Letter of the Twelve United Colonies to the Inhabitants of Great Britain, 1775 (print)

The Twelve United Colonies, by their delegates in Congress, to the inhabitants of Great-Britain. Friends, countrymen, and brethren! By these, and by every other appellation ... we entreat your serious attention to this our second attempt, to prevent their dissolution...By order of the Congress, John Hancock, president... Philadelphia, July 8th, 1775. THE PATRIOTS' LAST APPEAL FOR PEACE. Reportedly written by Richard Henry Lee, this long, emotional appeal was addressed to British citizens, to be circulated at the same time as the petition to the King now known as the Olive Branch Petition. The entreaty was approved by Congress on July 8, 1775, following the battles of Lexington and Concord (April 19) and Bunker Hill (June 17). It especially condemns "the wanton and unnecessary Destruction of Charlestown," and notes that Boston "is now garrisoned by an Army sent not to protect, but to enslave its Inhabitants." After an exhaustive litany of wrongs, it closes: "...let us entreat Heaven to avert our Ruin, and the Destruction that threatens our Friends, Brethren and Countrymen, on the other side of the Atlantic...." Four broadsheet editions are recorded: two by William and Thomas Bradford in Philadelphia, one by John Holt in New York, and this edition by Fowle, the sole printer in Portsmouth at this date. ONE OF ONLY TWO RECORDED COPIES. Bristol B4151 (locates one copy, at the New Hampshire Historical Society); Shipton & Mooney 42966; Whittemore, Checklist 185.