Who wrote it? and What was it?

The Declaration of Independence was the document officially declaring the colonies’ independence from Great Britain. It was adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. The declaration was written by Thomas Jefferson. By this point in Georgia, Royal Governor James Wright had been taken out of power and the colony was under control of the patriots. Three Georgians, Button Gwinnett, Lyman Hall, and George Walton, attended the Second Continental Congress and signed the Declaration of Independence.

Signatures

Note: When examining the signatures on the Declaration of Independence, one may notice that, almost showing the separation Georgia had from the other colonies throughout much of the early Revolutionary Period, the signatures’ of Georgia’s three representatives are on the far left hand corner of the document.

The Preamble

The Declaration of Independence is a document that is divided into three parts. The first part, the Preamble, explains to the reader about the rights of all people (though this has been debated), states the reasons for the document, and includes the famous quote “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.”

2nd and 3rd Parts

The second part includes a list of complaints against King George including “imposing taxes without our consent” and “quartering large bodies of troops among us.” The final part is the actual “declaration of independence” and is where the colonists officially severed ties from the mother country.

Risking their Lives

The patriots who signed this document, including John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin, put their lives on the line. Had Britain won the war, these men would more than likely have been executed as traitors to their country.