To mark the 250th anniversary of the US Declaration of Independence, History Hit has special access to a collection of highly significant documents kept by the National Archives, central to their powerful new exhibition charting the emergence of the United States of America..
Dan Snow meets specialist curator Graham Moore in the Archives’ conservation area to examine historic original documents, revealing how all sides grappled with fast changing ideas and events: peace treaties with indigenous peoples; ‘the Olive Branch Petition’ that attempted to find a peaceful way out of conflict; coded messages between frontline military commanders; the Treaty of Paris that brought British rule to a humiliating conclusion; and an original Declaration of Independence, printed in Philadelphia on the night of July 4th 1776, a document that changed the world.
This film is a different way to consider the dramatic events of 250 years ago - an evolving transatlantic story of twists and turns as both sides tried to assert themselves through negotiation and on the battlefield - great events captured in messages, treaties, petitions and declarations.
You can find out more here about the National Archives’ fascinating exhibition: Revolution 250: America’s Independence Story 1763-1783