Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence

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The Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence is a controversial, possibly apocryphal 1775 document said to have proclaimed independence from Britain in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, more than a year before the U.S. Declaration of Independence.

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Observed surface forms (1)

Surface form Occurrences
Mecklenburg Resolves 1

Statements (47)

Predicate Object
instanceOf apocryphal document
controversial document
historical document
assertedToHaveBeenSignedBy local leaders of Mecklenburg County
associatedWith Mecklenburg Resolves NERFINISHED
North Carolina state history
authenticity contested
chronologicalClaimRelativeTo United States Declaration of Independence NERFINISHED
commemoratedBy annual celebrations in Mecklenburg County
commemoratedOn North Carolina state flag NERFINISHED
comparedTo United States Declaration of Independence in language and ideas
country Thirteen Colonies NERFINISHED
dateOnNorthCarolinaFlag 1775-05-20
describedAs earliest declaration of independence by American colonists
evidenceStatus original document lost
hasControversy question of whether the document ever existed
relationship to the Mecklenburg Resolves of May 31, 1775
hasPart assertions of natural rights
denunciations of British authority
resolutions declaring political independence
historicity disputed
influenced North Carolina state identity
inspired local patriotic traditions in North Carolina
jurisdiction Province of North Carolina NERFINISHED
knownFrom later recollections
nineteenth-century publications
language English
location Mecklenburg County, North Carolina NERFINISHED
mainSubject American Revolutionary War NERFINISHED
American independence
separation from Great Britain
oftenConfusedWith Mecklenburg Resolves NERFINISHED
relatedTo American colonial declarations of rights
Halifax Resolves NERFINISHED
saidToBeEarlierThan United States Declaration of Independence NERFINISHED
saidToHaveBeenAdoptedBy Mecklenburg County Committee NERFINISHED
citizens of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina
saidToHaveBeenAdoptedOn 1775-05-20
saidToHaveBeenDraftedOn 1775-05-20
significantEvent alleged early declaration of independence in North Carolina
statedIn United States NERFINISHED
statedPurpose to declare independence from Great Britain
subjectOf North Carolina historical society discussions
historiographical debate
scholarly articles
timePeriod American Revolutionary era NERFINISHED
yearEarlierThan 1776

Referenced by (2)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

North Carolina’s Halifax Resolves follows Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence
subject surface form: Halifax Resolves
this entity surface form: Mecklenburg Resolves
Charlotte Independence namedAfter Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence