Summary
The Second Continental Congress represents the people of the new nation
called the United States of America. This declaration informs all the people of
the world that the 13 united colonies are free from British rule and any
political connections with Great Britain. The declaration also serves to appeal
to the people of the world to understand the reasons why this separation is
justifiable.
The independent states claim the power to levy war, make peace, make alliances
with foreign nations, conduct trade, and to do anything else that independent
states have the right to do.
The newly independent states believe that God will protect them in their venture
to establish a just government. The citizens of each colony have pledged their
loyalty and lives to the cause of the newly independent nation.
Commentary
The conclusion is important in clarifying the identity of the new nation, as
well as defining the powers granted to the new government. Many of the
delegates to the Second Continental Convention saw the Declaration of
Independence as important because of the message it would send to foreign
nations. They were especially concerned with enlisting the military help of the
French in their war against Great Britain. They therefore thought it necessary
to assert clearly that they had no allegiance or connection to Great Britain.
The new nation is not only named in this conclusion as the United States of
America, but its authority is defined as well. The conclusion serves to
establish the authority of the Second Continental Congress over issues of
international affairs, war and peace, and trade. With these powers in hand, the
Congress is empowered to run the affairs of government related to the declared
war.
However, the conclusion is unclear regarding the individual states'
responsibilities to each other. The Declaration describes itself as a
union of colonies, each of which is a free and independent state. This is
problematic because the statement indicates that the colonies are one united
whole, while simultaneously stating that each state is free and independent. A
few sentences later, the Declaration states that the former colonies, "
as free and independent states, ... have full power to levy war," thereby
indicating that each state, individually, has the right to levy war, make peace,
etc. This inconsistency would later turn into a debate about the nature of the
government of the United States. Was the United States a loose confederation of
independent states, each of which could act on behalf of its own interest? Or,
was the United States a strong centralized nation in which the powers of the
whole were stronger than the powers of each individual state? The
Declaration states that the colonists have pledged mutual allegiance, but
does that mean the pledge will continue beyond the war effort?
Another problem with the Declaration is that while the free and
independent states are granted the right to make war and peace, the document
gives no specific provisions explaining how the war will be paid for. This
problem plagued Congress during the Revolutionary War and for many years
afterwards. Without the power to tax, Congress could only request money from
colonial governments, which had debts of their own to pay. The vague reference
to these issues served to keep the statement of independence from being further
bogged down in political debate.
