separation from England was still repugnant to some members of the Congress and to a sizeable portion of the American people. It was obvious, however, that the colonies could not forever remain half in and half out of the British empire.
10. The stiffening of resolution
As the months wore on, the difficulties of prosecuting a war while still part of the British empire became more and more apparent. No compromise came from England, and, on August 23, 1775, King George issued a proclamation declaring the colonies to be in a state of rebellion.
Five months later, Thomas Paine published a 50-page pamphlet, Common Sense, driving home in vigorous style the necessity for independence. Paine, a political theorist who had come to America from England in 1774, even dared to attack the sacred person of the King, ridiculing the idea of hereditary monarchy and declaring