The Declaration of Independence was the first foundational
document in the development of America. The main purpose of the document was
for the British colonies to proclaim their independence from the British Crown.
Looking into the history of the Colonies and what events led up to the
Declaration, the reasons are clear why the Colonies wanted to be set apart from
Britain. For one thing, the British parliament was incorporating all kinds of
laws and taxes, and one of the exact reasons that they left England in the
first place was to get away from those things. The Colonists were not about to
give up their freedom, and this eventually led to the idea of the American
revolution, and of course the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration
had many years leading up to it, although, the actual writing took a matter of
weeks. It is divided into different parts, first there is the Preamble which
introduces the declaration and provides a prelude to the grievances against the
British from the colonies. Next is the body, it is made up of the list of
grievances that the colonists had with the king. Finally there is the
conclusion, in which the document is summarized and also where the delegates
give their signature.
The
Declaration of Independence really gives us a picture of how the colonists felt
and thought about their situation. Having just made it away from Britain only
to have them attempt to tax them as if they were still living there, and then
when the colonists opposed those laws, Britain just piled more on, consequently
the colonies formed what was called the Continental Congress. They decided to
send a readdress request, and also decided that if Britain would not readdress
their complaints they would meet again. When their expectations were not met they
decided to start training a militia and stockpiling arms. Before long, British
soldiers were deployed and the war was fought. The Declaration was signed and
presented while the war was ongoing, but if we look closely at the Declaration,
we see exactly why the colonies wanted to be independent, we already know why they
left in the first place, they did it to have freedom, and that was also part of
why they became independent. However, in their list of grievances they stated
that they did not want to be associated with a country that would invade them,
as Britain had during the revolution. It is strange that America did not want
to be invaded like that, and yet today America is involved all around the
world, deploying troops just like Britain did when they revolted. From this we
see that America is not doing to other countries as it would have done to it,
which might be a contributing factor to all of the hostility around the world,
especially in the Middle East. It is important to look into the past and learn from
it. The Declaration of Independence is a major symbol of freedom and liberty
and even today it inspires us to fight for, and appreciate freedom.
Information gathered from the Ron Paul curriculum 8th
grade history class.
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