If true, the Mecklenburg Declaration preceded the United States Declaration of Independence by more than a year. Professional historians have maintained that the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence is an inaccurate rendering of an authentic document known as the Mecklenburg Resolves, an argument first made by Peter Force. [1] There are two main differences between the Mecklenburg Resolves and the Declaration of Independence. Firstly, the Mecklenburg Resolves were issued in May 1775 by Mecklenburg County in North Carolina, stating that a rebellion against Great Britain had begun and that colonists did not owe any further allegiance to Great Britain. “The Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence, supposedly adopted on May 20, 1775, proclaimed that residents of Mecklenburg County were seceding from British rule. There are many, from Thomas Jefferson to scholars today, who don’t believe the document ever existed.’ The Resolves were a bold set of anti-British resolutions, adopted on May 31, 1775, at a meeting in Charlotte organized by Thomas Polk and they helped to fire a spirit of independence. The Mecklenburg Resolves – Text From George W. Graham, the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence (New York: The Neale Publishing Company, 1905), 35-40. [Graham’s source, and the text reprinted below are extracted from an article titled,”Charlotte-Towne Mecklenburg County May 31, 1775″, from the South Carolina Gazette and Country, Tuesday, June 13, 1775, pg. 2] — CHARLOTTETOWN Together, these individual resolves laid the foundation for the later Halifax Resolves. Adopted on April 12, 1776, theses Resolves united North Carolina in support of the Continental Congress issuing a formal declaration of independence from Great Britain. The Mecklenburg Resolves are thought to be the basis for the unproven "Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence". While not a declaration, the Resolves annulled and vacated all laws originating from the authority of the King or Parliament, and ended recognition of the Crown's power in the colony of North Carolina and all other American colonies. One Man’s Epic Quest to Uncover the First, True Declaration of Independence by David Fleming in 2023. Fleming, in particular, sets out to disprove the existence of the MeckDec but does the opposite. An interesting twist was given to the subject when the text of the 21 Resolves was discovered in 1838 and 1847. The Mecklenburg Resolves, created by the Mecklenburg County Committee of Safety on or after May 20, 1775, was adopted by that same committee on May 31, 1775. This document adopted a set of radical resolutions that fell short of an actual declaration of independence. The Resolves have often been confused with a widely disputed document called the "Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence," which has never been proven to exist. Unlike the "Mecklenburg Declaration," the authenticity of the Resolves is not in question. The one main difference between the Declaration of Independence and the Declaration of Sentiments is that the DoI was written by Thomas Jefferson, a man, in 1776; while the DoS was Did Hewes distribute the Mecklenburg Resolves secretly to the Virginia delegation or some other delegation(s) of the Continental Congress? Did Lee use certain language and terms from the Mecklenburg Resolves in his Virginia Resolution, or perhaps pass the resolves to Jefferson to consult for the national declaration? The Mecklenburg Declaration – Declaration Text From the Declaration of Independence by the Citizens of Mecklenburg County (Raleigh: Published by the Governor, 1831), 13-14. 1. Resolved, That whoever directly or indirectly abetted, or in any way, form or manner, countenanced the unchartered and dangerous invasion of our rights, as claimed by Great Britain, is an enemy to this country Is it possible that calendar differences established the date? Either way, there seems to be no question about the adoption of the Mecklenburg Resolves on the 31st of May in 1775, but even the best arguments for the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence still leave the jury hanging. The Mecklenburg Resolves were not a declaration of independence. Instead, they were a radical list of resolves created on May 31, 1775, that rejected laws set forth by the British King and Parliament. What was the difference between the Mecklenburg Declaration and the Halifax Resolves? Many scholars doubt the authenticity of the so-called Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence. The Halifax Resolves carry no such suspicion of origin. This would be the first declaration of independence – predating the national Declaration of Independence by more than a year. There is some doubt surrounding the document’s existence however, with some historians debating that the text was actual a part of the Mecklenburg Resolves, a set of anti-British resolutions. The single biggest piece of evidence against the existence of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence – or put differently, the lack of evidence in its favor – is the fact that no original copy of the document exists. In a similar spirit to the Mecklenburg Declaration, the Mecklenburg Resolves of May 31st, 1775 is a widely confirmed document of authenticity. The Resolves reflects the independent fervor of many North Carolinians during the critical, revolutionary days of the 1770s. On May 31, 1775, the county of Mecklenburg, North Carolina signed 20 resolutions or “Resolves.” They start by saying that a recent address by Parliament had stated that “the American Colonies are declared to be in an actual State of rebellion.”
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