In less than two months, the United States will launch its 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia at what is today known as Independence Hall.
From the beginning, it wasn’t a 100% popular idea. Starting your own independent country rarely is. You need money! You should probably have at least a few allies! Possibly a well-trained, well-disciplined military!
The 13 colonies had absolutely NONE of that!
It is historically correct to agree with the following statements:
- Not everyone was onboard (The so-called, Tories – Loyalists)
- Not even all of the signers agreed (50+ Delegates of the 2nd Continental Congress)
Nearly 35% (maybe more) of the population of the British Colonies had absolutely no idea why anyone would want to change the status quo. England was great! The King was great! Obnoxious taxes were great!
It was quite a strange obsession as the majority of that 35% had never been to England, or had even seen the King in person! Some probably didn’t even know what he looked like! Most of that 35%+ were born, or at least grew up, in the colonies.
And as for the King? George (not Elvis), had never stepped foot on colonial soil! (And never would!)
He had no idea what was going on here, other than what he was told. But he had no qualms about taxing the colonists for what the majority here felt were some very petty reasons!
The actual reason for all the taxes was a little vague to most people. Because what many colonists didn’t know was that the British government had lost a ton of money on the French and Indian War!
“Hey! We’ve got an idea!” said Parliament to no one but themselves. “Tax the colonies!”
What are they going to do? Invade England?
That apathetic attitude encouraged a London newspaper to come up with a novel new phrase in 1768 …
“No taxes without representation!”
No! Patrick Henry, or any other of the founding fathers were the first to say it. Actually, the idea for that phrase had been around since the Magna Carta in 1689.
It was actually a solid idea … the representation part … A delegate or two in Parliament representing the colonies? They were almost guaranteed to lose every time … but at least they were there. Hey, it’s one of the simple things that might have kept the peace. At least for a little while. It’s what the colonists asked for.
It wasn’t the colonies’ fault that Parliament spent a boatload of cash on a war! Now the Crown needed money … boo hoo! Too bad! “We’ve been handling our own taxes for over 100 years!”
In retrospect, these same shenanigans would be the predecessor to what the colonies would actually do to themselves in the not-too-distant future. FEDERAL TAXES!
The idea at the time seemed to be, it was okay if we did it to ourselves!
AS FOR THOSE PESKY DELEGATES IN PHILADELPHIA
A small percentage of delegates, mostly those from southern states almost derailed independence in their zeal to hang onto the idea of slavery. It took some real fist-clenching by the northern colony delegates to compromise in the end.
Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and tallest guy in the room, George Washington — big names in show business at that time, were less than pleased that a small minority was going to win out over the majority. (But there was that nagging issue of “do as I say, not as I do!”). The four top brass had their own small issue. They all had a small cadre of slaves themselves. Couldn’t exactly hold up the works when they were guilty also.
So, a compromise was brokered, and the gentlemen in the room begrudgingly agreed to a preliminary document that wouldn’t officially be signed by most delegates for at least a month. (See our blog, “The 4th of July”)
And, that’s why we don’t have British accents! But, it’s also a little surprising we don’t speak French! They gave us a lot of money to not have those British accents!
So, as we come up on the 250th anniversary of that shaky agreement in July 1776, it’s important to remember how we got here.
Not with 100% consensus of the population.
Not without compromise.
Not without someone else’s money.
And certainly, not without military aid from a reluctant ally.
That reluctant ally, the French, would have most certainly denied our request had it not been for the sometimes-shady dealings with that crafty old coot, Benjamin Franklin.
But before he had a chance to deal with the French, he found himself in a much more precarious situation …
Traveling in time to 2024!
But even worse! It was an alternate timeline … because in Williamsburg, Virginia 2024 everyone knew …
The British Won The American Revolution!
