Independence: The View From Britain.

Most British officers in the colonies either hoped for reconciliation, placing little importance on the Declaration of Independence, or treated it with indifference or contempt. Letters home to official London at first barely mentioned the document; a complete copy did not appear in print in London until the middle of August 1776. British reaction was a mixture of contempt for its ideology and anger over colonial ingratitude. Primary and secondary sources; 23 notes.