was unfair how they were being treated. The American colonists tried to argue the laws that were passed by the British Parliament, but they just made things worse for themselves. Keep reading to learn more Declaration of Independence facts.Įventually, a group of Americans decided to fight back. The Americans in the 13 colonies were British citizens, but the British parliament and king treated them in terrible ways. Why was the Declaration of Independence written? Main ideas in the Declaration of Independence.The contents of the Declaration of Independence.The five parts of the Declaration of Independence.Curious fact: The first years of the Declaration.