==Events and trends== July 4, 1776: The United States Declaration of Independence was ratified by the Continental Congress. The document was drafted by a committee consisting of representatives John Adams of Massachusetts, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, Robert R. Livingston of New York and Roger Sherman of Connecticut. 1779: Abol Fath Khan rose to the throne of Persia as the second Shah of the Zand dynasty. The Ferguson rifle, an invention by British Major Pa… (More on 1770s)