The Declaration and Resolves, Explained! | The Road to The Revolutionary War

0:05 It was a Thursday evening. I was in 10th grade and sitting quietly at the dinner table. I sat alone, poking up my microwave leftovers. I was exhausted and did not smell good. In fact, I smelled so bad that my sister wouldn’t even sit with me. Suddenly, my phone buzzed and my stomach dropped, and the lukewarm chicken nuggets and green beans on my plate looked even less appealing.

0:27 After playing with my food a few more minutes, I worked at the courage, looked at my phone, and the text read, you’re done. What was I done with and why was I done? Great questions. Context matters. The what is easy. Maybe you picked up on it. It has something to do with my exhaustion and my stench. If you guessed a sports team, you’re right. But the why? Well, that’s a bit more complicated.

0:48 Let’s just say after a long train of abuses and usurpations I was off the team. So you may be saying to yourself, I heard that line before. Did you guess the Declaration of Independence? Well, if you did, you’re right. That line in the Declaration of Independence about the long train of abuses and usurpations, well, it was not just throw away line.

1:08 The colonists claimed to have been patiently suffering under the abuses of the British government for years before they finally declared their independence. That line in the declaration emphasizes that independence was a last resort. So what were they doing before 1776? A partial answer can be found in another document not from 1776, but from 1774.

1:31 By 1774, the tensions between north American colonies and parliament and Britain were high. The colonies were growing more frustrated with acts passed to raise revenue from the colonies in the wake of the French and Indian war, including the Stamp Act of 1765 and the Townshend Act of 1767. These tensions simmered for years, and by 1773, tensions were boiling over,

1:54 hot enough, in fact, to host a certain tea party. In 1774, parliament passed the Coercive Acts, also called the Intolerable Acts, because, you guessed it, they were intolerable to the colonists. So if you’re frustrated with some parliamentary acts, how do you confront them? Do you just throw down, or do you try to negotiate? The colonists argued about exactly that amongst themselves.

2:17 No matter your course, there are challenges you must overcome. First, you’ve got to articulate what exactly you’re upset about. How can you fix something if you don’t know what it is? Second, you’ve got to make sure your complaints are heard. That probably means you need to get some friends that are also upset that can join with you. Finally, you’ve got to figure out who you want to complain to.

2:38 All this means you got to get organized. The colonists did just that in 1774. In the fall, they convened or brought together a continental congress. Delegates from twelve of the 13 colonies gathered in Philadelphia and met to complain about just how awful and in their eyes, illegal, the actions of Parliament were. But they did more than just complain.

2:59 They sought a resolution. But it wasn’t independence, at least not yet. What they wanted was to reach a resolution within the Empire. Independence would mean war against one of the most powerful nations on Earth, and that was not something that colonists were eager to start. So how do you make your case productively, but not provocatively? A challenging task, to say the least.

3:21 Let’s take a look at the First Continental Congress’s Declaration and Resolves and see how they try to do it. Now, we’re going to look at this document today, but we’re going to look at a very limited section, so bear that in mind. And if you want to see the entire document, we’ll have it linked down in the description below. So the colonists are going to want to make their case to Parliament in Britain and they want to outline what

3:43 it is that’s upsetting them about these latest acts. So they open with this powerful statement. Whereas since the close of the last war, the British Parliament claiming a power of right to bind the people of America by statute, in all cases whatsoever, hath expressly, and this part is important impose taxes on them and in others under various pretenses, but in fact for the purpose of raising revenue.

4:07 So, two things to note about this opening. First, the way that they’re writing this. Whereas since the close of the last war, the British Parliament claiming a power of right to bind the people of America by statute, you can clearly see that they’re writing to Parliament, but they’re also writing to a broader audience, both at home and abroad. That’s important because these declarations are not just about telling

4:28 Parliament why they’re upset, but also telling their fellow citizens in the colonies why they’re upset and announcing to the world what it is that’s causing them to be bothered by what the actions of Parliament are. And they have these lines about imposing taxes on them for the purposes of raising revenue. So this goes back to conversations around what the British Government should be taxing them on, whether it’s external

4:48 things, so being taxed on when they’re exporting different things, or whether or not they’re raising money directly for revenue. And it’s that idea that they’re raising money directly for revenue that was so upsetting to the colonies. They saw it as a change in policy from what they thought their constitutional place within the British Empire was. And so they’re still upset by that change

5:10 in policy that they’re wanting to get some kind of recognition of it and they want Parliament to stop trying to tax them in order just to raise revenue. So they go on. And again, this is all in their opening. And again, just a reminder, these are only sections to read the whole document. You want to see the entire context of what’s been said but they say here and whereas in consequence of the statute, judges that’s important,

5:36 judges who before held only estates at will in their offices have been made dependent on the crown alone they’ve been made dependent on the crown alone for their salaries and standing armies kept in times of peace. That’s important. And it has been lately resolved

5:56 in Parliament that by force of a statute made in the 35th year of the reign of King Henry VIII, colonists may be transported to England and tried thereupon for accusations of treason. All right, so what is all this going on here? Well, they’re upset for a couple of big reasons. One, judges who should be working on behalf of the people or seeking out

6:22 justice are now dependent on the Crown for their salaries. Right. Why is that important? Well, that means that the king is the one that’s paying their salaries, they’re dependent upon him, which means the interests of the colonies are always going to be secondary. They’re going to see that the actions of the crown are always going to be justifiable because at the end of the day, that’s who’s paying them to be in their offices. So they have no connection to the colonies.

6:42 And so there’s the idea that that would lead to injustice being carried out on the colonies. Not only that, but standing armies are being kept in times of peace. Why is that dangerous? Well, this goes back to traditions from the English Civil War, when a standing army was seen as the most problematic thing facing the people who are trying to preserve liberty. The colonists are upset about that. So they’re stating that here

7:03 that the standing army is not to be allowed or not to be tolerated. Again, this is echoing back trying to make a connection to Parliament about their own shared history. And finally, colonists may be transported to England and tried there upon accusations for treason. That means that they’re going to be pulled from the colonies, taken back to England and be tried not by their peers

7:24 in the colonies, but by English juries and by English judges, which means that they are being denied what they see as their traditional right within the English tradition of being pride by a jury of their peers. And that to them is a part of these declarations that they cannot sit silently by while these things are happening. They’re upset, they’re mad, and they’re hoping that they send these

7:46 to Parliament and announce it to the rest of the world, that people will not only understand their cause, but will support them in their pursuit of trying to retain their rights as Englishmen. So they’re upset by this. They don’t want to stand for this violation of their rights as Englishmen. And they say, whereas in the last session of Parliament, three statutes were passed

8:06 and they list the statutes, all which are impolitick, so they’re not good, they are unjust and they are cruel as well as unconstitutional. So again, this is the English constitution. This is long before the American constitution is written and ratified, but they’re unconstitutional in the English tradition and most dangerous and destructive of American rights.

8:27 So again, their rights as individuals are being violated and this is language that they hoped would resonate back home both in the colonies and in Great Britain. Now, they’ve made these declarations and now they want to put a final sort of exclamation point on this. The good people of the several colonies, justly alarmed at these arbitrary proceedings of parliament

8:48 and administration, have several elected, constituted and appointed deputies to meet and sit in general Congress in the city of Philadelphia in order to obtain such establishment as that their religion, laws and liberties may not be subverted. So what are they saying here? Well, they’re giving the reasons why this Congress has come together, why this Congress is able to speak

9:10 on behalf of the people of the colonies and why it’s so important that they do so because they are seeking to protect their religion, laws and liberties. And so they conclude this section by then getting the audience ready to read through their resolve which are what they’re saying their rights are. And they say that the inhabitants

9:30 of the English colonies in North America by the immutable laws of nature. So not only the English constitution but natural laws, those rights that you’re born with because you are a human being and the principles of the English constitution and the several charters and compact so these are things like the colonial charters that have been established. They have their own sort of rights within those.

9:50 They have the following rights. Now, they’re going to go through in detail some of those rights. So the first may look familiar to you. They are entitled to life, liberty and property. So life, liberty and property that they never cede to any sovereign power whatever a right to dispose of either without their consent. So this life, liberty, and property will

10:10 see that again in the Declaration of Independence of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, but that they cannot give it up without their consent. That issue of consenting to the laws that are governing over them is central to the argument that the colonists are making about why it is that they are so frustrated with the British government. The British government, they feel, is not representative of them and is passing taxation that is taking their property without their consent.

10:34 And so it is a true violation of their natural rights according to colonists. They go on in the second one to say that our ancestors who first settled these colonies were at times of their emigration from the mother country entitled to all rights, liberties and immunities of free and natural born subjects within the realm of England.

10:54 In other words, just because they’re in the colonies doesn’t mean they have less rights than those in England. So they want that recognized. They want Parliament to understand that even though they’re in colonies across the wide Atlantic Ocean, they still should have the same rights as Englishman living in Great Britain, finally, that by such emigration they no

11:17 means forfeited or surrendered or lost any of those rights. So they’re restating this. Just because we came from England, we’re still here. The descendants are now entitled to the exercise enjoyment of all such events. So all of those rights that are traditionally seen within the English tradition should be seen by the colonists. And again, the Continental Congress is stating this.

11:40 They’re sitting in clearly and emphatically because this is their case, this is why they’re upset and they want Parliament to understand what it is that they are upset about and they’re putting it in terms that Parliament should recognize as also being of the same English tradition. So finally, we have we’re going to look at one more. There’s actually ten of these. We’re only going to look at four of them. But this fourth one is really important, that the foundation of English liberty and of all free government is a right

12:04 of the people to participate in their legislative council. And as English colonistss are not represented so that representation and from their local and other circumstances cannot be properly represented in the British Parliament, they are entitled to a free and exclusive power of legislation and there’s several provincial legislatures.

12:24 What does that mean? British Parliament is all the way across the ocean. It cannot legislate on behalf of the colonists in a way that is fair and representative of their interests. That means that the colonies need to have the ability to legislate for themselves and that is being violated by these new taxes that are coming in and taking revenue from the colonies without their consent.

12:45 So you can see they’re stacking these arguments over and over and over again. But this is fundamentally the idea of no taxation without representation, something I think we’re all familiar with, and it’s something that the colonies here, the colonists here and the Continental Congress are really asserting. This is the document where they’re making that a public declaration, more than just words on the street or words on a banner.

13:08 It is absolutely that. But here they are making a clear and reasoned case for why it is that they’re making those claims. And so finally. After going through. As I said. Ten of those different resolves. They come to the end and they say to these grievous acts and measures Americans cannot submit. But in the hopes that their fellow subjects in Great Britain will.

13:28 On a revision of them. Restore us to that state in which both countries found happiness and prosperity. We have for the present only resolved to pursue the following peaceable measures. So they’ve made all of these declarations. They made their declaration at the opening, which was their long sort of opening couple of paragraphs. They made their specific enunciations of the rights that they felt were being violated.

13:49 And now they are resolving to take these actions in order to hopefully come to a resolution and heal this relationship that is becoming freight. They say they’re going to do three things. First, they’re going to enter into a non-importation and non-consumption exportation agreement or association.

14:14 All right, that’s a lot of words, but what that really all means a non-consumption and non-exportation agreement or association. The colonies are going to come together and they are going to try and only consume goods that are produced within the North American colonies. They are not going to consume imported British goods. And that’s a way of showing how serious

14:35 they are by denying their trade with Great Britain. They’re only going to turn inward. They’re trying to show that they can rely on themselves, they can depend on themselves. But more importantly, they want to show Parliament that they’re serious. Second, they’re going to prepare an address to the people of Great Britain, which they do, and they send this address out to the people of Great Britain, again trying to appeal directly to them

14:57 in their common cause and through their common sort of inherited tradition of rights, and they send that off to Britain to be published. Finally, they’re going to prepare a loyal address to His Majesty, agreeable to the resolutions already entered into. So they’re going to petition the king and they’re going to hope that the king acts on their behalf to protect their liberty.

15:18 And they issued just that later, in October of 1774. So the colonists came together, they made this declaration results, they outlined what it was they were upset about and gave that over to the people of Great Britain and to the Parliament and to the king to try to get some kind of resolution. And what was the result? Well, not a whole lot.

15:38 The King and Parliament issued a conciliatory resolution in February, but it didn’t address the fundamental concerns of the colonists. In April of 1775, there was a shot heard around the world at Lexington Green and by May of 1775, the Continental Congress had convened for a second time and that became the Second Continental Congress. And the two sides, Great Britain and the North American

16:00 colonies, moved closer and closer to an irreconcilable split. So what’s the point? Why issue this declaration results if there wasn’t going to be a resolution? You might be asking yourself, shouldn’t the colonists have just known that this wouldn’t do anything? Obviously, these were big issues that they were trying to resolve. What were they trying to accomplish? Well, the colonists truly hoped for a reasoned resolution to their concerns.

16:23 They felt history was on their side and that’s why they were including so many references to the English fish. And even though Parliament had ignored their concerns and may ignore them again, they hoped that the king would see their reason and defend their liberty. Making a public case, as we mentioned, might also win support amongst those at home and around the world. There were still plenty who wished

16:45 to avoid conflict with Great Britain in the North American colonies, and they were trying to win those over, win some of those folks over with this clear delineation of what was so upsetting to so many people in the colonies. When you have a disagreement or you’re in an argument, you always try to make your side clear. And that doesn’t mean that it’s going to be resolved, but it at least provides the opportunity for understanding.

17:07 Take me and my sports team. When I received a text informing me that I was done, there was no mystery as to why. It turns out that pranking your coach is not a great tradition. I’d been told that after doing the same thing the year before and was told that if I did it again, I wouldn’t be able to play in my team’s final term of the season. Well, how is that relevant?

17:28 It’s kind of the same process. My coach had made a declaration of what kinds of transgressions would not be tolerated, and he resolved to take action if that declaration was ignored. And you know what he did? By kicking me off the team. So, just like my high school misadventure. And don’t worry, I was back on the team the next year. The colonies were laying the groundwork for their eventual break with Great Britain.

17:50 But like my coach, they were in earnest. They truly hope to reconcile with Britain. Independence was a huge step, and they did not want to take that step if they had not exhausted every other possibility. And, in fact, many hoped that they wouldn’t have to take that step at all. They wanted to work within the empire in order to solve their issues.

18:10 Reconciliation was far more attractive than a break with Great Britain, so they took this first step in outlining a single argument that all the colonies signed on to through this Continental Congress. That was why they were upset with the exes of Great Britain and they truly hoped to reconcile with the empire. Unfortunately, that wasn’t to be the case.

18:30 As we mentioned, by the spring of 1775, there was violence, and that violence would continue to grow and escalate over the coming years. But 1775 was yet another year where the colonies got together and made another earnest attempt to try to get the Parliament of Great Britain and the king in Great Britain, George III, to understand why it was they were so

18:52 upset and make another attempt to reconcile with the empire. So we’ll take another look at those documents in an upcoming video. Thank you so much for joining and we’ll see you next time.