The Declaration of Independence: Its Debt to History
In his book, “Inventing America,” the liberal scholar Garry Wills argued that the Declaration owed much to previous Anglo-American history. This is correct. English parliamentary bills originated as petitions by the people’s representatives to the king. These...
Forgotten Declaration: Why they were Fighting Back
“Unconditional submission” or “resistance by force.” Thomas Jefferson, John Dickinson, and the Second Continental Congress said those were their two terrible options less than three months after the battles of Lexington and Concord and the “shot heard ‘round the...
John Dickinson and the Case Against Independence
July 1, 1776, witnessed one of the most consequential debates in American history. The venue was the floor of the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia. The topic was whether America should declare independence. The principal participants were the passionate...