Lesson 4: Declaring Independence

Question 1

Common Sense Definition

Answer 1

a pamphlet written by Thomas Paine that argued for independence from Great Britain

Question 2

Declaration of Independence Definition

Answer 2

a 1776 document stating that the 13 English colonies were a free and independent nation

Question 3

Natural Rights Definition

Answer 3

Rights that belong to all people from birth

Question 4

Preamble Definition

Answer 4

an introduction to a declaration, constitution, or other official document

Question 5

Robert Livingston Definition

Answer 5

an American lawyer and statesman from New York who served in the Second Continental Congress. He was appointed to the committee that drafted the Declaration of Independence.

Question 6

Roger Sherman Definition

Answer 6

signed the Declaration of Independence and helped to draft the Articles of Confederation and the United States Constitution. He later served in the U.S. Congress as both a representative and a senator.

Question 7

Thomas Paine Definition

Answer 7

a British writer and editor who moved to Philadelphia in 1774. He wrote Common Sense, a political pamphlet in which he expressed his belief that no colonist owed loyalty to the King.

Question 8

Traitor Definition

Answer 8

a person who betrays his or her country

Question 9

Who was Thomas Paine and what did he do after the Battles of Lexington and Concord?

Answer 9

Thomas Paine was a British writer and editor who moved to Philadelphia in 1774. After Lexington and Concord, Paine wrote the pamphlet Common Sense , in which he set out to change the colonists’ attitudes toward Britain and the king. Colonists, he said, did not owe loyalty to George III or any other monarch. The very idea of having kings and queens was wrong, he said.

Question 10

What did Thomas Paine’s criticism in common sense prompt colonists to consider?

Answer 10

Thomas Paine’s criticism of British rule in Common Sense prompted many colonists to consider the option of declaring full independence from Britain.

Question 11

How successful was “Common Sense” by Thomas Paine?

Answer 11

The colonists did not owe anything to Britain, either, Paine went on. If the British had helped the colonists, they had done so for their own profit. It could only hurt the colonists to remain under British rule. “Everything that is right or reasonable pleads for separation,” he concluded. “’Tis time to part.” Common Sense was a great success, selling over 500,000 copies in six months. Paine’s writing played an important role in moving toward revolution.

Question 12

What did Robert Henry Lee do after reading “Common Sense” by Thomas Paine?

Answer 12

Common Sense caused many colonial leaders to move toward declaring independence from Britain. It also deeply impressed many members of the Continental Congress. Richard Henry Lee of Virginia wrote to Washington, “I am now convinced … of the necessity for separation.” In June 1776, Lee rose to his feet in Congress to introduce a resolution in favor of independence

Question 13

What was keeping the delegates from working on a document to proclaim their independence?

Answer 13

The delegates faced a difficult decision. There could be no turning back once they declared independence. If they fell into British hands, they would be hanged as traitors. A traitor is a person who betrays his or her country.

Question 14

Who did the Continental Congress appoint to draft a formal declaration of independence?

Answer 14

After long debate, the Congress took a fateful step. They appointed a committee to draft a formal declaration of independence. The committee included John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Robert Livingston, and Roger Sherman. Their job was to tell the world why the colonies were breaking away from Britain.

Question 15

Who did the committee ask to write the declaration of independence?

Answer 15

The committee asked Thomas Jefferson to write the document. Jefferson was one of the youngest delegates. He was a quiet man who spoke little at formal meetings. Among friends, however, he liked to sprawl in a chair with his long legs stretched out and talk for hours. His ability to write clearly and gracefully had earned him great respect.

Question 16

When did Jefferson complete the declaration? What happened after this?

Answer 16

In late June, Jefferson completed the declaration, and it was read to the Congress. On July 2, the Continental Congress voted that the 13 colonies were “free and independent States.” After polishing Jefferson’s language, the delegates adopted the document on the night of July 4, 1776. They then ordered the Declaration of Independence to be printed.

Question 17

Who signed the Declaration of Independence first?

Answer 17

John Hancock, president of the Continental Congress, signed the Declaration first. He penned his signature boldly, in large, clear letters.

Question 18

How did colonists receive the Declaration of Independence?

Answer 18

Copies of the Declaration were distributed throughout the colonies. Patriots greeted the news of independence with joyous—and sometimes rowdy—celebrations. In New York, colonists tore down a statue of King George III. In Boston, the sound of cannons could be heard for hours.

Question 19

What was the purpose of the Declaration of Independence?

Answer 19

The Declaration of Independence, signed by the delegates to the Second Continental Congress, served notice to King George III that the 13 colonies had separated from Great Britain.

Question 20

Where is the preamble of the Declaration of Independence located? What comes after it?

Answer 20

The Declaration of Independence consists of a preamble, or introduction, followed by three main parts.

Question 21

What does the first part of the Declaration of Independence state?

Answer 21

The first section of the Declaration stresses the idea of natural rights, or rights that belong to all people from birth.

Question 22

What did Thomas Jefferson write in the first part of the Declaration?

Answer 22

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.

—The Declaration of Independence

Question 23

According to the Declaration of Independence, why do people form governments?

Answer 23

According to the Declaration of Independence, people form governments in order to protect their natural rights and liberties.

Question 24

Why did colonists want to protect what they saw as their natural rights?

Answer 24

The Declaration emphasized that natural rights belong to all people from birth. Colonists wanted to protect what they saw as their natural right to pursue life, liberty, and happiness.

Question 25

According to the Declaration, what are unalienable rights, and what rules musta government abide by? What is the impact of these ideas?

Answer 25

These unalienable rights—including the rights to be free and to choose how to live—cannot be taken away by governments, for governments can exist only if they have the “consent of the governed.” If a government fails to protect the rights of its citizens, then it is the people’s “right [and] duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security.” Ideas such as unalienable rights, adopted by the Founding Fathers (men such as George Washington, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson), are good examples of the civic virtues that have since become the cornerstone of American government. These values continue to ensure that human rights are protected and human needs are met in our nation.

Question 26

What was the second part of the Declaration?

Answer 26

The second part of the Declaration lists the wrongs, or grievances, that led the Americans to break away from Britain. Jefferson condemned King George III for disbanding colonial legislatures and for sending troops to the colonies in peacetime. He complained about limits on trade and about taxes imposed without the consent of the people. Jefferson listed many other grievances to show why the colonists had the right to rebel. He also pointed out that the colonies had petitioned the king to correct these injustices. Yet, the injustices remained. A ruler who treated his subjects in this manner, he boldly concluded, is a tyrant and not fit to rule.

Question 27

What is the last part of the Declaration?

Answer 27

The last part of the Declaration announces that the colonies are the United States of America. All political ties with Britain have been cut. As a free and independent nation, the United States has the full power to “levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do all other acts and things which independent states may of right do.”

Question 28

What did the signers do to close the Declaration?

Answer 28

The signers closed the declaration with a solemn pledge:

And, for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.

—The Declaration of Independence

Question 29

What did Thomas Paine envision for the government?

Answer 29

Paine envisioned a government in which voters send delegates who are elected by the people to represent each colony in a Continental Congress. Those delegates would also vote for presidential candidates.

Question 30

What was Paine’s argument for a navy?

Answer 30

Paine argued that America had all the raw materials and talent needed to create a navy that rivaled the Royal Navy. At the time, the British had the greatest fleet in the world, with more than 200 ships.

Question 31

When did the Continental Congress passed Richard Henry Lee’s resolution? When did they pass the Declaration?

Answer 31

The Continental Congress passed Richard Henry Lee’s resolution, “that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States” on July 2, 1776. However, it adopted Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, the date we celebrate. Jefferson wrote the Declaration as part of a “Committee of Five,” which included Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston

Question 32

How many grievances are provided in the Declaration?

Answer 32

27

Question 33

When did the actual signing of the Declaration of Independence start? How may people signed it?

Answer 33

The actual signing of the Declaration of Independence began in August 1776. The 56 signers added their names to the document at the risk of their lives and their fortunes. The youngest signer was 26, and the oldest, Benjamin Franklin, was 70. When John Hancock, the president of the Congress, signed his name, he did so in large letters and is rumored to have said, “There, I guess King George will be able to read that.”