The sole purpose of the Declaration of Independence was thus, to announce and explain the separation of the United States from Britain. The Declaration of Independence was to express the ideals of individual liberty and the philosophy of the need of freedom. The Declaration put forth the grievances against the King, for the world to know the reason behind the breaking of bonds between the colonies and the mother country. It laid out the philosophy of government by stating that a government can rule only with the consent of those being governed and that the purpose of government is the protection of its people's rights.

Drafting of the Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was primarily authored by Thomas Jefferson. It so happened, that on June 11, 1776, Congress appointed a 'Committee of Five' to draft a declaration. The committee comprised of John Adams of Massachusetts, Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, Robert R.Livingston of New York, Roger Sherman of Connecticut and Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania. There is no conclusive evidence as to how the committee went about drafting the declaration and how the drafting process proceeded. But it is known that the committee discussed a general outline of the document of the Declaration of Independence and Thomas Jefferson was chosen to write the first draft. Probably, Jefferson wrote the first draft quickly, asked for reviews from the others in the committee and altered the draft on the lines of the changes suggested. The committee came up with a copy and presented it to Congress on June 28, 1776. The copy was titled, "A Declaration by the Representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress assembled." The draft underwent days of debate, after which, Congress made a few changes to the writing, deleted some text and approved the declaration on July 4, 1776. On the same day, it was sent for publication.

Declaration of Independence - The Contents
The first statement in the Declaration of Independence asserts it by law, the ability of people to be politically independent. The preamble states that people have the right to abolish a government, which does not abide by its rules and fails to follow its principles. The declaration endorses a person's rights to equality and states that every individual has the right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. The list of grievances against King George justifies him as being unfit to rule the country. This section of the declaration explains the unsuccessful attempts made by the citizens to convince the King to change his unjustifiable policies. The last section of the Declaration of Independence asserts the people need to overthrow the British rule and establish a government of their own. This section establishes the right of the colonies to end their ties with the British and become independent states.

Signing of the Declaration of Independence – The Myth
There is a myth about the declaration that the Congress signed it on July 4, 1776. The Journals of Continental Congress, which published the names of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, gave birth to the myth that the declaration was signed. In reality, the signed version of the declaration of Independence came up at a later date. Thomas McKean, one of the signers, brought about the fact that some of the signers were not even elected to Congress on July 4. It brought forth the fact that if the declaration were signed on the 4th of July, Charles Thomson and John Hancock would have been the only two signatories. Hancock and Thomson are believed to have signed the handwritten version, but the historian Julian P. Boyd thought this unlikely, as the printer could have printed their names on the document.

People who signed the Declaration of Independence
On July 19, 1776, Congress ordered a copy of the Declaration of Independence to be written in parchment for the delegates to sign. Thomson's clerk, Timothy Matlack produced this copy and titled it, 'The unanimous declaration of the thirteen United States of America'. Most of the delegates signed it on August 2, 1776 and some signed it later. The engrossed copy of the declaration most proudly bears the most prominent signature of John Hancock, being the President of Congress, signed above the other signers. Thomas Jefferson and John Adams were among the other signers. Edward Rutledge was the youngest signatory of the Declaration of Independence while the oldest signer was Benjamin Franklin. Thomas McKean, Elbridge Gerry, Oliver Wolcott and Lewis Morris were the ones signing late. Matthew Thornton, one of the late signers, had to sign on the lower right of the document due to lack of space. The number of signers was finally 56.

Interestingly, three delegates who were present for the debate never signed the declaration. They were Robert Livingston, John Dickinson and Thomas Lynch. Livingston had returned to New York before the signing that took place on August 2. Dickinson thought the declaration as being premature and did not want to sign. Lynch could not sign the declaration on account of his illness.

The central idea held by the Declaration of Independence is that of the right to revolt against an oppressive government. This idea continues to be held in high regard by the Americans and continues to have an influence on the political scenario of the world. The declaration bases itself on the idea that all men are created equal.

By Manali Oak : Buzzle.com