Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, 1793
Editor’s Note: An expanded version of the 1789 French declaration, this revised version goes even further than its predecessor — it places greater emphasis on egalitarianism and endows all humans with even greater rights. Though it was never officially enacted, it nonetheless has been highly influential when it comes to advancing notions in the generation sto […]
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, 1789
Editor’s Note: If there was a declaration to be written in the years soon after the founding of our republic, who better than Thomas Jefferson to have at least have some hand in its composition? As U.S. minister to France, Jefferson at times leant his expertise and insights — in many ways the product of […]
Declaration of Czecho-Slovak Independence (1918)
Editor’s Note: On October 18, 1918, from their base in Paris, the Czecho-Slovak Provisional Government issued a declaration of independence. The declaration came out after the historic ‘Pittsburgh Agreement,’ in which key Czech and Slovak expatriates, who convened shortly after World War I, and in the face of the break-up of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, agreed […]
Declaration of Independence of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (1945)
Editor’s Note: Ho Chi Minh’s September 2, 1945 declaration, proclaimed an independent Democratic Republic of Vietnam. The opening passage by Paris-educated Ho Chi Minh, founder of the Vietnamese Communist Party, was a verbatim recitation of our July 4, 1776. The declaration was written in the aftermath of Japan’s defeat in World War II and France’s attempt to reclaim […]
Haitian Declaration of Independence (1804)
Editor’s Note: On January 1, 1804, after a protracted war with forces sent by Napoleon Bonaparte to quell its uprising, Haiti (formerly Saint-Domingue) declared its independence from France. It became the second colony in the Americas, following the United States, to make a formal break with its ruling country. Penned by Boisrond-Tonnerre — who composed it […]
