July 4th, 1776: the American Declaration of Independence is adopted by the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia. This document marks the first successful secession from a European empire, and one that is grounded not in dynastic or petty grievance but universalist appeals.

Indeed, the second sentence reads;

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

As one of the first, and the largest of the wave of Enlightenment-inspired "Atlantic Revolutions," the declaration would go on to influence people across the world, starting with Haiti and Latin America, before moving to Europe and influencing events like the French Revolution. As far forward as 1945, Ho Chi Minh used it as inspiration for Vietnam's independence.

Image: The Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776, John Trumbull,