The Fourth Of July And The Founding Of America, by Peter de Bolla

"Not since Philadelphia in 1776 has so much freedom been found in one place." So runs the drive-by ad for a casino in Las Vegas. It refers to the Declaration of Independence on 4 July that year, which was signed by the second Continental Congress in the State House. This event has saturated and structured American patriotism: it is the founding moment, the origin of the nation, the country's birthday.

It is also, predictably, a myth. In this survey, Peter de Bolla sketches the gradual genesis of the nation and some of its symbols. Everyone knows that the Declaration was signed on 4 July 1776, and everyone is wrong. On 7 June, Thomas Jefferson was asked to draw up a document of independence, and he presented his first draft on 28 June. The proposals were agreed over the first two days of July, with only the decision to publish decided on 4 July. The declaration was first read on 8 July, to public celebrations.

At the time, John Adams noted that "the Second Day of July 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America", and predicted annual celebrations.

He was right, despite getting the day wrong. Nevertheless, origins are messy affairs and ill-suited to commemoration, which prefers the practicality of single dates to gradual emergence, and single creators to collective authorship.

Jefferson, the chief architect of the Declaration of Independence, was also the prime mover in mythologising the Fourth of July. If he made the Declaration his own, then doing so was effectively the first demonstration of American individualism, and a template to which each citizen could aspire. Other founding myths followed similar lines: whether in the homespun creation of the first star-spangled banner, or the ever-sprightly figure of Uncle Sam. The popular symbols of America are all projections of the spirits of individualism and independence.

Although De Bolla is reluctant to pursue his quarry much further than Jimi Hendrix performing "The Star-Spangled Banner" at midnight on 4 July 1970, the significance of the event goes far deeper. By establishing a framework for patriotic veneration, the Fourth of July ritually transformed icons such as the Stars and Stripes. It became much more than just a flag: it became a totem. And the society structured by such rituals and totems is a society characterised by blood sacrifice.

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Nick Groom's 'The Union Jack' is published by Atlantic