Explore one of the most powerful and influential documents in US and world history: the Declaration of Independence. Discover what it boldly promised and how each new generation has revisited this cornerstone of civil and human rights.
Image: Engrossed copy of the Declaration of Independence, August 2, 1776. (National Archives)
Annotations are notes that explain the meaning of certain words or phrases in a document. They can help students to build reading skills and explore a text at a deeper level.
“The Manner in which the American Colonies Declared Themselves Independent…” in Edward Barnard, The … Complete History of England…, London, 1783. (Clements Library, University of Michigan)
These annotated texts provide historical background, helping explain what the writers of the Declaration meant when they wrote it, and how other people interpreted their ideas. Each section includes a ten-question quiz that can help to guide reading. For teachers, we recommend using the interactive exhibition The Declaration Justifies Revolution as a way to motivate this activity.
Explore the ideas animating the opening paragraphs of the Declaration.
Read the complaints that Congress offered to justify the American Revolution.
Learn about Congress’s hopes for the future as it declared America to be an independent nation.
Was independence worth a war? Learn how the Continental Congress made their case.
In these brief and engaging videos, distinguished historians explain the answers to the most frequently asked questions about the Declaration of Independence.
What does the Declaration of Independence have to do with American democracy?
How did the Congress change Jefferson’s version, and which changes were most significant?
After the Congress agreed on the Declaration, how was the document printed and distributed?
How did Americans react when they learned about the Declaration, and which parts of the document mattered most to them?
Did all British people react the same when they learned about the Declaration?
These charts, maps, and accompanying discussion questions will help students become intelligent readers of visual data.
Expected Time: Two to Five 45-Minute Class Periods
If you want to learn more about the Declaration of Independence and the American Revolution, we recommend the following seminal texts. We receive an affiliate commission from every purchase made through the link to bookshop.org provided. Thank you for supporting our programs.
History U offers free, self-paced courses for high school students.
Self-Paced Courses offer graduate-level online instruction in American history by eminent historians. These courses will allow you to learn more about the Declaration of Independence through the study of the document itself and its context, intellectual precursors, and legacies. Courses are available to watch or listen to on your own time and at your own pace.
These free online courses are curated to provide elementary school teachers with in-depth historical information on topics from the colonial period to the Civil War. You will receive a certificate for 15 hours of professional development credit for each course you complete.
History Now, the online journal of the Gilder Lehrman Institute, features essays by the nation’s leading historians. To read these essays, subscribe to History Now (free for Affiliate School teachers and their students).
Full Issues
In 2021, we began devoting full issues of History Now to the Declaration of Independence itself and its impact on US and world history.
Essays
In addition to the full issues of History Now, the Gilder Lehrman Institute has also published selected essays on the document in other issues of the journal and elsewhere on the website.
These informative, colorful pop-up displays cover subjects in American history, from leading figures like Alexander Hamilton to important events like World War I and topics like immigration.
The Gilder Lehrman Institute has more than eighty online exhibitions that cover American history from the colonial era to the present day.
The Declaration of Independence, and its ideals of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” inspires writers, performers, and everyday people. Watch Hamilton cast members bring the text alive by quoting the Declaration directly on stage. More clips are available on the Hamilton Education Program website for users who have created their free Gilder Lehrman account.
"The Petition of a Great Number of Negroes Who Are Detained in a State of Slavery," read by Renée Goldsberry and other women from the cast of the musical Hamilton.
Letter from Benjamin Banneker to Thomas Jefferson read by Christopher Jackson
Each of the Spotlights of documents from the Gilder Lehrman Collection provides explanatory text, a transcript, and an image of the featured document.
Explore the “breaking news” of the American Revolution through selected issues in contemporary newspapers from the Gilder Lehrman Collection. In addition to the political and military news of the day, these periodicals also published a wealth of other newsworthy items and advertisements that impacted the lives of Americans in the founding era. You can click on the links below to download the entire issue.
These historic documents tell the story of how the Declaration inspired the birth of the civil rights movement among African Americans within months of its appearance. The Declaration asserted and codified rights that African Americans claimed for themselves as equal participants in the new nation.
Explore a gallery of images and broadsides related to the Declaration of Independence and Revolutionary era.
A lithograph made from the original Declaration of Independence, printed by William J. Stone, Washington, DC, 1823. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute, GLC00154.02)
Declaration of Independence, printed by Peter Timothy, Charleston, South Carolina, ca. August 2, 1776. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute, GLC00959)
Engraved copy of the Declaration of Independence, printed by E[leazar] Huntington, [Hartford, CT,] ca. 1840. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute, GLC04530)
Nathaniel Currier, Presenting the Declaration of Independence, ca. 1850, based on a painting by Jonathan Trumbull. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute, GLC10045)
A Plan of the City and Environs of Philadelphia, surveyed by N. Scull and G. Heap, engraved by William Faden, London, England, 1777. The inset image shows Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence was adopted. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute, GLC02118)
Photograph of Independence Hall in Philadelphia, created between 1861 and 1865. Small photographs like this were easily shared to celebrate the “birthplace” of the nation, where the Declaration of Independence was signed. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute, GLC00241.04)
The Voice of the Liberty Bell, 1776–1926, poster created by Dan Smith and printed by Elliott Brewer, Philadelphia, 1926. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute, GLC09657)
Print depicting the Boston Massacre, engraved by Paul Revere in 1770. This image was meant to inspire anger toward the British soldiers, who are seen here firing upon the helpless American colonists. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute, GLC01868)
Print of Phillis Wheatley featured in her book of poems, 1773. Wheatley was a well-known poet during the time of the American Revolution, despite the fact that she had been enslaved. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute, GLC06154)
Print of British war ships landing in Boston in 1768, shortly before the Revolutionary War. This image was used to illustrate the invasion of British troops into the colonies shortly after the Boston Massacre. Engraved by Paul Revere, May 1770. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute, GLC02873)
Print of colonists destroying a statue of King George III in New York, created by Francois Habermann around 1776. Printed in Germany, this image represents the overthrow of the monarchy and the impact of the American Revolution on European countries. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute, GLC06952)
Print of General John Rochambeau on horseback. Rochambeau was a French ally to the American cause and a key figure in the Battle of Yorktown. Artist and date of creation unknown. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute, GLC04837.02)
Oil painting of George Washington in military uniform by American artist Rembrandt Peale, created around 1852. Peale produced at least 79 paintings of Washington. (National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institute)
Silhouette image of Colonel Eliphalet Bulkeley on horseback, created by T.C. Colchester between 1770 and 1780. Bulkeley served in the 25th Connecticut Regiment in the Revolutionary War. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute, GLC01450.041)
Poster depicting colonial-era and World War II-era American soldiers, created in 1943. This image, produced by the United States Office of War Information, was meant to remind Americans of their historical promise to fight for liberty. (The Gilder Lehrman Institute, GLC09520.37)
These brief videos (one to four minutes) provide overviews of some of the key questions regarding the American Revolution.
Explore this seminal event in American History with talks by eminent scholars of the American Revolution.
These posters feature images from the Gilder Lehrman Collection.
Each month, Inside the Vault highlights unique primary sources from the Gilder Lehrman Collection.
Book Breaks is a weekly program where our hosts interview renowned scholars about their recent books.
Hamilton Cast Read Alongs is a program that features Hamilton cast members reading award-winning children’s books followed by a discussion of the history behind the story led by Gilder Lehrman Master Teacher Keisha Rembert.
A free suite of resources examining Spain’s strategic contributions to the American Revolution.
This program combines theatrical experiences with rigorous historical study and creative expression to make history engaging and accessible to students.
This project restores to view the lives and works of a wide array of African Americans in the period 1760 to 1800
