1. The Declaration of Independence

2. salutary neglect French & Indian War After decades of salutary neglect, Britain began to raise taxes on the colonies after the French & Indian War 1756-1763

3. Numerous policies were passed that angered the colonists: Tea Act Stamp Act Declaratory Acts Intolerable Acts Quartering Act

4. The 2 nd Continental Congress met in Philadelphia in July 1776, to discuss actions to take next against British

5. Delegates were influenced by the propaganda of Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” which urged colonists to break from England & proclaim independence

6. The 2 nd Continental Congress sent a written message to the King, demanding freedoms and the right to rule themselves!

7. Several American leaders contributed to writing of this Declaration of Independence, like John Adams and Benjamin Franklin…

8. But the final draft was written by Thomas Jefferson of Virginia. He was greatly influenced by works of John Locke, Jean Jacques Rousseau & by the Virginia Declaration of Rights

9. On July 4th, the Declaration of Independence was approved by the 2 nd Continental Congress!

10. This is why we celebrate the 4th of July as Independence Day! Though, in reality independence was not gained until 5 years later when war ended in 1781

11. So, what does the Declaration of Independence really say?

12. Americans believed that they should be treated equally…

13. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal …”

14. Given fact that Jefferson & many other Americans owned slaves, did they really believe all men were equal?

15. The Declaration states that men have certain unalienable rights- what does this mean?

16. What are these “unalienable rights” ? The right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

17. “…that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

18. John Locke- influenced influenced this concept – he believed that every man has natural rights that include the right to live and the right to property.

19. According to the Declaration, what is one of the most important jobs of our government ?

20. “…That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men,”

21. Americans also believe that governments should protect our freedoms (our rights.)

22. JJ Rousseau- created the social contract which states that every man is born free. It also says that when a ruler fails to protect its people, the social contract is broken and the people are obliged to create a new gov’t

23. Americans believe that citizens are the ones who say what government can do… We have the POWER!

24. “Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

25. So what happened after the colonies declared their independence?

26. The colonists still had to fight a war to win their independence! Independence was not gained until the British surrendered after the Battle of Yorktown in 1781

27. Now we’ll recite the Declaration of Independence together!

28. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal …”

29. “…that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

30. “…That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men,”

31. “…deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

32. “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…”

33. “The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.”

34. Use textbook pgs 38-39 and list at list 15 of the grievances that Jefferson submits as proof the King was a tyrant