On July 4, 1776, our fathers met together in what we currently know to be “Second Continental Congress.” Meeting in what we know as Independence Hall, they approved and officially adopted the Declaration of Independence. This document provided us the freedom from Great Britain, the country that had been oppressing our ancestors for many years before.
When one thinks back through American history, the biggest notable event to come to mind may very well be the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The signing of the Declaration is the very reason why America is not a part of Great Britain today.
Many people do not actually realize that back when the colonists were first drafting the Declaration of Independence, there was much controversy about the document itself. Although approximately two-thirds of the colonists were in favor of it, this still meant that an entire thirty- three percent of the population showed disinclination towards the document. The differing opinions in the matter resulted in much strife among the population – however, those who supported the Declaration of Independence had grown tired of waiting.
Whether it was defacing British monuments or overthrowing English-appointed governors within their newly proclaimed states, these revolutionaries destroyed everything that was symbolic of the British Crown. Once they had begun in their acts of rebellion, most of those who had once opposed the idea of the declaration decided to hop onboard the bandwagon, and began to defend their freedom. At the time, they believed they were simply taking a stance against Britain, declaring their independence. However, they did not anticipate how severe the king’s reaction to the declaration would be.
Shortly after the document had been signed our leaders on the American continent, a copy of it was sent oversea to Great Britain. When King George III had received word of the Declaration, he immediately thought of it as an abomination. Declaring the colonies to be in a state of rebellion, the king began sending British forces back to the colonies, as an attempt to end this uprising.
Rather than ending these actions of resistance, however, these events forced all of those who were in the colonies into the midst of war. We now know this war as The American Revolution, ultimately ending with the colonists’ victory over the tyrants who had been holding them down long before.
After fighting for almost seven-and-a-half years, the American Revolution ended. The colonists were extremely fortunate to have been the ones who came out on top. The colonists fought hard for what they believed in for many years, and earned the reward of a nation independent from Great Britain. However, it is important to keep in mind all of the loss that came forth as a result of the American Revolutionary War. With the large amount of grief and mass amounts of bloodshed, the Revolutionary War changed the way that Americans looked at life altogether.
Our leaders specifically modeled The Bill of Rights and The Constitution in such a way that would prevent the citizens of the country from being oppressed in such a way ever again. It becomes quite evident how much altercation an old piece parchment can engender. We should not neglect the fact that it was because of The Declaration of Independence that our fathers made their sacrifices for us. It is because of the Declaration we live in a country free of that dastardly oppression which the colonies had to cope with.
The Declaration of Independence influenced the history of the United States of America in a way that we could never be replicate. Through the Declaration, we receive our freedom, and it is through the Declaration of Independence that citizens of our United States are entitled to the rights of their own “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”
