The American Declaration of Independence (1776)
The American Declaration of Independence was a document adopted by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which declared the thirteen American colonies to be independent of the British Empire and no longer under its control. The Declaration was written by Thomas Jefferson and was a statement of the American colonies' right
The Declaration of Independence, formally The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America in the original printing, is the founding document of the United States. On July 4, 1776, it was adopted unanimously by the Second Continental Congress, who were convened at Pennsylvania State House, later renamed Independence Hall, in the colonial city of Philadelphia. These delegates became known as the nation's Founding Fathers. The Declaration explains why the Thirteen Colonies regarded themselves as independent sovereign states no longer subject to British colonial rule, and has become one of the most circulated, reprinted, and influential documents in history.