The Proclamation of Rebellion, officially titled A Proclamation for Suppressing Rebellion and Sedition, was the response of

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and ...

to the news of the

Battle of Bunker Hill The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought on June 17, 1775, during the Siege of Boston in the first stage of the American Revolutionary War. The battle is named after Bunker Hill in Charlestown, Boston, Charlestown, Massachusetts, which was peri ...

at the outset of the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

. Issued on 23 August 1775, it declared elements of the American colonies in a state of "open and avowed

rebellion Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...

". It ordered officials of the

empire An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...

"to use their utmost endeavours to withstand and suppress such rebellion". The 1775 proclamation of rebellion also encouraged subjects throughout the empire, including those in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

, to report anyone carrying on " traitorous correspondence" with the rebels to be punished.

Implementation

The Proclamation of Rebellion was drafted before Colonial Secretary Lord Dartmouth had been given a copy of the

Second Continental Congress The Second Continental Congress (1775–1781) was the meetings of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that united in support of the American Revolution and American Revolutionary War, Revolutionary War, which established American independence ...

Olive Branch Petition The Olive Branch Petition was adopted by the Second Continental Congress on July 5, 1775, and signed on July 8, 1775, in a final attempt to avoid war between Great Britain and the Thirteen Colonies in America. The Congress had already authoriz ...

King George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and ...

, however, refused to receive the colonial petition, so the Proclamation of Rebellion of 23 August 1775 effectively served as the King's answer to it. On 27 October, North's Cabinet expanded on the proclamation in the

Speech from the Throne A speech from the throne, or throne speech, is an event in certain monarchies in which the reigning sovereign, or their representative, reads a prepared speech to members of the nation's legislature when a Legislative session, session is opened. ...

read by King George III at the

opening of Parliament The State Opening of Parliament is a ceremonial event which formally marks the beginning of each Legislative session, session of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. At its core is His or Her Majesty's "Speech from the throne, gracious speech ...

. The King's speech insisted that rebellion was being fomented by a "desperate conspiracy" of leaders whose claims of allegiance to the King were insincere; what the rebels really wanted, he said, was to create an "independent empire". The speech indicated that King George intended to deal with the crisis with armed force and was even considering "friendly offers of foreign assistance" to suppress the rebellion without pitting Briton against Briton. A pro-American minority of members within

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

at the time warned the government was driving the colonists towards independence, something many colonial leaders insisted they did not desire.

American response

On 6 December 1775, the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislature, legislative bodies, with some executive function, for the Thirteen Colonies of British America, Great Britain in North America, and the newly declared United States before, during, and after ...

issued a response to the Proclamation of Rebellion saying that, while they had always been loyal to the King, Parliament never had legitimate claim to authority over them, because the colonies were not democratically represented. Congress argued it was their duty to continue resisting Parliament's violations of the

British Constitution The constitution of the United Kingdom comprises the written and unwritten arrangements that establish the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland as a political body. Unlike in most countries, no official attempt has been made to c ...

, and that—while they continued to hope to avoid the "calamities" of a "civil war"—would retaliate if any supporters in Great Britain were punished for "favouring, aiding, or abetting the cause of American liberty." The King's proclamation and the speech from the throne undermined moderates in Congress like

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, who had been arguing the King would find a way to resolve the dispute between colonies and Parliament. When it became clear George III was not inclined to act as a conciliator, attachment to empire was weakened, and a movement towards independence became a reality, culminating in America's

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another state or failed state, or are breaka ...

on 4 July 1776.

Revocation

Gainsborough George III of the United Kingdom

King George III addressed the opening session of Parliament on 5 December 1782 in a

. It was his first address since the resignation of Lord North as his wartime Prime Minister, which was delivered in the last session at Parliament's resolution to end offensive war in North America. In the intervening time the King assured his Lords and Gentlemen that he had lost no time ordering the end of "the further prosecution of offensive war upon the continent of North America"."His Majesty's Most Gracious Speech to both Houses of Parliament, on Thursday, December 5, 1782"
Pennsylvania Packet, Philadelphia, 15 February 1783; received by sail in New York, 9 February.1783. Viewed at Newspapers.com on 9 June 2020. After considering his option to renounce the British crown and retire to his German estates as Prince of Brunswick in the Holy Roman Empire,Burns, Arthur.
The Abdication Speech of George III
in the Georgian Papers Programme at the Royal Collection Trust. Viewed 9 June 2020. George III reassured Parliament that he would follow the wishes of "my Parliament and my people" as he had promised at his coronation Speech from the Throne. George III then reported to the joint session that he had offered the American Congress his declaration of the rebelling North American colonies as "free and independent states" in the final treaty of peace and gave notice to Parliament that had been agreed upon, as well as other preliminary terms. His closing remark on American independence was, "Religion, language, interest, affections may, and I hope will, yet prove a bond of permanent union between the two countries. To this end, neither attention nor disposition shall be wanting on my part."

References

{{Authority control 1775 documents 1775 establishments in the British Empire Documents of the American Revolution George III Government documents of the United Kingdom History of the Thirteen Colonies Politics of the Kingdom of Great Britain Proclamations Sedition St James's Frederick North, Lord North