Local militias battled with British forces in the Battles of Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts on April 19, signaling the commencement of the Revolutionary War with the "shot heard round the world." The war would last for more than a decade and involve multiple countries. Americans at the time were not united against Britain. Instead, they were divided between those who wanted to negotiate an agreement with the king and those who did not. In June 1775, a group of Americans met near Philadelphia to discuss ways to resist the British occupation of their country. This meeting led to the formation of the Continental Congress, which managed the affairs of the colonies not under their control. On July 4, 1776, the Congress voted to declare independence from Great Britain. The news of the declaration reached London on July 2, at which point the king issued orders for his military forces in America to cease fighting the rebels. He also sent a message to the Congress offering peace negotiations. But the new American government had no intention of settling for anything other than complete freedom from Britain. Instead, it proposed a series of wars against its old enemy to ensure their right to protest against royal policy. In the years following the Declaration of Independence, several battles were fought between the Americans and the British.