"Physical history of the United States Declaration of Independence The United States Declaration of Independence, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain were no longer a part of the British Empire, exists in a number of drafts, handwritten copies, and published broadsides. The earliest known draft of the Declaration of Independence is a fragment known as the ""Composition Draft."" The draft, written in July 1776, is in the handwriting of Thomas Jefferson, principal author of the Declaration. It was discovered in 1947 by historian Julian P. Boyd in the Jefferson papers at the Library"
"Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, [O.S. April 2] 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Father, the principal author of the Declaration of Independence, and the third President of the United States from 1801 to 1809. Previously, he had been elected the second Vice President of the United States, serving under John Adams from 1797 to 1801. Jefferson was a proponent of democracy, republicanism, and individual rights motivating American colonists to break from the Kingdom of Great Britain and form a new nation; he produced formative documents and decisions at both the state and national level. Jefferson"
"United States Declaration of Independence, which was primarily written by Jefferson, was adopted by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. The text of the second section of the Declaration of Independence reads: Both the Moderate Enlightenment and a Radical or Revolutionary Enlightenment were reactions against the authoritarianism, irrationality, and obscurantism of the established churches. Philosophers such as Voltaire depicted organized Religion as hostile to the development of reason and the progress of science and incapable of verification. An alternative religion was deism, the philosophical belief in a deity based on reason, rather than religious revelation or dogma. It"
"Thomas Jefferson: Author of America Thomas Jefferson: Author of America is a short biography of Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States (1801–09) and the principal author of the Declaration of Independence (1776), by author, journalist and literary critic Christopher Hitchens. It was released as a part of Harper Collins' ""Eminent Lives"" series of ""brief biographies by distinguished authors on canonical figures."" The book has been praised by critics. Ted Widmer of ""The New York Times"" wrote, ""Hitchens brings a refreshing perspective to the task, both in that he has not written at length about the founding moment"
"continued throughout most of his presidency, being finished in 1809. Jefferson was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence. The document's social and political ideals were proposed by Jefferson before the inauguration of Washington. At age 33, he was one of the youngest delegates to the Second Continental Congress beginning in 1775 at the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, where a formal declaration of independence from Britain was overwhelmingly favored. Jefferson chose his words for the Declaration in June 1775, shortly after the war had begun, where the idea of independence from Britain had long since become popular"
"prepared by a Committee of Five, with Thomas Jefferson as its principal author. Congress debated and revised the wording of the Declaration, finally approving it two days later on July 4. A day earlier, John Adams had written to his wife Abigail: Adams's prediction was off by two days. From the outset, Americans celebrated independence on July 4, the date shown on the much-publicized Declaration of Independence, rather than on July 2, the date the resolution of independence was approved in a closed session of Congress. Historians have long disputed whether members of Congress signed the Declaration of Independence on"
"asked Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Robert Livingston, and Roger Sherman to write the Declaration of Independence. This Committee of Five voted to have Thomas Jefferson write the document. After Jefferson finished he gave the document to Franklin to proof. Franklin suggested minor changes, one of which stands out far more than the others: ""We hold these truths to be sacred and un-deniable..."" became ""We hold these truths to be self-evident."" The second paragraph of the United States Declaration of Independence starts as follows: The Virginia Declaration of Rights, chiefly authored by George Mason and approved by the Virginia"
"United States Declaration of Independence The United States Declaration of Independence is the statement adopted by the Second Continental Congress meeting at the Pennsylvania State House (now known as Independence Hall) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on July 4, 1776. The Declaration announced that the Thirteen Colonies at war with the Kingdom of Great Britain would regard themselves as thirteen independent sovereign states, no longer under British rule. With the Declaration, these new states took a collective first step toward forming the United States of America. The declaration was signed by representatives from New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York,"
"James Wilson James Wilson (September 14, 1742 – August 21, 1798) was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States and a signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution. Wilson was elected twice to the Continental Congress, where he represented Pennsylvania, and was a major force in drafting the United States Constitution. A leading legal theorist, he was one of the six original justices appointed by George Washington to the Supreme Court of the United States. Born near St Andrews, Scotland, Wilson immigrated to Philadelphia in 1766, becoming a teacher at the College"
"The Declaration of Independence, drafted largely by Thomas Jefferson, was unanimously adopted by the Congress on July 4. Historian George Billias says: Benjamin Franklin, the chief American diplomat in Paris, proved highly popular with elite French opinion, including intellectuals and the Royal court. France wanted revenge after its defeat in the 1760s, and again heavily funding the American revolt. After the Americans captured a British invasion force at Saratoga, in upstate New York in 1777, the French officially declared war on Britain, recognize the independence of the new United States, and were joined officially by the Dutch (who recognized the"
"all hang separately."" The quotation did not appear in print until more than 50 years after Franklin's death. Signing of the United States Declaration of Independence The signing of the United States Declaration of Independence occurred primarily on August 2, 1776 at the Pennsylvania State House, Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The 56 delegates to the Second Continental Congress represented the 13 former colonies which had declared themselves the ""United States of America,"" and they endorsed the Declaration of Independence which the Congress had approved on July 4, 1776. The Declaration proclaimed that the former Thirteen Colonies then at war"
"declare the independence as the ""United States of America"". Two days later, on July 4, Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence. The drafting of the Declaration was the responsibility of a Committee of Five, which included, among others, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin; it was drafted by Thomas Jefferson and revised by the others and the Congress as a whole. It contended that ""all men are created equal"" with ""certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness"", and that ""to secure these rights governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the"
"Founding Fathers of the United States The Founding Fathers of the United States were a group of philosophers, politicians, and writers who led the American Revolution against the Kingdom of Great Britain. Most were descendants of colonists settled in the Thirteen Colonies in North America. Historian Richard B. Morris in 1973 identified the following seven figures as the key Founding Fathers: Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and George Washington. Adams, Jefferson, and Franklin were members of the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence. Hamilton, Madison, and Jay were authors of"
"Signing of the United States Declaration of Independence The signing of the United States Declaration of Independence occurred primarily on August 2, 1776 at the Pennsylvania State House, Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The 56 delegates to the Second Continental Congress represented the 13 former colonies which had declared themselves the ""United States of America,"" and they endorsed the Declaration of Independence which the Congress had approved on July 4, 1776. The Declaration proclaimed that the former Thirteen Colonies then at war with Great Britain were now a sovereign, independent nation and thus no longer a part of the British"
"United States Declaration of Independence's statements that ""all men are created equal"" and possessed natural rights to ""life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."" Proslavery opponents countered that the Declaration was a collection of inspirational statements intended for revolution, rather than a concrete set of principles for civil society. Rufus Choate, a Whig senator from Massachusetts, likely brought the term into general discourse in his August 1856 public letter to the Maine Whig Committee. In the letter, Choate expressed fear that antislavery Whigs, inspired by the Declaration's ""glittering and sound generalities,"" would destroy the Union. The letter – and especially"
"England."" He made it quite clear that he thought the American items to be ""materially better."" (First lecture.) James Wilson James Wilson (September 14, 1742 – August 21, 1798) was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States and a signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution. Wilson was elected twice to the Continental Congress, where he represented Pennsylvania, and was a major force in drafting the United States Constitution. A leading legal theorist, he was one of the six original justices appointed by George Washington to the Supreme Court of the United"
"Jefferson Memorial The Jefferson Memorial is a presidential memorial in Washington, D.C., dedicated to Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), one of the most important of the American Founding Fathers as the main drafter and writer of the Declaration of Independence, member of the Continental Congress, governor of the newly independent Commonwealth of Virginia, American minister to King Louis XVI, and the Kingdom of France, first U.S. Secretary of State under the first President George Washington, the second Vice President of the United States under second President John Adams, and also the third President (1801–1809), as well as being the founder of the"
"Timothy Matlack Timothy Matlack (May 28, 1730 – April 14, 1826) was a brewer and beer bottler who emerged as a popular and powerful leader in the American Revolutionary War, Secretary of Pennsylvania during the war, and a delegate to the Second Continental Congress in 1780. He became one of Pennsylvania's most provocative and influential political figures, but he was removed from office by his political enemies at the end of the war; however, he returned to power in the Jeffersonian era. Matlack was known for his excellent penmanship and was chosen to write the original United States Declaration of"
"delegation before the August 2 signing. Rogers had voted for the resolution of independence but was no longer a delegate on August 2. Alsop favored reconciliation with Great Britain and so resigned rather than add his name to the document. Dickinson refused to sign, believing the Declaration premature, but he remained in Congress. George Read had voted against the resolution of independence, and Robert Morris had abstained—yet they both signed the Declaration. The most famous signature on the engrossed copy is that of John Hancock, who presumably signed first as President of Congress. Hancock's large, flamboyant signature became iconic, and"
"the United States Declaration of Independence. Locke's theory of mind is often cited as the origin of modern conceptions of identity and the self, figuring prominently in the work of later philosophers such as David Hume, Rousseau, and Immanuel Kant. Locke was the first to define the self through a continuity of consciousness. He postulated that, at birth, the mind was a blank slate or ""tabula rasa"". Contrary to Cartesian philosophy based on pre-existing concepts, he maintained that we are born without innate ideas, and that knowledge is instead determined only by experience derived from sense perception. This is now"
"George Childress George Campbell Childress (January 8, 1804 – October 6, 1841) was a lawyer, politician, and a principal author of the Texas Declaration of Independence. Childress was born on January 8, 1804 in Nashville, Tennessee, to John Campbell Childress and Elizabeth Robertson Childress. In 1826 he attended and graduated from Davidson Academy. Two years later, he was admitted to the Tennessee Bar. George C. Childress studied law for two years later he became chief editor for the ""Nashville Banner"" which he remained for 10 years. After spending some time raising money and volunteers in Tennessee for the Texas army,"
"supporters Thomas Jefferson, who wrote the Declaration of Independence. The Federalist Papers are 85 individual articles written by John Jay, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison and were intended for the people of New York. The purpose of these papers was to convince the states to ratify the United States Constitution by pointing out the flaws in the Articles of Confederation. Jay, Hamilton, and Madison all addressed various issues in the articles, mainly Hamilton writing the majority of them. Under the Articles of Confederation, the states mainly governed themselves. The general government had little influence on the authoritative role in the"
"into ""A Summary View of the Rights of British America"", his first published work. Previous criticism of the Coercive Acts had focused on legal and constitutional issues, but Jefferson offered the radical notion that the colonists had the natural right to govern themselves. Jefferson argued that Parliament was the legislature of Great Britain only, and had no legislative authority in the colonies. The paper was intended to serve as instructions for the Virginia delegation of the First Continental Congress, but Jefferson's ideas proved to be too radical for that body. Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the Declaration of"
"and in that he sees Jefferson from the perspective of a Briton, albeit an Americanized one."" ""Publishers Weekly"" similarly described it as a ""brief yet dense biography"" and called it ""a fascinating character study and an excellent review of early American history."" ""Kirkus Reviews"" called it ""a lucid, gently critical view of the great president and empire-builder and most literate of politicians."" Thomas Jefferson: Author of America Thomas Jefferson: Author of America is a short biography of Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States (1801–09) and the principal author of the Declaration of Independence (1776), by author, journalist"
"Green Ingersoll; a freethought museum operated at the Dresden, New York, site for several years thereafter. Lewis believed that Thomas Paine was the true author of the Declaration of Independence, and made his case for this theory in his 1947 book ""Thomas Paine, Author of the Declaration of Independence"". His other noteworthy publications included ""The Ten Commandments"" (1946), a lengthy justification for atheism, and ""An Atheist Manifesto"" (1954), published at the height of the Cold War to dispute popular ideas that atheism was un-American. He deeply recognized the meaning of Paine's ideas for establishing of the USA and acquiring its"
"and moves to sign the Declaration anyway. Lewis Morris Lewis Morris (April 8, 1726 – January 22, 1798) was an American landowner and developer from Morrisania, New York, presently part of Bronx County. He signed the U.S. Declaration of Independence as a delegate to the Continental Congress from New York. Lewis Morris was born on April 8, 1726, at his family's estate, Morrisania, presently part of Bronx County, in what was then the Province of New York. He was the third Lewis Morris in the Morris family. He was the son of Lewis Morris (1698–1762) and Katrintje ""Catherine"" Staats (1697–1731)."
"July 4, even though Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin all later wrote that they had signed it on that day. Most historians have concluded that the Declaration was signed nearly a month after its adoption, on August 2, 1776, and not on July 4 as is commonly believed. Coincidentally, both John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, the only signers of the Declaration of Independence later to serve as Presidents of the United States, died on the same day: July 4, 1826, which was the 50th anniversary of the Declaration. Although not a signer of the Declaration of Independence, James"
"Charles Carroll of Carrollton Charles Carroll (September 19, 1737 – November 14, 1832), known as Charles Carroll of Carrollton or Charles Carroll III to distinguish him from his similarly-named relatives, was a wealthy Maryland planter and an early advocate of independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain and one of the signers of the American Declaration of Independence. He is sometimes referred to as one of the Founding Fathers of the United States of America, although he was not involved in framing the United States Constitution. He served as a delegate to the Continental Congress and Confederation Congress and later"
"Hancock, Henry, Morris, Marshall, Rush, and Paine). Founding Fathers of the United States The Founding Fathers of the United States were a group of philosophers, politicians, and writers who led the American Revolution against the Kingdom of Great Britain. Most were descendants of colonists settled in the Thirteen Colonies in North America. Historian Richard B. Morris in 1973 identified the following seven figures as the key Founding Fathers: Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and George Washington. Adams, Jefferson, and Franklin were members of the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence."
"July 4, 1776, the United States Declaration of Independence was adopted in Philadelphia. It was signed first by Massachusetts resident John Hancock, president of the Continental Congress. Soon afterward the Declaration of Independence was read to the people of Boston from the balcony of the State House. Massachusetts was no longer a colony; it was a state and part of a new nation, the United States of America. A Constitutional Convention drew up a state constitution, which was drafted primarily by John Adams, and ratified by the people on June 15, 1780. Adams, along with Samuel Adams and James Bowdoin,"
"Dr. Lemuel Bernard, Aaron Root, Major John Fellows, Philip Callender, Capt. William Day, Deacon Ebenezer Smith, Capt. Daniel Austin, Capt. Stephen Dewey, and Theodore Sedgwick, who wrote the text. The Declaration's was that ""Mankind in a state of nature are equal, free, and independent of each other, and have a right to the undisturbed enjoyment of their lives, their liberty and property,"" These words are echoed in the most famous line of Thomas Jefferson's Declaration of Independence three years later: ""We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator"
"of Independence of a new republic, and the resulting American Revolutionary War to defend it. The intellectual underpinnings for independence were provided by the English pamphleteer Thomas Paine. His ""Common Sense"" pro-independence pamphlet was anonymously published on January 10, 1776 and became an immediate success. It was read aloud everywhere, including the Army. He pioneered a style of political writing that rendered complex ideas easily intelligible. The Declaration of Independence, written in committee largely by Thomas Jefferson, echoed Locke. After the war, the leaders debated about how to move forward. The Articles of Confederation, written in 1776, now appeared inadequate"
"Memorial hosts many events and ceremonies each year, including memorial exercises, the Easter Sunrise Service, and the annual National Cherry Blossom Festival. Jefferson Memorial The Jefferson Memorial is a presidential memorial in Washington, D.C., dedicated to Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), one of the most important of the American Founding Fathers as the main drafter and writer of the Declaration of Independence, member of the Continental Congress, governor of the newly independent Commonwealth of Virginia, American minister to King Louis XVI, and the Kingdom of France, first U.S. Secretary of State under the first President George Washington, the second Vice President of"