The Fincastle Resolutions was a statement reportedly adopted on January 20, 1775, by fifteen elected representatives of Fincastle County,

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. Part of the political movement that became the

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, the resolutions were addressed to Virginia's delegation at the

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, and expressed support for Congress' resistance to the

Intolerable Acts The Intolerable Acts, sometimes referred to as the Insufferable Acts or Coercive Acts, were a series of five punitive laws passed by the British Parliament in 1774 after the Boston Tea Party. The laws aimed to punish Massachusetts colonists fo ...

, issued in 1774 by the

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Background

Other counties in Virginia had passed resolutions similar to the Fincastle Resolutions in 1774, such as the Fairfax Resolves. Still, the Fincastle Resolutions were the first adopted statement by the colonists which promised resistance to the death to the

British crown The Crown is a political concept used in Commonwealth realms. Depending on the context used, it generally refers to the entirety of the State (polity), state (or in federal realms, the relevant level of government in that state), the executive ...

to preserve political liberties. Throughout 1774, the Fincastle signatories had been fighting in Dunmore's War against the

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to the west, and could not formally express their sentiments about the constitutional dispute until January 1775. The Fincastle representatives reportedly adopted the resolutions at

Lead Mines Lead () is a chemical element; it has symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cut, lead ...

(modern Austinville, Virginia), the county seat, located in what is now Wythe County, Virginia.

Content of the Resolutions

The published text of the resolutions began by proclaiming love for and loyalty to King George III, and that "we are willing to risk our lives in the service of his Majesty, for the support of the Protestant Religion, and the rights and liberties of his subjects..." However, the resolutions go on to express dismay that the passage of the Intolerable Acts has threatened the happy relations between "the parent state and the Colonies", and that these violations of constitutional rights are not acceptable.

Context

Historian Jim Glanville writes:

"The actions of the Fincastle committee should not (as they almost always have been) viewed in isolation. Rather, they should be examined in relation to the actions of the committees of Augusta, Botetourt, and Pittsylvania . . . Each of the statements adopted by these four counties pledged (in varying language) that the men who adopted them would give their lives in the cause of American liberty."

Signatories

The 15 reported signatories of the Fincastle Resolutions were: * Arthur Campbell *David Campbell * William Campbell * William Christian * Walter Crockett *Charles Cummings *William Edmondson * William Ingles * Thomas Madison *James McGavock * John Montgomery * William Preston * Evan Shelby *Daniel Smith * Stephen Trigg The clerk of the meeting was David Campbell.

References

*
Fincastle Resolves; includes a transliteration of article of February 10, 1775 from "The Smithfield Review;" Williamsburgh, VA
via V Tech Library on-line; article: The Smithfield Review" – Volume XIV – Appendix A; (pub: 2010); accessed October 2020.

External links