The Continental Congress approved the Lee Resolution on July 2, 1776, declaring the colonies independent.
Richard Henry Lee of Virginia introduced the resolution after Virginia's convention instructed its congressional delegates to seek independence. Its central clause stated that the United Colonies were free and independent states and no longer owed allegiance to the British Crown.
The resolution had three parts. Besides independence, it proposed seeking foreign alliances and preparing a plan of confederation. Congress considered those subjects separately, while a Committee of Five prepared a document explaining the reasons for independence.
The Declaration of Independence was approved two days later, on July 4. That distinction creates a common historical mix-up: July 2 was the decisive independence vote, while July 4 became the date celebrated as Independence Day.