People gather at a Fourth of July parade in Huntington Beach, California, in 2019.
Credit: © Sal Augruso, Shutterstock

The Fourth of July is Independence Day in the United States. The day marks the nation’s birthday, July 4, 1776, when delegates to the Second Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, adopted the Declaration of Independence.

The delegates represented the 13 British colonies, which had come to resent the ever-increasing taxes and restrictions that King George III sought to impose on them. In April 1775, British troops had clashed with colonial militia at Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts, in effect signaling the outbreak of the American Revolution.

The Declaration of Independence explained the reasons for the colonists’ rejection of British rule, detailed the ways in which the British government had violated American rights, and declared the freedom of the American colonies from Britain. Its stirring opening paragraphs stated that the people of every country have the right to change or overthrow any government that violates their essential rights. The ideas expressed so majestically in the Declaration have long inspired the pursuit of freedom and self-government throughout the world. The American Revolution ended in 1783 when Britain recognized the independence of the United States.

July 4 is traditionally a day of patriotism and celebration, including a full menu of picnics or cookouts and fireworks, with popular side dishes of baseball, fairs, parades, and parties. In early days, American Independence Days were occasions for shows, games, military music, and fireworks. Today, most cities and states forbid the sale of fireworks, though many have large public fireworks displays organized by professionals. Many public officials are advising against setting off fireworks as the north grapples with Canadian wildfire smoke and the south faces intense heat waves.

The Fourth of July isn’t just a day for celebration, however. It’s also a good time to reflect on the promise of freedom outlined in the Declaration of Independence and to think about how various groups are still struggling to achieve that freedom.

December 30, 2019

Today, December 30, is José Rizal Day in the Philippines. The holiday celebrates the life of Rizal, a doctor and novelist who became a national hero of the Philippines. Rizal was an early leader of the Filipino movement for political and social freedom from Spain. December 30 marks the day in 1896 when the Spaniards, who ruled the Philippines at the time, executed Rizal for his activities.

The physician and writer José Rizal is a national hero of the Philippines. His life is celebrated on December 30. Credit: Public Domain

A national public holiday, Rizal Day has been celebrated in the Philippines since 1898. Commemorations include the lowering of the Philippine flag to half-mast and wreath laying-ceremonies at the Rizal Monument and execution site in Manila, the Rizal Monument in Baguio City, and the Rizal Shrines in Calamba (a reproduction of his birth house) and Dapitan (his place of exile on Mindanao).

The flag of the Philippines dates back to the Philippine struggle for independence in the 1890’s. Credit: © Loveshop/Shutterstock

José Mercado y Alonso Rizal was born on June 19, 1861, in Calamba on the main Filipino island of Luzon. He studied medicine at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila. After obtaining his qualifications in medicine in Madrid, Spain, Rizal traveled to Germany, England, and France, where he continued to study medicine. He wrote for La Solidaridad (The Solidarity) a magazine published in Barcelona that campaigned for reforms in the Philippines.

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Philippines
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Rizal gained worldwide attention with two novels that exposed the ills of the Spanish colonial government and Filipino society: Noli Me Tangere (1887, Latin for Touch Me Not) and El Filibusterismo (1891, The Subversive). While conducting research at the British Museum in London, Rizal came across a history of the Philippines written by Antonio de Morga, a Spanish historian and colonial official, in 1609. Morga’s book described an attractive civilization in the Philippines before Spanish colonization. In 1890, Rizal printed a new edition of the history with his own notes added to the text.

In 1892, Rizal returned to Manila, where he founded La Liga Filipina (The Philippine League) on July 3. The League was a partly secret association devoted to promoting unity and reforming the colony. On July 6, Rizal was arrested and exiled to the Philippine island of Mindanao. During his exile, Rizal practiced medicine and taught students. In 1896, Spanish authorities permitted him to go to Cuba, at that time a Spanish colony, to treat patients infected during a yellow fever outbreak.

That same year, the Katipunan, a secret Filipino revolutionary society, tried to overthrow the Spanish government. Rizal was on his way to Cuba when the revolution broke out. Though he had no connection with the Katipunan or the uprising, a Spanish military court found him guilty of promoting the rebellion. On the morning of Dec. 30, 1896, Rizal was executed by firing squad in Manila.

November 30, 2016

Fifty years ago today, on Nov. 30, 1966, Barbados—an island country at the far eastern end of the Caribbean Sea—gained independence from the United Kingdom. Renowned for its beauty, Barbados is a successful independent nation with a strong economy and vibrant culture. Events celebrating the nation’s independence have taken place throughout 2016, culminating with the unveiling of a 50th anniversary monument today, along with a dazzling parade and a “Golden Anniversary Spectacular Mega Concert.”

The beaches of Barbados, as seen here, have helped make the lovely island a desirable tourist destination. The Caribbean nation celebrates its 50th anniversary of independence on Nov. 30, 2016. Credit: © Filip Fuxa, Shutterstock

Located about 250 miles (400 kilometers) northeast of Venezuela, Barbados is a small, pork chop-shaped island covering just 166 square miles (430 square kilometers). But, with nearly 300,000 people on the island, it is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. In many ways, life in Barbados resembles life in the United Kingdom. Traffic moves on the left, cricket is the most popular sport, and the harbor police in Bridgetown, the capital, wear colonial-style uniforms that date from the late 1700′s. The people of Barbados speak English. About 90 percent of the country’s people are descendants of enslaved West Africans brought to Barbados between 1636 and 1833.

The flag of Barbados has three wide, vertical stripes. The two outer stripes are blue (for the sea and sky) and the center stripe is orange (for the sand of the beaches). A black trident head with a broken shaft is in the center. It stands for Neptune, the sea god, and for the change from dependence to independence. Credit: © Dream Maker Software

Arawak and Carib Indians lived on Barbados before Europeans first arrived and mapped the island in the early 1500’s. The English reached Barbados in 1625 and soon established a prosperous colony. Many English families settled there in the 1700′s and 1800′s. In the 1900’s, many Caribbean Islands became independent or gained more control over their own affairs, including Barbados. In the early 1960’s, Barbados and several other Caribbean Islands tried to form a federation, but they could not agree on a constitution. Barbados then decided to go it alone, gaining independence from the United Kingdom on Nov. 30, 1966.

Since then, Barbados has joined the Commonwealth of Nations, the Organization of American States, the United Nations, and the Caribbean Free Trade Association (now called the Caribbean Community). Barbados’s pleasant climate and sandy beaches have made it a popular vacation resort, and tourism is a major industry.

Barbados gets its name from either the Portuguese or Spanish word barbados, meaning bearded ones. It is unclear whether this refers to the hanging roots of the bearded fig tree native to the island, or to the island’s supposedly bearded Carib inhabitants. Famous Barbadians of today include pop singer Rihanna, hip-hop star Grandmaster Flash, writer Kamau Brathwaite, and the legendary cricketer and “national hero” Garry Sobers.

September 19, 2014

Scotland will remain a part of the United Kingdom after yesterday’s referendum (vote) on Scottish independence (known as devolution in Britain).  Turnout for the referendum was very large, with 85 percent of the people of Scotland voting. Experts had expected the final tally to be close, but with 55 percent of the voters casting a ballot against independence and 45 percent voting in favor, it was actually a fairly decisive victory for the “no’s.”

Scotland’s beautiful castles and landscapes will remain a part of the United Kingdom after yesterday’s referendum. (© Marcin Ciesielski/Sylwia Cisek, Shutterstock)

The United Kingdom was formed in 1707 by the Acts of Union of the Scottish parliament in 1706 and the English parliament in 1707. The nations had already shared a monarch for more than 100 years, with the ascension in 1603 of the Scottish King James VI (the English James I) to the throne of England upon the death of his cousin Elizabeth I.

Despite the acts in the 1700′s, Scotland has a long history of trying to maintain autonomy (independence) from its larger neighbor to the south. The Scottish War of Independence fought in the 1200′s by the national hero William Wallace has fired Scottish pride for centuries. (Wallace was the subject of the 1995 film Braveheart.) In the early 1300′s, Scottish king Robert Bruce spent most of his reign trying to keep Scotland free of English rule.

In the late 1800′s and 1900′s, a number of movements attempted to secure either home rule or independence for Scotland. In the 1950′s, a petition requesting Scottish independence—the Scottish Covenant—acquired 2 million signatures but was not acted upon. In the 1970′s, growing Scottish nationalism and the discovery of oil in the North Sea off Scotland’s eastern coast made the idea of Scottish devolution still more popular. In 1979, a Scottish referendum on independence narrowly won by 52 percent to 48 percent, but the vote did not count because turnout for the election had not been high enough. A second winning vote on devolution in 1997 led to the formation of Scotland’s current parliament.

Before the bid for Scottish independence had been defeated, U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron had pledged to increase the amount of autonomy enjoyed by the Scottish parliament if Scotland stayed in the Union.

Additional World Book articles:

• Scotland, History of
• United Kingdom (1976—a Back in time article)
• United Kingdom (1978—a Back in time article)
• United Kingdom (1979—a Back in time article)