On July 4, 1776, the Congress took a momentous step and issued the Declaration of Independence. Although the delegates were partly motivated by the necessity of securing foreign allies‚particularly the French‚to assist with the war effort against Britain, many of them also understood that the time for negotiations was over. Nothing short of full independence would suffice. Thomas Jefferson composed the first draft of the declaration, which was then edited by the other delegates to produce the final version that was approved on July 4.
