The
Declaration of Independence
Drafted
by Thomas Jefferson in June 1776, the Declaration of Independence is at
once the nation's most cherished symbol of liberty and Jefferson's most
enduring monument. Here, in exalted and unforgettable phrases, Jefferson
expressed the convictions in the minds and hearts of the American people.
The political philosophy of the Declaration was not new; John Locke and
the Continental philosophers had already expressed its ideals of
individual liberty. What Jefferson did was to summarize this philosophy in
"self-evident truths" and set forth a list of grievances against
the King in order to justify before the world the breaking of ties between
the colonies and the mother country. Most people believe the Declaration
was signed by all of the Signers on July 4, 1776 which in fact is not
true. When was it actually signed? Who were the Committee of Five and what
was their role in the writing of the Declaration?
June
11-July 1, 1776
Declaration
Drafted
Lee Resolution: Delegate
from Virginia, read a resolution before the Continental Congress
"that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and
independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the
British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the
State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved.
June 11, 1776
Committee of Five Appointed Consideration
of the Lee Resolution was postponed-- the "Committee of Five"
was appointed to draft a statement presenting to the world the colonies’
case for independence.
June
11-July 1, 1776
Declaration Drafted
On June 11, Congress recessed for three weeks. During this period the
"Committee of Five" (John Adams, Roger Sherman, Benjamin
Franklin, Robert Livingston, and Thomas Jefferson) drafted the Declaration
of Independence. Thomas Jefferson drafted it, Adams and Franklin made
changes to it. Congress reconvened on July 1, 1776.
The
Declaration of Independence
Drafted by Thomas
Jefferson in June 1776, the Declaration of Independence is at once the
nation's most cherished symbol of liberty and Jefferson's most enduring
monument. Here, in exalted and unforgettable phrases, Jefferson expressed
the convictions in
the minds and hearts of the American people. The
political philosophy of the Declaration was not new; John Locke and the
Continental philosophers had already expressed its ideals of individual
liberty. What Jefferson did was to summarize this philosophy in
"self-evident truths" and set forth a list of grievances against
the King in order to justify before the world the breaking of ties between
the colonies and the mother country. Most people believe the Declaration
was signed by all of the Signers on July 4, 1776 which in fact is not
true.
July
4, 1776
The Declaration of Independence Adopted & Printed
Late in the afternoon of
July 4, the Declaration was officially adopted, and the "Committee of
Five" took the manuscript copy of the document to John Dunlap,
official printer to the Congress.
July
19, 1776
Congress ordered Declaration Engrossed on Parchment
Congress ordered that the Declaration be
"fairly engrossed on parchment, with the title and stile {sic} of ‘The unanimous declaration of the thirteen United States of America’
and that the same, when engrossed, be signed by every member of Congress.
August
2, 1776
Declaration Signed
The document was signed by most of the
members on August 2. George Wythe signed on August 27. On September 4,
Richard Henry Lee, Elbridge Gerry, and Oliver Wilcott signed. Matthew
Thornton signed on November 19, and Thomas McKean signed in 1781.
Signers of the Declaration of Independence.......
Midi - Battle Cry
of Freedom
