The Declaration of Independence includes a list of grievances against King George III and the British government, explaining why the American colonies were separating from Great Britain. The list of grievances is composed of 27 specific complaints about the conduct of the King and the British government. Some of the key grievances include:
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Taxation: Parliaments insistence that they had a right to impose taxes in all cases was subjecting the colonies to "a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws".
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Quartering of troops: The King had quartered large bodies of armed troops among the colonists.
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Deprivation of rights: The King had deprived the colonists of the benefit of trial by jury.
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Standing armies: The King had kept standing armies among the colonists in times of peace without the consent of their legislatures.
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Plundering: The King had plundered the seas, ravaged the coasts, burnt towns, and destroyed the lives of the colonists.
The grievances were intended to demonstrate that the King had violated the colonists rights and was unfit to govern them. The Declaration of Independence was adopted on July 4, 1776, by the Second Continental Congress, which voted unanimously to issue it.
