Instructions by the Virginia Convention to Their Delegates in Congress, May 15, 1776 – Published in The Boston-Gazette and Country Journal, June 24, 1776

This newspaper from Boston, Massachusetts includes a printing of the instructions from Virginia’s assembly to their delegates at the Second Continental Congress. Most notably, the instructions tell Virginia delegates to not simply vote in favor of independence, but to propose it themselves. The instructions reference King George III’s “Proclamation of Rebellion” as one of several justifications for taking this step.

Courtesy of Massachusetts Historical Society