On June 7, 1776, the Virginian Richard Henry Lee introduced the following resolution on the floor of the Second Continental Congress:
That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved.
After considering this resolution twice (June 8 and 10), Congress postponed further consideration until July 1. Although the resolution was certain to pass, unanimous ratification by the colonies was wanted, and for various reasons this was not possible until some glitches had been worked out.
Lee’s resolution for American Independence passed on July 2 (not July 4). This prompted an excited John Adams to write to his wife, Abigail:
The Second Day of July 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty. It 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.
"That Audacious Document": Notes on the Declaration of Independence | Libertarianism.org
Was Thomas Jefferson a Plagiarist? | Libertarianism.org
The Philosophy of the Declaration of Independence: Part 1 | Libertarianism.org
The Philosophy of the Declaration of Independence: Part 2 | Libertarianism.org
What led up to it
Americans with Attitudes: Smuggling in Colonial America | Libertarianism.org
"Liberty and Property!" The Sons of Liberty and Resistance to the Stamp Act Part 1 | Libertarianism.org
The Sons of Liberty and Resistance to the Stamp Act, Part Two | Libertarianism.org
A Misunderstanding, the Townshend Act, and More Trouble in the American Colonies | Libertarianism.org
The Boston Massacre | Libertarianism.org
Committees of Correspondence and the Road to American Independence | Libertarianism.org
The Boston Tea Party | Libertarianism.org
The Coercive Acts and Their Theoretical Significance | Libertarianism.org
Fingering the King on the Road to Independence | Libertarianism.org
That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved.
After considering this resolution twice (June 8 and 10), Congress postponed further consideration until July 1. Although the resolution was certain to pass, unanimous ratification by the colonies was wanted, and for various reasons this was not possible until some glitches had been worked out.
Lee’s resolution for American Independence passed on July 2 (not July 4). This prompted an excited John Adams to write to his wife, Abigail:
The Second Day of July 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty. It 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.
"That Audacious Document": Notes on the Declaration of Independence | Libertarianism.org
Was Thomas Jefferson a Plagiarist? | Libertarianism.org
The Philosophy of the Declaration of Independence: Part 1 | Libertarianism.org
The Philosophy of the Declaration of Independence: Part 2 | Libertarianism.org
What led up to it
Americans with Attitudes: Smuggling in Colonial America | Libertarianism.org
"Liberty and Property!" The Sons of Liberty and Resistance to the Stamp Act Part 1 | Libertarianism.org
The Sons of Liberty and Resistance to the Stamp Act, Part Two | Libertarianism.org
A Misunderstanding, the Townshend Act, and More Trouble in the American Colonies | Libertarianism.org
The Boston Massacre | Libertarianism.org
Committees of Correspondence and the Road to American Independence | Libertarianism.org
The Boston Tea Party | Libertarianism.org
The Coercive Acts and Their Theoretical Significance | Libertarianism.org
Fingering the King on the Road to Independence | Libertarianism.org
