Which Virginia delegate introduced the Lee Resolution in the Second Continental Congress?

Richard Henry Lee introduced the Lee Resolution in the Second Continental Congress.

Lee presented the independence proposal on June 7, 1776, after receiving instructions from Virginia's Fifth Convention. The resolution called for the United Colonies to become free and independent states, ending their political connection with Great Britain. Congress adopted that central proposition on July 2.

Lee's proposal was not the same document as the Declaration of Independence. Congress appointed the Committee of Five to draft an explanation of the decision, and that explanation was approved on July 4. The separation decision and the declaration supporting it were therefore connected but distinct congressional actions.

Richard Henry Lee came from a prominent Virginia political family and later served as president of the Continental Congress. His younger brother, Francis Lightfoot Lee, also signed the Declaration. Richard Henry Lee himself signed the document as a delegate from Virginia.