July 4, 1776
Posted on July 4th, 2008 at 8:30 am by Cordeiro232 years ago this morning, fifty-six delegates from the thirteen British colonies met at what would come to be known as Independence Hall in downtown Philadelphia. Most of them had spent the better part of the previous several months debating and arguing about the best course of action in regards to the ongoing conflict between the colonies and the crown.
The first months of 1776 had been anything but peaceful. Skirmishes, shootouts, and outright battles were raging from the Carolinas to Boston. Then General Washington’s Continental Army – though victorious in some instants – was dreadfully undermanned, badly supplied, and under-trained in the face of what was the most powerful army on the planet at the time.
Thomas Jefferson recorded that July 4, 1776 was an “unseasonably cool” day for Philadelphia. The aforementioned men gathered in the large room on the ground floor where they had spent so many days and nights to put their signatures to a document which could have very well become their own personal death warrants. They were, for all intents and purposes, committing high treason against the British Crown. King George would not look kindly upon their actions and would not have hesitated to execute the delegates had a few battles gone the other way.
Who were these men who had the audacity to put their names to a document so full of risk? Glad you asked.
Of the 56:
- 9 were immigrants
- 2 were brothers
- One was an orphan
- The average age of those in attendance was 45 - the oldest being Benjamin Franklin (70) and the youngest being Thomas Lynch, Jr. (27)
- 18 were businessmen or merchants
- 4 were doctors
- 14 were farmers
- 42 had previously served in their colonial legislatures
- 22 were lawyers
- 2 were clergymen
- Most were Protestant Christians - only one was a Roman Catholic
- 17 served in uniform during the Revolutionary War
- 5 were captured by the British during the war
- 11 had their homes and property destroyed during the war
It is the Declaration of Independence, authored by Thomas Jefferson, which put on paper the longing of the human soul for freedom and the power to control one’s own destiny. The signers boldly declared that:
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. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. [Emphasis Added]
It should be noted that, at the time these 56 men signed their names to this bold Declaration, the outcome of the Revolutionary War was anything but certain. The war would grind on for over seven more years before Treaty of Paris was signed. I highly recommend David McCullough’s 1776 to help illustrate just how tenuous America’s beginnings truly were. Had Washington failed to rout the Hessians at Trenton - or had any one of a host of other narrow victories become a defeat - there’s a good chance the Union Jack would still be flying over this nation and we’d still stop the world to have tea on time.
The men gathered in that stuffy room at Independence Hall pledged to each other their “lives, fortunes and sacred honor”. Some gave their lives, many gave all or most of their fortunes, but all kept their honor.
So, before you go and fire up the barbeque, watch the fireworks, and do the other fitting and proper things Americans do on this the nation’s birthday, take some time and read or listen to the words behind the Patriot’s dream that truly saw beyond the years.
Here you will find the single best Super Bowl commercial ever produced. If you can somehow watch Pat Tillman’s widow read part of the Declaration of Independence without getting just a little choked up, You. Are. Not Human.
And, just in case you haven’t read it for awhile, here’s the text of the Declaration of Independence.
Some years ago, Rick Moran “live-blogged” the Continental Congress. Well worth the trip down Virtual Memory Lane. Rick gives an entirely new definition to the Historical Fiction genre.
And finally, I’ll sign off with Red Skelton. Think about this the next time you recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
Have a fantastic Fourth!
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shame they spelt “British” wrong on the original!
Seriously, it is an amazing piece of writing….all are or should be created equal. Have a great holiday
From a Brit though one thing I never quite get though is the emphasis put on the will of the Founding Fathers. Your courts are often being asked to interpret what the meaning was and I often hear questions of whether a particular thing is constitutional or not.
As time moves on and society and culture evolves, is this fixed reference going back 200 years a help or a hindrance?
Obviously some references are archaic, but lets take the 2nd Amendment for example as that is the one which is the most alien to me (our police don’t even carry guns). It talks of the “right of the people to keep and bear Arms” not to be infringed. This has been argued over for a long time and can be interpreted in different ways, either strictly where everyone is allowed to carry guns or subjectively, where you look at whether “people” means the collective (ie an army) or the individual. My point is this, is not the prevailing winds of society today more important that the intentions of a group of enlightened individuals long gone?
Wow. That’s a big question, regarding which volumes have been written, and many Americans disagree. I will speak for me.
I think The US Constitution is amazingly short. It is the standard by which government conduct is established. It’s articles and paragraphs either mean something or they do not. But it can never be understood rightly if it is not understood according to its original intent. Even if we disagree with something, we have to know what we disagree with.
Now as to whether the founders intent should be the last word. Well, I believe that there is a process for changing the Constitution, but it requires, as you say, the “prevailing winds of society today,” which is a long and difficult amendment process. The courts’ job should be to interpret the original intent of the laws or Constitution and leave the rewriting of laws to the legislature and the consent of the governed.
As far as guns go, I could be wrong, but I believe the “prevailing winds” of Americans is that the right to bear arms is an individual right and it prevents the establishment of armed classes of people-either working for the gov’t, or criminals-from the rest of society.
But then again, what do I know?
Great question Chris. Let me try to explain it this way
First of all lets not mix up the Declaration of Independence (July, 4, 1776) with the US constitution (1788). The Declaration is ideas our nation was founded on. The Constitution is the plan of government.
Your question is geared more to the Constitution.
“is not the prevailing winds of society today more important that the intentions of a group of enlightened individuals long gone?”
The short answer is no.
Let me explain. The USA currently has the worlds longest living constitution. The reason that this is so is because of the fact that it does not change due to “prevailing winds”. As we know winds change, alot. Consistany here is the key. Since the ratfifcation of the US Constitution (1788) we have ratified the document only 17 times. If we were to change the foundation of our nation every time the prevailing winds changed the document would not be worth the paper it is written on.
I dont want to get into the 2nd Amendment, as our Supreme Court has just settled that issue by saying that it is the rught of citizens to have arms. We could debate this forever.
What I want you to understand is that the strength of the US Constitution comes from the fact that it is stingently consistant. It is our foundation, not unlike the one under your home. You cant change your homes foundation without having to rebuild the home itself. This is why our Supreme Court is sooo important. Their job is to interpret law as being within the framework of our Constitution. The job of the SC is not to write law, enforce law, but to interpret law, even the 2nd Amendment.
Thanks Brian and Eric. Interesting stuff. Over here we do not have a written consitution or bill of rights. Doesn’t mean to say we don’t have a consitution, its just more fluid, it evolves as one parliament can’t bind the next one.
That said we are one country, smaller than most of your states so I suppose that if we were larger we might need something more formal. Still, look at the mess the European Union is having trying to adopt a constitution. They are failing miserably (but that might be more to the point that the people of Europe just don’t want to be federalised).
I hope you have a great holiday, I know how much it means to you (boy do I know, when I was a lot younger on an American summer camp I raised the Union flag on the 4th of July and was nearly deported!)
The last EU Constitution I saw was several hundred pages in length. Who can follow or understand that?
The US Constitution is on 4 pages of poster sized paper handwritten in ink. The NCAA college rule book is in volumes. The problem with moden day bureaucrats is that they cant contains themselves from extensive legalize. I am not sure the leaders of today dould restrain themselves.
Thanks for posting with us on this day Chris.
The only place you’ll see a Union Jack flying freely on American soil is at Colonial Williamsburg, also a wonderful place to tour and discover more about the beginnings of our country. We go there yearly to enjoy and soak it all in.
http://www.history.org/
Reenactors playing out various themes and scenes usually declare their independence from the Brits every Tues, Thurs, and Saturdays.
Enjoyed the exchange!
Thanks for this wonderful post. I would also recommend reading McCullough’s John Adams — a wonderful book!!
About the right to own guns.
We must first ackowledge that the USA has more guns than people. That fact cant be ignored, which is why we cant pretend to be Britain or Canada.
Washington DC passed the nations most sever gun control laws in 1979. Every year since 1979 DC gun violence has gone up in DC. Why?
What “gun control” laws do by there definition is control people from owning and possesing a firearm. But who does it control? The only people who are controlled by gun laws are honest people who respect the law. A criminal (law-breaker) by definition does not follow the laws or respect them. These people simply ignore the law as they do most other laws they choose to not follow. What gun control laws do is place honest law-abiding citizens into a delimma. Do I respect the law and place myself at the mercy of those who choose to violate the law, or do I myself violate the law, becoming a criminal by having a gun, in order to not place myself, my family, or property at the mercy of those who would be willing to take it?
We have seen in recent years what one nut with a gun can do to people who lack the ability to themselves. Here in Texas, somebody is likely to stop that “nut” at some point, because we as a state have chosen to not force law respecting citizens to die at the hands of criminals without the option of a fair fight.
please ignore spelling errors…was typing fast…LOL “their”, not “there”.
How wonderful to visit PD this morning and see this great tribute to the Declaration, and to those brave men who were willing to sacrifice everything. Thanks.
Cordeiro, great post!
Wow, Less than half of those founders were lawyers…whoda thunk it. Anyone think we could pass a law saying that no more than half our modern congressional seats could be filled by lawyers???
Great post. Great reminder.
McCullough’s 1776 was a fabulous book and should be required reading in US History (wait, do they teach that in high school any more?).
What a great and beautiful country we have here. I hope we remember those who sacrificed everything to give Her life and keep Her free.
Here here. I agree - loved McCullough’s 1776 as well as John Adams. Great inspiration to think and reflect on just what these men (and women!) endured and suffered to provide what we have today.
That’s the definition of sacrifice…