Posted by Alan on 7/5/2009, 5:29 pm
Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56
men who signed the Declaration of
Independence?
Five signers were captured by the British as
traitors, and tortured before they died.
Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.
Two lost their sons serving in the
Revolutionary Army; another had two sons
captured.
Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds
or hardships of the Revolutionary War.
They signed and they pledged their lives,
their fortunes, and their sacred honor.
What kind of men were they?
Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.
Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and
large plantation owners; men of means, well
educated.
But they signed the Declaration of
Independence knowing full well that the
penalty would be death if they were
captured.
Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy
planter and trader, saw his ships swept from
the seas by the British Navy. He sold his
home and properties to pay his debts, and
died in rags.
Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British
that he was forced to move his family almost
constantly. He served in the Congress
without pay, and his family was kept in
hiding. His possessions were taken from him,
and poverty was his reward.
Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of
Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett,
Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.
At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson JR,
noted that the British General Cornwallis
had taken over the Nelson home for his
headquarters. He quietly urged General
George Washington to open fire. The home was
destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.
Francis Lewis had his home and properties
destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and
she died within a few 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 gristmill
were laid to waste. For more than a year he
lived in forests and caves, returning home
to find his wife dead and his children
vanished. A few weeks later he died from
exhaustion and a broken heart.
Norris and Livingston suffered similar
fates.
Such were the stories and sacrifices of the
American Revolution.
These were not wild-eyed, rabble-rousing
ruffians.
They were soft-spoken men of means and
education. They had security, but they
valued liberty more. Standing tall,
straight, and unwavering, they pledged:
“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.” They gave you and me a free
and independent America.
The history books never told you a lot about
what happened in the Revolutionary War.
We didn’t fight just the British.
We were British subjects at that time and we
fought our own government!
Some of us take these liberties so much for
granted, but we shouldn’t. So, take a few
minutes while enjoying your 4th of July
holiday and silently thank these patriots.
It’s not much to ask for the price they
paid.
Remember: freedom is never free!
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