乔治·华盛顿的军事生涯始于弗吉尼亚民兵少校，保护殖民地免受法国和美洲原住民联合部队的袭击。他一直渴望加入英国军队。
George Washington was eager to join the British army, protecting the colonies against attacks by combined forces of French and Native Americans.
1754年，年仅22岁的华盛顿首次指挥一大群士兵执行一项任务，将他们送到宾夕法尼亚州西南部的山区。当发现法国人和印第安人远远超过他的部队人数时，他下令建造一个城堡，命名为“必要堡”。可是，这不足以抵挡聚集起来对抗华盛顿及其军队的力量，他被迫交出堡垒。那是1754年7月4日。
In 1754, at the age of 22, he commanded a large group of soldiers for the first time, on a mission that sent them into the mountains of what would later be southwest Pennsylvania. Finding that his force was outnumbered by the French and the natives, he ordered construction of the appropriately named Fort Necessity. This was not enough to withstand the forces gathered against Washington and his troops. He was forced to surrender the fort. It was July 4, 1754.
这是北美著名的法印战争和欧洲七年战争的开场。英国人在战争中取得了胜利，但冲突的经济成本是导致美国独立战争的决定性因素。英国通过了几项法律，试图向殖民者征税，以支付保卫殖民地所需的军事开支。由于殖民地在议会中没有代表，许多殖民者认为这种征税是非法的。“无代表不纳税！”成了口号。
This was the opening scene of what became known as the French and Indian War in North America and the Seven Years War in Europe. The British emerged victorious in the war, but the financial cost of the conflict was a decisive factor in the events that led to the American Revolution. The British passed several laws that attempted to tax the colonists to pay for the military expenses necessary to defend the colonies. Since the colonies had no representation in Parliament, many colonists believed that this levying of taxes was illegal. "No taxation without representation!" became a slogan.
华盛顿在“必要堡”战败22年后，他在纽约市指挥殖民军队对抗英国人。1776年7月4日，大陆会议在费城进行了最后的修改，并发表了他们两天前商定的《独立宣言》。该文件最终将有 56 个签名，但截至7月4日，只有两个签名，分别是大陆会议主席约翰·汉考克和大陆会议秘书查尔斯·汤姆森。
Twenty-two years after Washington's defeat at Fort Necessity, he was in New York City commanding the colonial army against the British. On July 4, 1776，in Philadelphia, the Continental Congress made the final edits and published the Declaration of Independence on which they had agreed two days earlier. There would eventually be fifty-six signatures on the document, but as of July 4, there were only two, those of John Hancock, president of the Continental Congress, and Charles Thomson, secretary of the Continental Congress.
约翰·汉考克（John Hancock）以大字体签下了自己的名字，他说，他这样做“是为了让乔治国王不戴眼镜就能读到它”。约翰·汉考克是独立事业的早期领袖——他显然受到同僚们的尊重，被任命为大陆会议主席。然而，今天他被人们记住的原因几乎完全是因为他的签名。事实上，“约翰·汉考克”这个词已经成为签名的同义词。例如，当指出文档上需要签名的位置时，人们可能会说：“把你的约翰·汉考克放在那里。”
John Hancock signed his name in a large script, and he was quoted as saying that he did it "so King George can read it without his spectacles." John Hancock was an early leader in the cause for independence - and he was obviously respected enough by his colleagues to be named President of the Continental Congress. But it is almost completely for his signature that he is remembered today. In fact, the term "John Hancock" has come to be synonymous with signature. For example, when pointing out the location on a document where a signature is required, one might say, "Put your John Hancock right there."
约翰·亚当斯和托马斯·杰斐逊是那次大陆会议的两个主要参与者。来自弗吉尼亚州的杰斐逊是《独立宣言》的主要作者，马萨诸塞州的亚当斯是编辑之一。
John Adams and Thomas Jefferson were two key participants in that Continental Congress. The Virginian Jefferson was the main author of the Declaration of Independence. Adams, of Massachusetts, was one of its editors.
1797年，亚当斯接替华盛顿成为美国第二任总统。杰斐逊是第三任总统。这两个人在美国宣布独立时是亲密的合作者，到他们担任总统期间已成为死敌。然而，离开白宫后，他们不仅和好了，还成为好朋友甚至忠贞的笔友。在某种程度上，他们的关系好似美利坚合众国的早期历史。南北双方在革命时期紧密团结，在共同宣布脱离英国而独立的85年后，却爆发内战。在内战年代的暴力之后，南北双方重新统一并再次成为一个国家。
In 1797, Adams would become the second U.S. President, succeeding Washington. Jefferson was the third President. These two men, who were close collaborators when the U.S. declared independence, had become bitter political enemies by the time of their presidencies. Later in life, however, they reconciled and became good friends and faithful correspondents. In a way, their relationship represents the early history of the American republic. The North and the South, connected at the time of the Revolution, erupted into Civil War eighty-five years after declaring independence from Britain together. After the violence of those Civil War years, the regions reunited and became one country again.
亚当斯和杰斐逊在他们生命的最后十几年里一直保持着通信。有意思的是，在1826年7月4日当天，即《独立宣言》签署五十周年之际，他们先后告别人间。杰斐逊离世前很清楚当天的日期，就在弥留之际，他问“是4号吗？”享年83岁。历史学家记录显示，亚当斯在他 90 岁去世前说了一句“托马斯·杰斐逊还活着”。亚当斯在杰斐逊去世数小时后与世长辞。
Adams and Jefferson maintained their correspondence for the last dozen years of their lives. Remarkably, on July 4, 1826, the fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, they both died. Jefferson was well aware of the date. He was quoted as asking, "Is it the Fourth?" not long before he died at age 83. Historians report that Adams remarked that "Thomas Jefferson survives" shortly before his own death at age ninety.
真的不知道他们是约好一起上天堂的吗？要是那时有手机的话，杰斐逊很有可能发个短信给亚当斯：老兄，我先走一步了～
亚当斯回复：老弟，等等我，我马上就来～
Were they meant to go to heaven together? If he had a cell phone, Jefferson would probably have texted Adams: Dude, I'm going a step ahead~
Adams replied: Brother, wait for me, I'll come right away~
1776年，詹姆斯·门罗在大陆军中担任乔治·华盛顿手下的一名军官，1817~1825年成为美国第五任总统。1831年7月4日，也就是亚当斯和杰斐逊去世五年后，门罗去世，享年73岁。
James Monroe, the fifth president of the United States, served as an officer under George Washington in the Continental Army in 1776. On July 4, 1831, five years to the day after the deaths of Adams and Jefferson, Monroe died at age seventy-three.
美国开国元勋中，三位卒于《独立宣言》的诞生日7月4日。
Three founding fathers of the United States died on July 4, the birth date of the Declaration of Independence.
约翰·杜伦巴尔的名画《独立宣言》签署人之群像常被人误解为他们聚集在一起签署了《独立宣言》，实为《独立宣言》的五人起草委员会向国会提交他们的文件。56名签署人没有出现在同一时空。
John Trumbull's famous painting of the group of signers of The Declaration of Independence is often misunderstood as they gathered to sign the Declaration of Independence, but it is actually the five-person drafting committee presenting their documents to Congress. The signatories did not assemble at the same place at the same time.
天佑美国！God Bless America!
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