ChronoFive
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Setting the scene
By 1776, thirteen American colonies had been in open rebellion against Britain for over a year since Lexington and Concord in April 1775. The Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, had created an army under George Washington but remained divided between independence advocates and those seeking reconciliation. Thomas Paine's Common Sense, published in January 1776, sold 500,000 copies and convinced many colonists that monarchy was corrupt. King George III's rejection of the Olive Branch Petition and hiring of Hessian mercenaries pushed moderates toward independence.
What happened
On June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee of Virginia proposed independence. Congress appointed a Committee of Five—John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Roger Sherman, and Robert Livingston—to draft a declaration. Jefferson, 33, wrote the first draft in 17 days at his rented rooms, drawing on Locke's natural rights and Virginia's constitution. Congress debated and edited it for two days, removing Jefferson's condemnation of slavery to appease southern delegates. On July 4, 1776, Congress approved the final text, though signing occurred mostly on August 2.
Why it still matters
The Declaration's preamble, asserting that all men are created equal with unalienable rights to life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness, became America's founding creed. It justified revolution by listing 27 grievances against George III. Though initially a wartime propaganda document, it was largely forgotten until the 1790s, then revived by Jefferson's Democratic-Republicans. Abraham Lincoln later made it central to American identity at Gettysburg, and it has inspired independence movements worldwide from Vietnam to Czechoslovakia. The original parchment is displayed at the National Archives.
Background
The Revolutionary War continued for several more years.