Jefferson and the Declaration

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the events leading up to the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and the occurrences that lead the Continental Congress to take action. It further discusses Thomas Jefferson's views in writing the document, and his belief that no man should be overpowered by a country that disregarded his freedom. The paper then discusses the changes in the original document, and the reasons that those changes were made.

From the Paper:

"At the time of the writing of the Declaration of Independence the 13 American colonies, (known as British-America) were holding conventions of the colony leaders. These colony leaders were known as the Committees of Correspondence ("Declaration"). Within these committees the leaders were attempting to make decisions on the future of the people that they represented. However, the colonies, and the people who inhabited them, where all still under the control of the British government and the crown. The British government imposed severe taxes on all merchandise from British-America, including tea. Furthermore, the British rulers upheld their laws in British- America by exporting offenders to England, where they were to be tried and convicted of crimes against the crown ("Declaration"). Therefore, the committees drafted letters that detailed their thoughts on issues of the day, and those letters were carried between the colonies to be disbursed."

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