F86.1B

 __The Olive Branch Petition is Sent__  July 8th, Boston, Massachusetts

Breaking news! The Patriots finally stood up! They gathered an emergency meeting in Philadelphia to discuss what they should do. The Second Continental Congress sent a petition to Britain because they did not agree with the unjust laws given by King George III. This petition was called the Olive Branch Petition.

Today, a petition has just been completely signed, finished, and sent to King George III. The newly formed congress met to write this because they wanted to repeal the Intolerable Acts and to gain loyalty from Britain. In the petition, it states, "We your Majesty's faithful subjects of the colonies of New-Hampshire, Massachusetts-bay, Rhode island and Providence plantations, Connecticut, New-York, New-Jersey, Pennsylvania, the counties of New Castle, Kent, and Sussex on Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina, in behalf of ourselves and the inhabitants of these colonies, who have deputed us to represent them in general Congress, entreat your Majesty's gracious attention to this our humble petition." Writing and sending this petition has caused questions to rise in the colonies about how the king will react to this. This petition was written just as a way to avoid conflict with Britain. But, this could also be a downfall for us because the king could believe that we were starting a revolt towards them.

The final meeting about the petition was held in Philadelphia. The petition is being sent to London which would mean that it will take quite a while for it to arrive in the hands of the king. This could cause problems because things could change in the time that the petition is being sent. For now, the Patriots await any news about the petition. The Second Continental Congress talked about writing and sending the petition in May 1775. A majority of the men involved declined sending this petition at the time being because they considered changing the wording. The Olive Branch Petition was approved July 5th, 1775. It was sent to King George III on July 8th.

The Second Continental Congress met because they thought the British rule was unjust. The Patriots wanted King George III to repeal the Intolerable Acts. Also, the petitions stated that, “Nor were their anxieties alleviated by any tendency in this system to promote the welfare of the Mother Country." The Second Continental Congress did something about it. They wrote up a petition and sent it to the king. The petition contained the things the colonists wanted to be changed. They wrote stuff that they all thought was reasonable. John Dickson was the main person who wrote the petition. He got to write it because he found that Thomas Jefferson’s words were too offensive.

The delegates of the petition got together to form the Second Continental Congress, so they helped write the petition. When King George got the petition, he wasn’t happy about it. So, he ordered 20,000 more troops to the colonies to defeat the colonists. King George III then ordered a blockade on all colonial forts and he used mercenaries from Germany to help fight the colonists. The colonists didn’t want war. The king took it that the colonists were trying to declare rebellion, so he denied the petition.

The colonists wrote the Olive Branch Petition to keep their rights, but maintain the British rule. At first, King George III refused to read the petition. The king said the Colonists were trying to declare rebellion, so he sent troops out to fight. The colonists only wrote the petition to avoid war. In the petition, Dickson suggested that the colonists should be given free trade and the taxes me equal to those in Britain or no taxes and strict trade regulations. The colonists agreed to those suggestions, so all 48 delegates signed the document before it was shipped off to the king. Hopefully the wars will be ending soon between America and Britain!

Reported by Eva Hoyack and Natalie Thomas Mr. Frankmann's Class Eighth Period