By his Excellency the Right Honourable John Earl of Dunmore, his Majesty's Lieutenant and Governour-General of the Colony and Dominion of Virginia, and Vice-admiral of the same. A proclamation.

By his Excellency the Right Honourable John Earl of Dunmore, his Majesty's Lieutenant and Governour-General of the Colony and Dominion of Virginia, and Vice-admiral of the same. A proclamation.

In November 1775, from the safety of a British warship near Norfolk, Virginia's royal governor, the earl of Dunmore, decided to handle the explosive political situation by declaring martial law and offering freedom to enslaved people who fought for the king against their owners. The Declaration of Independence referred to that proclamation in charging that the king and his governor "excited domestic Insurrections amongst us." The Declaration's statement that all men were entitled to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" did not apply to enslaved Virginians.

Library of Virginia, Special Collections. (Broadside. 1775 .V852 FF.). 11-0757-005.

7 November 1775

Broadside

Broadside