Did you know that while Americans were celebrating independence on July 4, 1776, it took until August for the news to reach London? Across the Atlantic, the reaction was far more muted, highlighting how information traveled slowly in the 18th century and how the bold step of declaring independence was experienced differently on each side of the ocean.

In this episode of This Constitution, Savannah Eccles Johnston and Matthew Brogdon explore how the world reacted to America’s bold declaration of independence. They trace the document’s uncertain journey across the Atlantic, with copies lost in shipwrecks and others seized by British vessels, and examine how foreign governments and the press responded once the news finally reached them.

In Britain, officials publicly dismissed it, but the press debated it vigorously. Some magazines printed the full text alongside loyalist rebuttals. Jeremy Bentham issued a sharp critique, and King George III cast American leaders as reckless agitators misleading their people.

France paid close attention, but real support only came after the American victory at Saratoga proved the revolution could succeed. 

Savannah and Matthew also examine the Declaration’s built-in restraint, especially its warning against changing governments for light and transient causes. That note of prudence may explain the world’s initial shrug. Military victory secured independence, but over time, the Declaration’s ideas reshaped global thinking about liberty and self-government.

In This Episode

• (00:00) Opening and introduction
• (00:17) International reaction overview
• (01:56) Universal and provocative language
• (03:53) Prudence and limits on revolution
• (05:19) Comparison to other revolutions
• (06:47) Declaration as diplomatic statement
• (07:23) Spread of the Declaration in Europe
• (08:11) Suppression in Russia and Spain
• (10:06) British reaction: official response
• (11:57) King George III’s speech
• (13:57) Parliamentary debate
• (16:53) British press reaction
• (23:32) Impact on US-British relations
• (23:55) French reaction and delayed support
• (26:32) Spanish reaction and suppression
• (30:43) Summary and long-term impact

Notable Quotes

• (00:30) "The Declaration of Independence is wonderfully important within the colonies, but internationally it's kind of met with a bit of a yawn.”— Savannah Eccles Johnston
• (00:44) "The rest of the world, now they know that this isn't a British civil war, but these colonists think they're actually independent. But mostly it's still a shrug." — Savannah Eccles Johnston
• (05:53) "This is the place where I think the American Revolution is revolutionary, but it doesn't become global in the sense that the French Revolution does. The French Revolution sparked basically a world war." — Matthew Brogdon
• (09:06) "These Germans living in St. Petersburg knew that the Russian government would never put up with them printing the word 'independence' in a newspaper." — Matthew Brogdon
• (09:27) “The Spanish government suppressed the Declaration, even though the Spanish are going to play a very important role in the American Revolution. The Spanish will suppress it.”— Savannah Eccles Johnston
• (12:23) "No people ever enjoyed more happiness or lived under a milder government than those revolted provinces." — King George III (quoted by Savannah Eccles Johnston)
• (18:43) "The unalienable right of talking nonsense." — British magazine editorial aside (quoted by Savannah Eccles Johnston)
• (27:53) "It's a bit of a compliment to the British, actually. The country with which we're actually at war has a robust discussion about our claims in its newspapers. The allies that we wind up with in the war do not want this published." — Matthew Brogdon