The Declaration of Independence

The Declaration of Independence

Multiple Choice

Which happened first?

• The American Revolution started.

• The Declaration of Independence was signed.

Multiple Choice

The Battle of Bunker (Breed's) Hill happened in

• 1775

• 1776

• 1777

• 1778

Multiple Select

Choose the events that happened in 1777.

• Declaration of Independence was signed

• Americans won the Battle of Saratoga

• Philadelphia falls to the British

• Americans camp for the winter at Valley Forge

• Cornwallis surrenders at Yorktown

Thomas Jefferson Drafts a Declaration

• In 1776, the 2nd Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, chose a committee of 5 men to draft a declaration of independence.

• The 5 men were: Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert Livingston.

• A young, red-haired Virginian took the lead to draft the declaration.

The Committee Members

• John Adams: Defended the British soldiers from the Boston Massacre, nominated George Washington as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, and was a descendant of the Mayflower Pilgrims. He served as ambassador to England.

• Benjamin Franklin: was a printer, started a lending library, hospital and college, served as ambassador to France, and garnered acclaim for his experiments with electricity, and was the oldest delegate to the Constitutional Convention

The Committee Members

• Roger Sherman:  Thomas Jefferson described Sherman as “a man who never said a foolish thing in his life,” while John Adams described him as “one of the most sensible men in the world.” He signed the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution.

• Robert Livingston: From New York and recalled before he could actually sign the Declaraion. In 1801, President Jefferson appointed him as ambassador to the court of Napoleon. He who negotiated the Louisiana Purchase from the French.

Multiple Choice

How many men were on the committee to write the Declaration of Independence?

• 1

• 3

• 5

• 4

Multiple Choice

How many of the committee members served as ambassadors to foreign countries? Hint - Thomas Jefferson did.

• 5

• 4

• 3

• 2

Multiple Choice

Who did Jefferson and Adams describe as very sensible and logical?

• Robert Livingston

• Sam Adams

• Roger Sherman

• Benjamin Franklin

Thomas Jefferson

• Born in 1743 in Albemarle County, Virginia,

• He built a mountaintop home, Monticello.

• Freckled and sandy-haired, rather tall and awkward, Jefferson was eloquent as a correspondent, but he was no public speaker. In the Virginia House of Burgesses and the Continental Congress, he contributed his pen rather than his voice to the patriot cause.

• As the “silent member” of the Congress, Jefferson, at 33, drafted the Declaration of Independence.

Multiple Choice

Who drafted the Declaration of Independence?

• John Adams

• Thomas Jefferson

• Ben Franklin

• George Washington

Multiple Choice

Thomas Jefferson was from

• Massachusetts

• South Carolina

• Washington, DC

• Virginia

Multiple Choice

Thomas Jefferson was an eloquent public speaker.

• True

• False

Famous Words

• Jefferson had to explain to the world why the colonies were separating from Great Britain.

• He rejected the idea of the Divine Right of Kings.

• He argued that all people were born equal and were entitled to the same basic rights.

Explanation

• "We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal." At the time, this statement created confusion. African-Americans wondered if it would apply to them and if slavery would end.

• "That they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights..." Based on the Enlightenment, Jefferson claimed that all people had god-given rights that the goverment couldn't take away.

• "Among them are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." He said you should be able to live your life peaceably without fear of unnecessary government intervention.

Multiple Choice

What rights are unalienable?

• life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness

• life, death and taxes

• voting, freedom and speech

• religion, speech and assembly

Multiple Choice

When saying that "All Men are created equal," who did that actually apply to in 1776?

• White men

• All men, black or white

• men and women

• All people regardless of race, or gender.

Enlightenment Thinkers

• Jefferson borrowed the idea of Natural Rights from Enlightenment thinker John Locke.

• Locke argued that the basis of government was a social contract among free people.

• The purpose of government was to protect people's natural rights of life, liberty and property.

• A government that did not protect their rights could be overthrown.

Multiple Choice

What is a contract?

• An agreement

• A type of social media

• a disease

• a person you have been with recently.

Multiple Choice

John Locke argued that the government only had power if

• it could disarm it's citizens

• the people agreed to it.

• It was strong enough to create an absolute monarchy

• God decreed it from on high.

Consent of the Governed

• Thomas Jefferson included Locke's idea of Social Contract into the Declaration of Independence.

• People who fail to uphold the contract can be sent to prison.

• Governments who fail to uphold the contract can be overthrown by the people.

• This was Jefferson's justification for revolution.

Multiple Choice

How did Jefferson incorporate Locke's ideas into the Declaration of Independence?

• He didn't.

• He used the ideas of social contract and consent of the governed as justification for the revolution.

• He said that only the King could grant freedom.

• He argued that slavery was wrong.

The Signing

• July 2, 1776, 12 colonies voted for Independence. New York did not vote. It was officially adopted on July 4. That's why we celebrate that day.

• John Hancock, President of the Convention, signed "large enough so that King George could see it without his spectacles!"

• Spend a minute studying the picture. Consider what all those people have in common.

• Who is missing?

Multiple Choice

What do these people pictured all have in common? Choose all that apply.

• male

• White

• wealthy

• all answers are correct

Multiple Select

Who is not there? Choose all that apply,.

• Native Americans

• Women

• African- Americans

• Wealthy, white men

Multiple Choice

Why do we celebrate Independence Day on July 4 instead of July 2?

• That was the day the Declaration of Independence was officially adopted

• Because it always falls on a weekend.

• The newspapers got the dates mixed up.

• That was the day it was officially written.

Impact of the Declaration of Independence

• It united the Americans to fight for a Cause, not just reconciliation with England.

• It helped the Americans get aid from France because they were an independent country.

• It established Democratic Ideals that influenced the US Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

Multiple Select

What was the impact of the Declaration of Independence? Choose all that apply.

• It made peace with Great Britain.

• It helped get aid from France.

• It united the Americans.

• It laid some groundwork for the US Constitution.

• It ended Thomas Jefferson's political career.