Richard Henry Lee dropped a death warrant on the British empire with this 1776 move that changed America forever

The Founding Fathers were facing the biggest decision in American history.

One brave Virginian stepped forward to make the case that would define our nation.

AndRichard Henry Lee dropped a death warrant on the British empire with this 1776 move that changed America forever.

Lee puts independence on the table for the first time

The year 1776 was a turning point that would determine whether America remained under British rule or forged its own destiny as a free nation.

The Continental Congress had been meeting in Philadelphia for over a year, wrestling with how to respond to King George III’s tyrannical policies.

But no one had yet been bold enough to formally propose what many colonists were thinking – complete independence from Great Britain.

That changed on June 7, 1776, when Richard Henry Lee of Virginia stood before his fellow delegates and made a motion that would shake the foundations of the British Empire.

Lee’s resolution was clear and uncompromising in its language.

"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," Lee declared.

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The Virginia delegate and ancestor of another famous Virginian, General Robert E. Lee, didn’t stop there.

He also called for taking "the most effectual measures for forming foreign Alliances" and that "a plan of confederation be prepared and transmitted to the respective Colonies for their consideration and approbation."

John Adams of Massachusetts immediately stepped forward to second Lee’s motion, showing that support for independence wasn’t limited to one region.

Congress faces a tough choice about America’s future

Lee’s bold proposal put the Continental Congress in an uncomfortable position.

The fierce debates that erupted showed just how divided the colonies were on the question of independence.

Six colonies – New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland and South Carolina – weren’t ready to make such a drastic break with Britain.

However, these hesitant delegates suggested they might come around to supporting independence if they had more time to think it through.

Congress decided to postpone the final vote on Lee’s proposal until July 1 rather than risk a split decision on such a crucial matter.

Everyone understood that voting for independence meant going to war against the British Empire.

The delegates knew they had to be completely united before taking such a dangerous step.

The committee that would draft the Declaration of Independence gets to work

While waiting for the July vote, Congress formed a five-man committee to write a formal declaration explaining their reasons for independence.

This committee brought together some of the sharpest minds in America: John Adams from Massachusetts, Benjamin Franklin from Pennsylvania, Roger Sherman from Connecticut, Robert R. Livingston from New York and Thomas Jefferson from Virginia.

The committee chose Jefferson to write the first draft because everyone recognized his superior writing skills.

What Jefferson created would become one of history’s most important documents.

Congress reviewed Jefferson’s draft on June 28, 1776.

July 2nd becomes the forgotten birthday of American independence

When Congress returned to debate on July 1, 1776, most delegates now supported Lee’s call for independence.

Congress waited one more day to make sure they could achieve the unanimity they wanted on such an important issue.

On July 2, 1776, twelve colonial delegations approved Lee’s resolution, with New York choosing not to vote because they weren’t sure what their people back home wanted them to do.

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John Adams was thrilled by the historic vote and predicted July 2 would be remembered as "the most memorable epoch in the history of America."

Adams correctly understood the importance of what they had accomplished, even though he was wrong about which date Americans would celebrate.

Rather than July 2, we celebrate July 4 as Independence Day because that’s when Congress approved Jefferson’s final version of the Declaration of Independence.

Lee’s resolution launched the greatest experiment in self-government

Richard Henry Lee’s bold resolution on June 7, 1776 set in motion the events that would create the United States of America.

Without Lee’s willingness to formally propose independence, the Continental Congress might have continued debating half-measures while the British tightened their grip on the colonies.

Lee understood that freedom isn’t given – it has to be declared and then defended.

His resolution forced his fellow delegates to choose between continued submission to British tyranny or the risks that came with self-government.

But Lee’s contributions to American liberty didn’t end with his famous resolution for independence.

He went on to serve as President of the Continental Congress and later became one of Virginia’s first U.S. Senators.

Even though Lee had helped create the new nation, he opposed ratifying the Constitution because he believed it gave the federal government too much power without sufficient protections for individual rights.

Lee believed the Constitution needed what he called "bottoming the new constitution on a better bill of rights."

Lee warned America about the dangers of unlimited government power

Lee’s opposition to the Constitution wasn’t based on wanting to destroy the new nation he had helped create.

Instead, he was concerned that the federal government would accumulate too much power and eventually threaten the very liberties they had fought to secure.

In his influential pamphlet "Letters from the Federal Farmer," Lee laid out his concerns about giving the federal government unlimited authority.

"We cannot form a general government in which all power can be safely lodged," Lee warned. "There will be an unreasonable accumulation of powers in the general government."

Lee understood that even well-intentioned leaders could abuse power if there weren’t clear limits on what government could do.

"Hope cannot justify the impropriety of giving powers, the exercise of which prudent men will not attempt, and imprudent men will exercise only in a manner destructive of free government," Lee wrote.

His warnings proved prophetic as he predicted that unlimited government power would lead to endless regulations and interference in citizens’ daily lives.

"Should the general government look for a support in a system of influence, the government will take every occasion to multiply laws, considering these as so many necessary props for its own support," Lee explained.

Lee’s timeless principles about limited government

Lee believed that "the first maxim of a man who loves liberty should be never to grant to rulers an atom of power that is not most clearly and indispensably necessary for the safety and well-being of society."

He warned that "men who govern will construe laws and constitutions most favorably for increasing their own powers."

That’s why Lee insisted that "the powers delegated to the government must clearly be of such extent as that, by no reasonable construction, they can be made to invade the rights and prerogatives intended to be left in the people."

Lee understood that liberty meant "security to enjoy the effects of our honest industry and labors, in a free and mild government."

He believed that "in free governments, the people follow their own private pursuits, and enjoy the fruits of their labor with very small deductions for the public use."

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Lee’s influence on the Bill of Rights helped ensure that Americans would have constitutional protections against government overreach.

The courage Lee showed on that June day in Philadelphia would inspire generations of Americans who faced their own moments of decision about freedom versus security.

Lee’s resolution proved that sometimes the most important thing a leader can do is force everyone else to confront the hard choices they’ve been avoiding.

The United States exists today because Richard Henry Lee had the guts to stand up and demand that America choose independence over comfortable subservience to a distant king – and then had the wisdom to limit the power of the government he helped create.