In 1776, the Declaration of Independence was signed; a scathing diss written about King George III of England, and the US was free from the shackles of British oppression. Now, on the fourth of July, Independence Day is celebrated across the country. But there are a few facts about the national holiday that many of us may get wrong.
The Second, or Fourth, or Sixth, of July, or Maybe June?
It’s widely understood that the Declaration of Independence was signed and finished on the Fourth of July. But this is not entirely true. Sure, the final draft was agreed upon on the fourth of July, but it went through many interactions before then, and had a lot of work to do after.
The famous painting by John Trumbull depicts a discussion held on June 28th. After it was finalized and signed, it took months until everyone had agreed.
Even the people present couldn’t agree on the real Independence Day. Despite it being celebrated on July Fourth now, for John Adams, the second was the real deal.
Writing to his wife, he stated, “This Second Day of July 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. — I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by Solemn acts of Devotion to God Almighty.”
Unhappy that the rest of the country disagreed. He refused to celebrate on the fourth and instead had his own little party on the second.
Hypocritical Reiterations
The original Declaration of Independence contained a large paragraph condemning the slave trade. Essentially, being a long damnation of King George III and the British, they went in on his use of slaves. “[King George III] has waged a 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.”
But, at that point, the US was still being built almost entirely on the back of its slaves. It wouldn’t do to rip on the king while they were still building their independence from enslaved peoples. In fact, South Carolina, which at the time was made up of 53% slaves, refused to sign it until that part was taken out.
It wasn’t until the US had established itself that it was happy to ‘free’ the slaves. Or, now, start deporting them.
A British Curse On The Fourth Of July
Like Montezuma, who ruled the Americas before colonization, the British also cursed the newly found country. July the Fourth marked the day America took its independence, but it also carried with it a death knell.
Three of the founding fathers died on the Fourth of July. Adams and Jefferson died on the same day, precisely fifty years after they signed the Declaration of Independence. James Monroe followed suit, dying on the same day five years later.