on this 4th of July, i raise the question, do you know what happened to the 56 men that signed the Declaration of Independence?
-5 were captured by the british as traitors and tortured b4 they died.
-12 had their homes ransacked and burned
-2 lost their sons serving in the revolutionary army
-1 had both sons captured
-9 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the revolutionary war.
they signed and pledged their lives, fortunes and honor.
what kind of men were they?
-24 were lawyers and jurists.
-11 were merchants
-9 were farm and plantation owners
men of means and well educated.
yet, they still signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well the penalty would be death if captured.
-Carter Braxton of Virginia, wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the sea by the british navy. he sold his home and properties to pay his debts. he died in rags
-Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the british that he was forced to move his family everyday. he served in congress without pay, and had to keep his family in hiding. his possessions taken from him and poverty his reward.
-vandals, (or soldiers), looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttleledge and Middleton.
-At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson jr, noted that the british general Cornwallis had taken Nelson's home for his headquaters. Nelson urged Washington to open fire. the home was destroyed. Nelson died bankrupt.
-Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. the british jailed his wife where she died within months.
-John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. his fields and his gritsmill were laid to waste. for more than a year he lived forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and children vanished. he died a few weeks later of exhaustion and a broken heart.
-Norris and Livingston suffered similar fates.
the oath taken by the revolutionaries that were this countries founding fathers:
"For the support of this declaration, with firm reliance on the protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor."
What would you give?
Happy 4th of July to all.
