The war ended in 1763 and resulted in the almost complete removal of French authority in North America from that point on, the British were unquestionably the dominant Europeans on the continent. Much of the fighting took place in North America, and American militia supplemented the British army and its Indian allies against the French, who also fought alongside certain native tribes. Nevertheless, there was no widespread, organized agitation for independence until after the French and Indian War, the American name for what Europeans termed the Seven Years' War. However, the colonists gradually developed an interest in self-sufficiency they wanted to control their own economic and political affairs, which for the most part were firmly dominated by the government in England. England established colonies in North America in the early seventeenth century for more than 150 years, the inhabitants of these colonies, for the most part, were quite content to remain tethered to the "Mother Country." They considered themselves Englishmen and entitled to the same rights as their brethren thousands of miles across the Atlantic Ocean, an idea shared by the vast majority of British inhabitants. To fully appreciate the Declaration of Independence, it is necessary to understand the background of its composition. It is in the pursuit of these principles that Americans have fought and died in wars, organized and advocated for civil rights, and pursued political office. ![]() It is these words, more than any others, that have drawn immigrants from all over the globe and served to instill in all citizens the fundamental concept of what the United States stands for. Foremost among the Declaration's associations with the American dream is its firm statement about the "inalienable rights" of all people, including "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." Over time this phrase has become a simple summary of what this country stands for and a statement of the basic principles of American democracy. It is a comparatively brief essay because it was intended to summarize the grievances of the American colonists against the British Crown, thus providing justification for the American separation from England. ![]() ![]() Perhaps the greatest of the great documents of American culture is the Declaration of Independence, which was adopted on July 4, 1776.
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