Question

The
Declaration of Independence
Public Document by Thomas Jefferson
WHO
Thomas Jefferson, one
of America’s founders
WHEN
July 4, 1776
WHERE
Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania
WHY
• The American colonists were still governed by Great Britain.
• The King of Great Britain was making life very difficult
for them.
• What were some of the problems the colonists had with the
King?
• What were some rights Jefferson thought that every person
should have?
• What did Jefferson recommend the colonists do?
DECLARATION = statement INDEPENDENCE = freedom
© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company • Image Credits: scroll and quill: ©kontur-vid/Shutterstock© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company • Image Credits: scroll and quill: ©kontur-vid/Shutterstock

Answer 1

Here’s a short, clear explanation based on the sheet and the questions listed.

Brief facts
- WHO: Written mainly by Thomas Jefferson as part of a committee (John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, others).
- WHEN: Adopted July 4, 1776.
- WHERE: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Continental Congress).
- PURPOSE: To explain why the American colonies were breaking away from Great Britain and to declare themselves an independent nation.

What problems (grievances) the colonists had with the King (examples from the Declaration)
- Taxation without representation (imposing taxes without colonial consent).
- Dissolving colonial legislatures and preventing local self-government.
- Quartering troops among the colonists.
- Depriving colonists of trial by jury and denying fair legal processes.
- Cutting off trade and interfering with commerce.
- Keeping standing armies in peacetime without consent.
- Hiring foreign mercenaries and waging war against the colonies.
- Obstructing laws needed for the public good and making it hard to get justice.

What rights Jefferson said every person should have
- That “all men are created equal.”
- Certain unalienable rights, including “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”
- That governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed.
- That people have the right to alter or abolish a government that violates those rights.

What Jefferson recommended the colonists do
- Declare their independence from Great Britain.
- Form a new government based on the consent of the governed to secure their rights.
- Essentially, break political ties with the king and become a separate nation.

Simple definitions
- Declaration = a formal statement.
- Independence = freedom from control by another country.

Why it mattered
- The Declaration justified the revolution and announced the colonies’ new status as independent states, laying out the principles that would shape the new nation.