Declaration of Independence (United States)

The Declaration of Independence is the document in which the Thirteen Colonies declared themselves independent of the Kingdom of Great Britain and explained their justifications for doing so. It was ratified by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776; this anniversary is celebrated as Independence Day in the United States. A copy of the document is on display in the National Archives in Washington, D.C. The independence of the American colonies was recognized by Great Britain on September 3, 1783, by the Treaty of Paris.

Differences between draft and final versions

Thomas Jefferson's original draft included a denunciation of the slave trade ("He has waged cruel war against human nature itself, violating its most sacred rights of life & liberty in the persons of a distant people who never offended him, captivating & carrying them into slavery in another hemisphere, or to incur miserable death in their transportation thither." ), which was later edited out, as was a lengthy criticism of the British people and parliament. Also, Jefferson's draft used the phrase "inherent and inalienable rights", which was changed to "certain unalienable rights." Jefferson created a collation of his draft and the final version in his autobiography, which quotes both as using the word "inalienable" rather than "unalienable".

Related Topics:
Thomas Jefferson - Slave trade - Collation

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