Thomas Paine’s pamphlet Common Sense helped boost support for American independence before the 1776 Declaration.
Published on January 10, 1776, Common Sense argued that the American colonies should seek self-government rather than remain part of the British monarchy. Paine wrote in direct, accessible language, helping political arguments reach readers beyond educated elites.
The pamphlet became one of the most widely circulated works in colonial America. Its arguments strengthened public support for independence during the months before the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence.
Common Sense is sometimes confused with Paine’s later writings. The Crisis was a series of wartime pamphlets that began in December 1776, while Rights of Man was published in 1791 and defended the French Revolution. Agrarian Justice appeared in 1797.