This last Fourth of July we all celebrated the signing of the Declaration of Independence, that first bold step on the journey toward the foundation of a nation based on the principles of liberty. On this day, 229 years ago, 56 men living in an age of radical ideas about the rights of individuals committed high treason against a superpower and charted a course to liberty with nothing more than their pledge and their faith in God.

However, in spite of the importance of this document, and the courage of the men who signed it, most people have little idea what is in the Declaration much less anything about the men who signed it.

Many people are surprised to learn that George Washington was not one of the signers. Signers such as Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Rush, and Samuel Adams are familiar, but the other 51 signers, such as William Whipple, George Clymer, and Carter Braxton, are virtually unknown.

Nevertheless these men pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor on a gamble, and some gave the ultimate sacrifice, for an experiment in government that had not been tested since the Roman Republic, 1700 years before them.

Of the better known signers, Thomas Jefferson drafted the Declaration, served as Governor of Virginia during the Revolution, and eventually secured the peace as Minister Plenipotentiary. Jefferson is also the reason why our monetary units are in divisions of ten, based on the metric system, rather than the traditional units of eight.

Benjamin Franklin was actually a royalist until being dressed down before London Privy Council by Solicitor General Wedderburn caused him to realize that he would forever be considered a second-class citizen in the eyes of Britain—in spite of his already world-renowned status as a diplomat, statesman, scientist, and inventor.

Franklin was most beneficial to the war effort by securing an alliance with France, without which we would likely be a British commonwealth to this day.

Samuel Adams was indeed a brewer, but a rather poor one and an unsuccessful businessman as well. Failing at business, but succeeding in politics, he became governor of Massachusetts.

In spite of the familiarity of some, it is often the lesser known signers that deserve our greatest respect, for the reason they are lesser known is often because they did not fare so well as others after the war.

Carter Braxton was born into a wealthy family in Virginia. His devotion to the cause of liberty caused him to become deeply in debt by supporting shipping and privateering operations as well as loaning œ10,000 Sterling to the fledging Colonies. He eventually lost his inherited estate and died living in simple quarters in 1797.

Richard Stockton of New Jersey was fortunate enough to move his family to safety before the British overran his state, but he was quickly captured, imprisoned, and treated harshly by the British. He lost his writings, his library, and all his property during the invasion, dying a pauper at the age of 51.

As the saying goes, all gave some and some gave all. It is to these men, in recognition of their courage and heroism, that we will be eternally grateful for an effort in freedom that changed the course of history and the world.

These men were not wild-eyed radicals or individuals with nothing to lose. They were well-educated, usually wealthy, and likely had the most to lose in their effort to establish an ideal. They are more than the names on a piece of paper, but brave souls who dared to defy an empire to establish the blessings of liberty for us all.

“And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.”