Bradley J. Birzer
The two principal writers (Jefferson the author and Adams the orator) of the Declaration died on its fiftieth anniversary. This has become a sort of cute, trivial point to us two hundred years later. But to the Americans of the day, it was astounding, surely confirmation that God smiled upon the Declaration and upon America.
Author’s Note: Dear Reader, please note, this was a lecture offered at Hillsdale College on October 29, 2024, and some parts of this essay—such as the timeline right in the middle—was to aid the listener. Additionally, I have kept all of the original spellings—many of which are downright archaic. Just know, they’re not typos.
Before I begin my talk, let me note that I was surprised to be asked to write a book on the Declaration of Independence. I have written on the American founding before—specifically a biography of Charles Carroll of Carrollton, the only Catholic signer of the Declaration of Independence—but that was fifteen years ago. Most of my published work has been biographical rather than thematic. But, on the last day of the spring semester, I got a call from the American Institute for Economic Research in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. They are, it turns out, the oldest think tank in America. They’ve published several great books, but they’re completely rebooting their press, and they want this book, The Declaration at 250, to be the first of the reboot. So, my manuscript is due to the press October 31, 2025. If you’re counting, that means I have just another 367 days to get it done.
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Let me offer eleven (in honor of Spinal Tap) interesting tidbits. Some of which are well known and some of which aren’t.
First, when the Second Continental Congress passed the Declaration of Independence they actually performed a beautiful and bizarre ritual. » Read More
https://theimaginativeconservative.org/2024/12/thoughts-declaration-independence-bradley-birzer.html