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12 Clever Memes For The 4th Of July, That History Buffs Will Get A Total Kick Out Of

by Emily Kelleher

For American history buffs, few days provide as much material as the Fourth of July. It marks the founding of our country and provides a day to recognize its short but rich history. So what better way to celebrate than with some clever, historically accurate fourth of July memes? Not only will they make your friends and family laugh, they'll reveal who the true history lovers are.

You can test their knowledge with these little known fFourth of July facts. We celebrate this historic day because of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, but few know this fun fact from Business Insider: only two of the seven founding fathers, John Hancock and Charles Thomson, actually signed it that day. Most of the others actually signed it on August 2. And the Second Continental Congress actually declared independence from Great Britain on July 2, but the written version of the declaration was drafted two days later, July 4, 1776.

John Adams even argued that the new country should celebrate its independence on the 2nd instead of the 4th. In a letter to his wife Abigail, John Adams said that July 2 "ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade with shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this continent to the other from this Time forward forever more," the National Constitution Center reported. He may not have gotten his chosen Independence Day, but as far as celebrations go, today's traditions aren't far off.

While there was much discussion amongst the founding fathers about when to celebrate American independence, it wasn't until almost a century later, in 1870, that Congress declared July fourth a federal holiday, and it took until 1941 for Independence Day to become a paid holiday. This year, enjoy your day off with the memes below.

Happy 4th From The Queen herself

Looks like Great Britain's got another name for Independence Day. It's almost a miracle to think that the United States of America exists today considering all the places the British Empire managed to colonize throughout history.

If George Washington Were Alive In The Meme Age...

Say it with me now: no taxation without representation. This may be a modern take on the events that caused the colonies to revolt, but it covers the gist of what happened, right?

Even Thomas Jefferson (Probably) Wasn't Above A Little Procrastination

We feel you Tom. Procrastination nation. Though who knows if we'd be a nation at all if Thomas Jefferson had procrastinated any longer.

No King for us please

I'm pretty sure the Declaration of Independence used a slightly different phrase, but we can still laugh at the thought of George Washington swearing. I mean, I'm pretty sure the combination of a government without representation and having to wear one of those wigs would get me pretty worked up too.

The British are coming!

LOL. Sorry Great Britain, it's not that simple. Still, maybe sleep with one eye open.

@Great Britain it's not us, it's you

Break-ups are tough. They often involve tears, and sometimes start wars, plus you never know how the other person is going to react. With this particular one, the British army was called in. Dramatic much?

If The Founding Fathers Could Have Foreseen The Tide Pod Trend...

The forefathers made sure to create a constitution that would stand the test of time and account for new technologies. But how could they have predicted a world in which people would want to eat Tide pods? It's probably best that they couldn't foresee such a trend before they entrusted the government to the people.

Not Sure They Celebrate July 4th Across The Pond

Some say tomato, some say tomato. But do you know what they all say? The winner writes the history books.

If The Colonies And Great Britain Were School Children

We've all passed notes in our day. But how many of those notes have started international wars?

George Washington Memes

I'm not quite sure what George was actually thinking in the moments portrayed above, but I love these modern pop culture takes. Who knows, maybe George would be a Drake fan if he were alive today.

If George Washington Had A Slogan...

Great branding, George. Without our first president there would be no America to make great!