Topic: Historical Documents
Some documents in American history have
considerable importance for the development
of the nation. Students use historical thinking
to examine key documents which form the
basis for the United States of America.
Historical Document #1: The
Declaration of Independence
Content Statement: The Declaration of Independence
reflects an application of Enlightenment ideas to the
grievances of British subjects in the American
colonies.
Expectations for Learning: Explain a grievance listed
in the Declaration of Independence in terms of its
relationship to Enlightenment ideas of natural rights
and the social contract.
Historical Document #1: The
Declaration of Independence
Content Elaborations: The Declaration of Independence opens with a statement that the
action the American colonies were undertaking required an explanation. That
explanation begins with a brief exposition of Enlightenment thinking, particularly
natural rights and the social contract, as the context for examining the recent history of
the colonies.
The document includes a list of grievances the colonists have with the King of Great
Britain and Parliament as a justification for independence. The grievances refer to as
series of events since the French and Indian War which the colonists deemed were
tyrannical acts and destructive of their rights.
The Declaration of Independence ends with a clear statement that the political bonds
between the colonies and Great Britain are ended. Independence is declared as an
exercise of social contract thought.
of Independence Ordinance
of the United
States
and AntiFederalist
Papers
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The Declaration of Independence
Historical Context
Thomas Jefferson
About The Author
• Born on April 13, 1743 in
Virginia to a wealthy family.
• He was very well educated.
Attended The College of
William & Mary.
• Served in the Virginia House
of Burgesses.
• Eloquent correspondent, but
not good public speaker
• Known as the "silent
member" of the Congress
• Was unanimously chosen by
the Committee of Five to
prepare a draft of the
Declaration alone.
Major Events of The Time
• Common Sense is published
• North Carolina produces the Halifax Resolves
making it the first British colony to officially
authorize its delegates to vote for independence.
• Richard Henry Lee of Virginia proposes a
resolution calling for a Declaration of
Independence.
• Virginia Declaration of Rights by George Mason is
adopted by the Virginia Convention of Delegates.
• The Delaware General Assembly votes to suspend
government under the British Crown
Intended Audience
• The audience were those
wanting independence from
England.
• International audience
Jefferson’s Viewpoint on the Major Issues of His Time
• He believed in the separation of church and
state.
• He believed that the colonies had the right to
overthrow a tyrannical government.
Main Points of the Declaration of Independence
• All men are created equal.
“We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all men
are created equal.
• Men are given by God certain unalienable rights.
“They are endowed, by their Creator, with certain
unalienable rights, that among these are Life, liberty
and the Pursuit of Happiness.”
• We have the natural right by God to declare our
independence from England.
“When in the course of human events it becomes
necessary for one people to dissolve the political
bands which have connected them with another, and
to assume among the Powers of the earth, the
separate and equal station to which the Laws of
Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them…
Main Points of the Declaration of Independence
• Governments derive their authority from the consent of
the people.
“Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their
just powers from the consent of the governed.”
• When a government abuses it’s power, the people have
the right to overthrow it.
“That whenever any form of Government becomes
destructive to these ends, it is the Right of the People
to alter or to abolish it…
• The colonies tried repeatedly to compromise with King
George, but has been a tyrant.
“Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies;
and such is now the necessity which constrains them
to alter their former Systems of Government.
Thomas Jefferson, The Declaration of Independence
Historical Significance
• The American Colonies finally declared
their independence from England
• It was the first step in the creation of a new
nation.