Historical Fact 1: The Declaration of Independence

This fact is part of book 1: Undaunted Courage by Stephen E. Ambrose

I have always been fascinated by the Declaration of Independence. I’m not sure why—maybe because I remember vague phrases like:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal... among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness..."

Sounds about right, doesn’t it?

The sad truth is, as a non-american, I’ve never actually read or studied it in depth. Time to fix that mistake and take a proper look at the Declaration!

Since this appears to be an official site, I assume it must be one of the best sources for learning about the Declaration of Independence. You can read a transcript, learn interesting facts about the Declaration, and even do some fun activities—like signing the Declaration of Independence yourself!

Thing I learned about the Declaration of Independence

• It was written for King George III of Britain (Parliament), the colonists and everybody else.
• Its purpose was to rally troops, gain foreign allies, and justify rebellion against the evil and oppressive king - alongside laying the foundation for a new nation.
• It listed 27 grievances against said evil king, proving the moral right to revolt.
• Civil unrest began to grow in the early 1770s, with many colonists starting to consider revolt. Thomas Paine’s pamphlet, Common Sense, played a major role in fueling this idea, inspiring widespread support for independence.
• The United Colonies elected delegates who met in secrecy to protect the cause, with Thomas Jefferson chairing the committee.
• In his Philadelphia boarding house, Thomas Jefferson began drafting the Declaration of Independence, drawing inspiration from the Virginia Declaration of Rights and Enlightenment ideals.
• Later, Congress heavily revised his work, including the removal of a passage blaming King George III for the slave trade, as the timing was deemed politically inconvenient for such a stance.

Excerpts I personally like from the Transcript

"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 whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government."

Conclusion

Unfortunately, there isn’t much left in the Declaration of Independence that I find truly exceptional—most of it consists of a long list of rather general complaints against the British king.

However, the true value of this document lies not just in its content, but in its meaning and consequences. It symbolizes the moment when people, tired of oppression and abuse, found the courage to stand up for their rights.

I fully support the self-evident truth that all people are equal and have equal rights—the rights to life, freedom, and the pursuit of happiness.
I also agree that destructive governments should be questioned and, if necessary, replaced with better ones.

Yet, when I look at today’s world, it’s clear that there is still a lot of work to be done…