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The Olive Branch Petition: a last-gasp attempt to prevent all-out war...
The Olive Branch Petition: a last-gasp attempt to prevent all-out war...
Item # 687282
August 19, 1775
PENNSYLVANIA LEDGER, Philadelphia, Aug. 19, 1775
* The "Olive Branch Petition"
* Revolutionary War beginning
* Second Continental Congress
Certainly the most notable content in this issue is found taking over half of page 2, being the very historic Olive Branch Petition.
This was one of the more historic documents of the war, adopted by the Second Continental Congress on July 5, 1775, in a final attempt to avoid a war between the American Colonies and England. The petition affirmed American loyalty to Great Britain and strongly urged the king to prevent further conflict. However, the Petition was written just one day before the historic "Causes & Necessity For Taking Up Arms", which caused it to be viewed as disingenuous by the British.
This issue has other fine war-related content as well including a letter from London to a friend in North Carolina noting in part: "The gloomy aspect of your country & America in general...is truly alarming...advise you to leave your uncertain situation & bring your family over...". Page 3 has a letter noting in part: "...that General Gage has demolished the Castle. Mr. Hancock shewed me a letter from a gentleman in Boston...that General Gage had sent all his family to England & that the whole army would leave Boston soon, 'twas supposed he would first destroy the town; the destination of the troops is not known, may it not be for New York?...there are 2500 of Gage's men killed & died since the battle of Bunker's Hill; they have buried 30 Regulars a week for a long time...Mr. Hancock shewed me a letter from General Washington which confirms the departing of the troops." More war-related content as well.
Four pages, numeric notations in margins next to ads (this was the editor's copy), otherwise nice condition.
background: The August 19, 1775, edition of the Pennsylvania Ledger serves as a stark historical snapshot of a nation standing on a knife's edge, caught between the desperate diplomacy of the Olive Branch Petition and the grim reality of the Siege of Boston. The inclusion of the petition—a final, formal plea for reconciliation—highlights the profound internal conflict of the Second Continental Congress, which was simultaneously professing loyalty to King George III while authorizing a continental army. This editorial duality was not lost on the British, as the "Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms" effectively neutralized the petition's peaceful intent, leading the King to declare the colonies in open rebellion just days after this paper hit the streets. Beyond the high-level politics, the issue’s reports of General Gage’s mounting casualties and the demolition of fortifications at Castle William provide a gritty, real-time look at the escalating violence. That this specific copy belonged to the editor, marked with his own notations, transforms it from a mere news report into a primary witness to the collapse of the British Empire in America.
Category: Revolutionary War
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