Michael W Smith Declaration Of Independence (2024)

FAQs

What happened to the men who signed the Declaration of Independence? ›

Signing the Declaration proved to be very costly. Five signers were captured by the British and brutally tortured as traitors. Nine fought in the Revolutionary War and died from wounds or hardships. Two lost their sons in the war, and two others had sons captured.

On August 2nd John Hanco*ck, the President of the Congress, signed the engrossed copy with a bold signature. The other delegates, following custom, signed beginning at the right with the signatures arranged by states from northernmost New Hampshire to southernmost Georgia.

In the central group in the painting, Thomas Jefferson, the principal author of the Declaration, is shown placing the document before John Hanco*ck, president of the Congress. With him stand the other members of the committee that created the draft: John Adams, Roger Sherman, Robert Livingston and Benjamin Franklin.

About the signers

Two 26-year-olds from South Carolina were the youngest to sign the Declaration of Independence (Thomas Lynch Jr., and Edward Rutledge). Benjamin Franklin, 70, was the oldest.

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost their sons in the revolutionary army, another had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the revolutionary war.

The New York delegation abstained from voting on July 2nd, and four delegates -- John Alsop, George Clinton, Robert R. Livingston, and Henry Wisner -- never signed the Declaration of Independence. Remember, Robert R. Livingston was a member of the Committee of Five, and yet not a signer.

Roger Sherman is the only person to sign all four of the important American Revolutionary documents: the Articles of Association in 1774, the Declaration of Independence in 1776, the Articles of Confederation in 1781, and the Constitution of the United States in 1787.

The first and largest signature was that of the president of the Congress, John Hanco*ck of Massachusetts. The mood in the room was far from jubilant. All were aware of the magnitude of what they were undertaking—an act of high treason against the British Crown that could cost each man his life.

However, Congress did form a committee to draft a declaration of independence and assigned this duty to Thomas Jefferson. Benjamin Franklin and John Adams reviewed Jefferson's draft.

The Declaration of Independence was adopted on July 4, 1776. Most of the delegates to the Second Continental Congress signed the document on August 2, 1776. By putting their names on this paper, these men risked losing everything if the British won the American Revolution.

Who actually penned the Declaration of Independence? ›

If you answered “Thomas Jefferson,” you are both right and wrong. While Jefferson authored many of the eloquent and persuasive passages in the proclamation, Timothy Matlack is the scribe whose impeccable handwriting adorns the official, signed parchment on display in the National Archives Rotunda.

Those familiar with the text know that God is referenced four times in the Declaration of Independence. So, let's look a bit deeper at what the Declaration of Independence says and why it's important to our nation's founding. WATCH: Stream 'The American Heritage' Series on Great American Pure Flix.

The exceptions were Alexander Hamilton (from the West Indies), James Wilson (Scotland), William Richardson Davie and Robert Morris (England), and the four delegates born in Ireland. Here's a look at the four men who played varying roles in the Constitution's creation.

Madison was the last Founding Father to die at the age of eighty-five in June, 1836. His Politics: His presidency was marred by the War of 1812—the only war in which U.S. soil was overrun by enemy forces.

Robert Morris, generally considered the financier of the Revolution, donated ships from his fleet of tobacco-trading vessels and turned to privateering. Raiding British convoys, he became the richest man in America. He personally signed 6,000 notes to pay off Washington's troops when the war ended.

No signer was killed outright by the British, and only one, Richard Stockton, is said to have been imprisoned solely for having signed the Declaration of Independence.

Adams retired to private life in 1801 after he failed to win re-election, losing to his Vice President Thomas Jefferson. Adams died on July 4, 1826, the fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. In a remarkable coincidence, Jefferson died the same day.

By signing the document, the 56 men risked high treason against the King of England. In essence, they signed their death warrants because that was the penalty. However, death was not simple or quick.

He succeeded Franklin as Minister to France the following year. When he returned home in 1789, he joined the Continental Congress for a while, and was then appointed Secretary of State under George Washington.