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 and patriotism is NOT a sin, and the Fourth of July has more
to it than beer, picnics, and baseball games.
Happy 4th of July!
Rush
H. Limbaugh Jr Speech - "Our lives, our fortunes, our sacred honor"
NumbersUSA.org - Check out
the Immigration
by the Numbers Video
