The Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776.
The document announced that the thirteen American colonies regarded themselves as independent states rather than parts of the British Empire. Congress approved the final wording after revisions to Thomas Jefferson’s initial draft. The declaration’s adoption is the event commemorated by Independence Day and by the United States semiquincentennial in 2026.
A common mix-up concerns July 2 and August 2. Congress voted for independence on July 2, while it adopted the wording of the Declaration on July 4. Most delegates signed the engrossed parchment on August 2, although additional signatures were added later.
The Declaration did not immediately end the Revolutionary War. Fighting continued until the Treaty of Paris was signed in 1783. Its statement of political principles, however, became one of the most influential texts in American history and remains central to national anniversary commemorations.