Why was the Declaration of Independence written?

It was created as a response to Great Britain overtaxing the colonists, so the founding fathers decided to send a declaration to King George declaring that America would be free, and that was the cause of the American Revolution.  It was a document that expressed the ideals of the colonists and the desire to have their own government built on democratic ideals.  This document would also be the basis for the U.S. Constitution, which is still the law of the land today.

With the onset of hostilities between the colonists and England, the First Continental Congress had initially attempted to make amends with England. In order to maintain peace, the First Continental Congress constructed the Olive Branch Petition, and sent this document to King George. In the petition, the leaders at the First Continental Congress reminded King George that the American colonies were loyal to England. At the same time, the colonists, as loyal British subjects, felt as though they were being mistreated, and the petition outlined many grievances the colonists felt they had endured. This petition went unanswered by King George, and the list of grievances against England expanded. War with England became imminent, and the Declaration of Independence outlined 28 total grievances the colonists had with England. The finality of the document expressed the colonists’ wishes to govern themselves outside of British authority. After the signing of the Declaration of Independence, war with England became imminent, and the signers of the document were all committing treason against England.

The Declaration of Independence was written for two main reasons.  It was written to announce to the world that the American colonies were breaking away from the United Kingdom and it was written to explain their actions so that they could gain support in their cause.

One of the reasons that the Declaration was written is made clear by the title that we have given it.  We call it the Declaration of Independence because it was written to declare that the American colonies now considered themselves to be independent.  It was, in essence, an announcement to the world.

However, if the colonists had simply wanted to announce their independence, they could have written a one-sentence declaration.  They did not need to write such a long document.  They did write a long document, though, and they did so because they wanted to persuade people that their cause was just.  The men who wrote the Declaration knew that they were going to need support in their quest for independence.  They were going to need support from as many of the colonists as they could get and they were going to need support from foreign countries.  One way to get that support was by persuading people that the United Kingdom was treating the colonies in an unjust manner and that it was morally correct for the colonies to break away.  This is why the Declaration sets out a theory of what government is for and when it can be overthrown.  It is also why the Declaration lists a series of allegations against the King of England, claiming that he has mistreated the colonies. 

Thus, the Declaration of Independence has two main purposes.  It is meant as a simple announcement of intent and as a means of gaining support for the cause of independence.

What reasons did the Founding Fathers state for writing the Declaration of Independence?

The war against Britain was inevitable, so the Founding Fathers decided to formally separate the nation from the British. The writing of the Declaration was meant to communicate their intentions and seek support from their allies. The British Army was still very strong and American unity was necessary if they were to liberate themselves. The declaration was also important to morally justify their intentions and actions to the world. This is because the government was being rejected by the governed, rendering it unjust and making it necessary for the British to consider American independence. The leadership of Britain was becoming oppressive to its colonies, and, as stated in the document, this relationship had to be severed.

"That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government".

What reason does Jefferson state for writing the Declaration of Independence?

Thomas Jefferson opens the Declaration of Independence with one very long sentence stating why it was necessary to be written.

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

Jefferson felt that declaring independence was not a light or trifling matter. Indeed, it was not. He and the other founding fathers wanted to make it clear to the world why they were rising up against Great Britain and to justify their actions. They did not want to be judged as simple rebels; they wanted to be regarded as the founders of a new nation which would uphold the Enlightenment ideals of liberty that they felt were being denied to them by the Crown. To explain this, Jefferson names the "self-evident" truths of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" to which he felt they were entitled. Then, to make sure that there could be no doubt that the colonies had suffered under the thumb of Great Britain, he clearly lists a number of complaints of how they had been mistreated.

What prompted the writing of the Declaration of Independence?

There were many events that led to the writing of the Declaration of Independence. After the French and Indian War ended, the British passed laws that upset the colonists. The Proclamation of 1763 prevented the colonists from moving to the new lands we got from France as a result of French and Indian War. The Quartering Act required the colonists provide housing for the troops that would enforce this law. The colonists didn’t want to have to provide housing for troops to enforce a law they didn’t want or like.

As time passed, the British wanted the colonists to pay for some of the costs of running the colonies. When the Stamp Act and the Townshend Acts were passed, the colonists claimed these laws weren’t legal because the colonists didn’t have representatives in Parliament that could speak about and then vote on these proposed taxes. The colonists claimed their rights were being violated.

When events became more aggressive and violent, the relationship between the colonists and Great Britain deteriorated further. Five colonists were killed at the Boston Massacre. When the colonists protested the Tea Act by dumping tea into Boston Harbor, the British responded with the Intolerable Acts. The colonists refused to obey these laws. The colonists also formed their own militias.

When fighting broke out in April 1775 at Lexington and Concord, more people believed independence was going to be a reality. The rejection of the Olive Branch Petition and the publication of Common Sense moved us closer toward declaring independence. Eventually, the Second Continental Congress debated resolutions regarding independence. While this was going on, the Declaration of Independence was being written. It was adopted by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. The United States declared its independence from Great Britain with the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.

What reasons led the American people to declare independence according to Jefferson's "Declaration of Independence"?

The Declaration of Independence has two main parts.  In the first, Jefferson explains his theory of a just government.  In the second, he explains how (in his opinion) the British government has fallen short of this ideal.  Because it has fallen short of the ideal, the American people have the right to declare independence.

Jefferson says three main things about an ideal government.  First, it must get its “just powers from the consent of the governed.”  That is, the people must consent to be ruled and should have a say in how they are ruled.  Second, people have the innate right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” and governments are created in order “to secure these rights.”  Finally, if a government does not secure these rights, “it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it.”

Jefferson then goes on to list a number of ways in which the British government has failed to get its power from the consent of the governed.  He lists ways in which it has failed to protect their rights.  For these reasons, he says, the American people have the right to overthrow (abolish) the government and create a new government of their own. 

What reasons does Jefferson's The Declaration of Independence give for the necessity of independence?

Jefferson offers several reasons for the necessity of independence. Each reason is articulated in a form parallel to the other by beginning with the word "for". Each reason demonstrates that the rule of the Kind has been tyrannical over the states and stakes claim in the requirement for their freedom from the English monarchy.

The reasons include the King enforcing legislation that:

• forced taxation without the consent of the people
• cut off trade with the rest of the world
• deprived residents of the colonies of trial by jury
• took away charters
• abolished laws colonists created
• transported colonists across the ocean for pretend trials
• suspended elected officials and appointed other officials to take their places

These actions were unacceptable to the people and they prompted the willingness to be at war in order to fight for freedom from the English crown.

The exact text of the Declaration of Independence that includes these reasons is:

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefit of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.