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But what is the Fourth of July,
aside from fireworks and barbecues?
Written by John Trausch MA
On July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence quite simply declared American independence. Those who signed it knew they were signing their own death warrant--if the British were to win the war. But the Declaration wasn’t written for the Colonists, who already knew there was war, thanks to Thomas Paine's "Common Sense" primer. Nor was it necessary to re-inform the enemy British. Rather, the Declaration was written for the benefit of other nations, in the hope that they would sympathize with the American cause, or at least find it politically expedient, and help out. Thomas Jefferson, the 33-year-old author (don't let the gray wig fool you), and his cohorts Benjamin Franklin and John Adams, correctly believed they could not win the war without outside help.
To many in the Late-18th Century, it wasn’t logical that the American Colonies, the wealthiest colonies on earth, would want to separate Great Britain, the strongest nation in the world.
So in the Declaration Jefferson and Friends blamed King George, although the British Parliament was really more the source of their problems. The King was a more visible and easy to identify target for the rest of the world to see. Instead of “Parliament isn’t being fair to us” the argument became “the English King has no right to rule Americans.”
The Declaration argued that the people set up the government to achieve equality and justice; and if a government no longer pursues equality and justice, it deserves no more respect or obedience.
(To read the transcript of the
Declaration of Independence, click here!)
The war had begun the year before, with the Battles of Lexington and Concord. And before it was a revolution, it was a civil war. In every part of the colonies, Americans fought Americans, Historians now estimate that 40 percent of the colonists supported the revolution, 20 percent remained with England, and 40 percent were neutral, or didn’t care. Almost 18,000 Loyalists joined the British army and fought against the United States.
The American Revolution was also a world war. In 1778, France entered the war on the U.S. side. The French had been secretly supplying the U.S. since 1775, waiting to see if the U.S. had a chance to defeat the British before they openly supported the U.S. By 1780, both Holland and Spain joined in.
The French King sent weapons, clothing, soldiers, ships, and money to keep the U.S. government alive so it could keep up the fight. Notably, when the British did surrender at the battle of Yorktown, the majority of Gen. George Washington's 15,000-man Continental Army were French. Oui, the Continental Army was clothed, armed and paid by the French. The expense to the French was so great that it ultimately led to the financial collapse that fueled the French Revolution a few years later.
The American Revolution was also war of ideas. The Declaration of Independence was based upon the "natural rights" philosophy of John Locke. Central to the Declaration of Independence, are the inalienable rights of man to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness and that all (white, at the time) men were created equal. This theory of natural rights was supported by the contract theory of government that defined government as an agreement between a ruler and the people. And if the ruler violated that contract, the people had the right to revolt. The Americans were simply putting this ivory-tower philosophy into practice.
The Summer of 1776:
June 28: Jefferson’s first draft was presented to the Continental Congress.
July 4: After a week of non-stop debate and numerous changes, nine of the 13 colonies voted in favor of the Declaration. To make it official John Hancock, President of Congress, signed it first in very large letters. It was said Hancock signed "with a great flourish" so "King George can read that without spectacles!"
July 5: copies of the Declaration were publicly distributed.
July 6: The Pennsylvania Evening Post published it.
July 8: the Declaration was read publicly in Philadelphia's Independence Square. Note: it wasn’t until August when the signing of the Declaration was completed.
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