(upbeat music) - [Narrator] There's a chance that the Declaration of Independence wouldn't exist without this guy.

Born in 1732, Richard Henry Lee was a politician and founding father from Virginia.

In the 1770s, King George III declared the colonies rebellious, pushing colonists to consider alternatives to British rule.

Lee was elected to join the top secret Continental Congress in Philadelphia to discuss how to reconcile with Britain.

Instead of reconciliation, Lee introduced a three-part plan.

Part one, declare independence.

Part two, form foreign alliances.

Part three, plan a Confederation, a.k.a.

they needed a constitution.

Part three of the plan to create treaties and a Confederation was shelved for later, but the Declaration of Independence, heavily inspired by Lee's words, was adopted.

Without this moment in history, we might have negotiated rather than declared independence, changing US history forever.