The cheeseman

I've made long posts before for Independence Day, and I'm gonna do something similar today.

On June seventh, 1776, Richard Henry Lee, the senior Virginia delegate to the Continental Congress, called for a resolution that stated, "Resolved,

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.

That it is expedient forthwith to take the most effectual measures for forming foreign Alliances.

That a plan of confederation be prepared and transmitted to the respective Colonies for their consideration and approbation."

The Lee Resolution, as it became known, was such a radical proposition that the Congress debated it for almost a month before, on July 2nd, a formal vote for independence was called and approved with 12 votes standing and one abstention, New York.

July 2nd is, obviously, not celebrated as Independence Day. This is because there was not yet a complete, official document that the Congress could release out to the Colonies and the people. Two days later, Thomas Jefferson presented the document we know as the Declaration of Independence to the Congress, where it received signatures from fifty five men including my ancestor John Adams. I would say that the rest is history, but I have a little more to add.

The Declaration is not—strictly speaking—a founding document. It provided no system of governance, no separation of powers, granted no authority by which the Congress could actually do things. It merely presented to the British Crown that the Colonies were now "free and independent States," and the greviances for which that separation took place. The Colonies would not have any true founding documents until the ratification of the Articles of Confederation on March First, 1781.

The Articles of Confederation were ultimately found to be extremely flawed and far too weak, as the Congress had no ability to tax or raise an army. Thusly, in 1787, the Constitutional Convention was gathered in Philadelphia, with all states save for Rhode Island attending. The original purpose was not to draft an entirely new document, but rather to revise the Articles of Confederation into something stronger. Ultimately, however, the Articles were completely done away with and replaced with the Constitution, which was ratified on June 21st, 1788 and officially came into operation on March 4th, 1789.

And now the rest is history. Happy Independence Day!