The Fairfax Resolves

We "can not be considered as a conquered Country" because we are "Descendants not of the Conquered, but of the Conquerors." With this implied threat of military action, the Fairfax County Resolves challenged the unconstitutional actions of the British government. Written by George Washington and George Mason on July 17, 1774, at Mount Vernon, the Fairfax County Resolves were both a bold statement of fundamental constitutional rights and a revolutionary call for an association of colonies to …

…taxation, control over military forces within their borders, control over judicial powers, control over commercial actions. Moreover, the Fairfax Resolves called for an inter-colonial association to enforce their claims to these rights and to protest British violations of these fundamental rights. The Fairfax Resolves contained the implied threat of further actions to enforce American rights and independence. Washington and Mason boldly called for a "general Congress, for the preservation of our Lives Liberties and Fortunes."