The Lee Resolution declared that the American colonies were free and independent states.
Richard Henry Lee of Virginia introduced the resolution in the Second Continental Congress on June 7, 1776. Congress debated independence and appointed committees to consider the proposal before approving it on July 2.
The resolution stated that the United Colonies should be free and independent states, that they were released from allegiance to the British Crown, and that political ties with Great Britain should be completely dissolved.
The Declaration of Independence followed as a public explanation of the decision. Congress adopted the Declaration on July 4, which is why Independence Day is celebrated on that date. The Lee Resolution and the Declaration are therefore connected but not identical: one was the formal independence decision, while the other justified it.