Thomas Paine’s 1776 pamphlet Common Sense became a powerful public argument for American independence from Great Britain.
Paine published the pamphlet anonymously in Philadelphia on January 10, 1776. Its direct language addressed ordinary colonists rather than only lawyers, politicians, or scholars. Paine attacked hereditary monarchy and argued that the colonies should form a republican government of their own.
The pamphlet appeared when many colonists still hoped to reconcile with Britain. By presenting independence as practical, morally justified, and necessary, it helped make separation a central subject of public debate. Copies were sold widely, read aloud in taverns, and circulated throughout the colonies.
Common Sense was 47 pages in its original form. Its influence is sometimes overstated: the pamphlet did not itself make Congress declare independence, and historians debate its exact sales figures. Nevertheless, it was the most widely read pamphlet of the American Revolutionary era and helped popularize the independence cause.