Findlay

The Declaration of Independence

Jessica Findlay
History 1700
The Declaration of Independence
September 25, 2016

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The Declaration of Independence was and is the most essential piece of America's history.
The overburdened, under represented individuals of America required a solid unfaltering
statement demonstrating the colonists determination to be free from Great Britain. It is known as
the most important document ever, because it contains the goals of our country, the protests of
the colonists against Great Britain, and the disputes the colonists used to disclose why they
needed independence from Great Britain. The Second Continental Congress selected Benjamin
Franklin, John Adams, Roger Sherman, Robert Livingston and Thomas Jefferson to come up
with a statement. Jefferson was responsible for composing a draft for the Declaration of
Independence. On the fourth of July the representatives met in the Pennsylvania State House, and
the Declaration of Independence was confirmed. This was a necessary step for the colonies to
gain independence from Great Britain.
The colonies chose to declare freedom from Great Britain for numerous reasons. Great
Britain was being unjust to the colonists by limiting them and passing many tax laws. The
colonies had no delegates in Parliament, so they essentially had no voice on any of these laws.
The colonist objected the Tea Act, which led to the Boston Tea Party. This then led to stricter
laws by Great Britain. Every time a petition would be sent to the King for a compromise, it was
typically ridiculed or ignored. At the end, the colonists realized the only choice they had was to
become free from Great Britain. Finally, the colonists and Great Britain went to war in 1775, and
later declared independence with the countrys most valued representation of liberty.
Throughout the most important document in history, Jefferson conveyed the opinions of
the American people. He made a list of injustices from the King in order to explain that the
colonies were declaring their freedom from their mother country. The Preamble, the Declaration
of Natural Rights, List of Grievances, and Resolution of independence by the United States are

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the four vital focuses in the document. The purpose of the Introduction was to state the
separation of the colonists from Great Britain. The Declaration of Natural Rights clarifies that the
government should protect the rights of the people. The List of Grievances was written to show
that the king was a dictator, and that he mistreated his own people, and denied their rights. The
Resolution of independence officially announced the colonies as their own states, and freedom
from their mother country. We hold these Truths to be self-evident that all Men are created
equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these
are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.1
The Declaration of Independence has had a huge impact on the nation, bigger than any other
American document. This Declaration helped establish a new country to be formed, which would
later become the United States of America. Even though this document played a huge part in the
nations independence, The Treaty of Paris of 1783, established between the United States and
Great Britain, allowed independence from Great Britain and ended the revolutionary war.
This document acts as the birth certificate for this country, because it was the first document in
history to use the name The United States of America. It has given us standards like the rights
to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; the consent of the governed; and resistance to
dictatorship, which this nation was built on. This document is an inspiration for others
movements for freedom.

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Notes
1. "The Declaration of Independence: A Transcription." National Archives and Records
Administration. Accessed September 25, 2016.
http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/declaration_transcript.html.
Bibliography
"The Declaration of Independence: A Transcription." National Archives and Records
Administration. http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/declaration_transcript.html.

TallerDogmaticaPenal. "Declaring Independence (Narrated by Michael Beschloss)." YouTube.

2013. Accessed September 27, 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDK89sT4Nqo.