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Second Continental Congress

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Second Continental Congress
Part of theAmerican Revolution
Congress Voting IndependencebyRobert Edge Pine
Type
Type
History
EstablishedMay 10, 1775(1775-05-10)
DisbandedMarch 1, 1781(1781-03-01)
Preceded byFirst Continental Congress
Succeeded byCongress of the Confederation
Leadership
Secretary
SeatsVariable; ~60
Meeting place
Assembly Room,Pennsylvania State House,Philadelphia,Pennsylvania
Under exigent circumstance also met at:
Henry Fite House,Baltimore,Maryland;
Court House,Lancaster, Pennsylvania;
Court House,York, Pennsylvania;
College Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
This article is part ofa serieson the
United States
Continental Congress
Independence Hall
Independence HallinPhiladelphia
Predecessors
First Continental Congress
Second Continental Congress
Congress of the Confederation
Members
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TheSecond Continental Congresswas the late-18th-century meeting of delegates from theThirteen Coloniesthat united in support of theAmerican Revolutionand theRevolutionary War,which established American independence from theBritish Empire.The Congress constituted a new federation that it first named theUnited Colonies,and in 1776, renamed theUnited States of America.The Congress began convening inPhiladelphia,on May 10, 1775, with representatives from 12 of the 13 colonies, after theBattles of Lexington and Concord.

The Second Continental Congress succeeded theFirst Continental Congress,which had met from September 5 to October 26, 1774, also in Philadelphia. The Second Congress functioned as thede factofederation government at the outset of the Revolutionary War by raising militias, directing strategy, appointing diplomats, and writing petitions such as theDeclaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Armsand theOlive Branch Petition.[1]All 13 colonies were represented by the time the Congress adopted theLee Resolution,which declared independence fromBritainon July 2, 1776, and the Congress unanimously agreed to theDeclaration of Independencetwo days later.

Congress functioned as the provisional government of the United States of America through March 1, 1781, when congress became what is now often called theConfederation Congress.During this period, it successfully managed the war effort, drafted theArticles of ConfederationandPerpetual Union,adopted the first U.S. constitution, secured diplomatic recognition and support from foreign nations, and resolved state land claims west of theAppalachian Mountains.

Many of the delegates who attended the Second Congress had also attended the First. They again electedPeyton Randolphas president of the Congress andCharles Thomsonas secretary.[2]Notable new arrivals includedBenjamin FranklinofPennsylvaniaandJohn HancockofMassachusetts.Within two weeks, Randolph was summoned back toVirginiato preside over theHouse of Burgesses;Hancock succeeded him as president, andThomas Jeffersonreplaced him in the Virginia delegation.[3]The number of participating colonies also grew, as Georgia endorsed the Congress in July 1775 and adopted thecontinental ban on tradewith Britain.[4]

History[edit]

A five-dollar banknote issued by the Second Continental Congress in 1775.
A 5-dollar banknote issued by the Second Continental Congress in 1775
An 1876Currier and Ivesportrait ofGeorge Washingtonbeing appointed commanding general of theContinental Army
John Trumbull's 1819 painting,Declaration of Independence,depicting theCommittee of Fivepresenting theDeclaration of Independenceto Congress

De factogovernment[edit]

TheFirst Continental Congresshad sent entreaties toKing George IIIto stop theIntolerable Acts.They also created theContinental Associationto establish a coordinated protest of these acts, boycotting British goods in protest to them. The Second Continental Congress met on May 10, 1775, to plan further responses if the British government did not repeal or modify the acts; however, theAmerican Revolutionary Warhad started by that time with theBattles of Lexington and Concord,and the Congress was called upon to take charge of the war effort.

For the first few months of the Revolutionary War, thepatriotscarried on their struggle in a largely ad-hoc and uncoordinated manner. Even so, they had numerous successes, seizing numerous British arsenals, driving royal officials out of several colonies, and launching theSiege of Bostonin order to prevent the movement by land ofBritish troopsstationed there. On June 14, 1775, the Second Continental Congress voted to create theContinental Armyout of themilitiaunits aroundBoston,and the next day unanimously approved a motion namingGeorge WashingtonofVirginiaas its commanding general.[5][6]

On July 6, 1775, Congress approved aDeclaration of Causesoutlining the rationale and necessity for taking up arms in theThirteen Colonies.Two days later, delegates signed theOlive Branch PetitiontoKing George IIIaffirming the colonies' loyalty tothe crownand imploring the king to prevent further conflict. However, by the time British Colonial SecretaryLord Dartmouthreceived the petition, King George III had already issued aproclamation on August 23, 1775,in response to theBattle of Bunker Hill,declaring elements ofBritain's continental American possessionsto be in a state of what he called an "open and avowedrebellion".As a result, the king refused to receive the petition.[7]

Georgiahad not participated in the First Continental Congress and did not initially send delegates to the Second. But with the Revolutionary War escalating, the residents of St. John's Parish in present-dayLiberty CountysentLyman Hallto the gathering in Philadelphia on their behalf.[8]He participated in debates but did not vote, as he did not represent the entire colony.[9]That changed after July 1775, when aprovincial Congressdecided to send delegates to the Continental Congress and to adopt a ban on trade with Britain.[4]

The Continental Congress had no explicit legal authority from the British to govern,[10]but it assumed all the functions of a national government, including appointing ambassadors, signing treaties, raising armies, appointing generals, obtaining loans from Europe, issuing paper money called "Continentals",and disbursing funds. Congress had no authority to levy taxes and was required to request money, supplies, and troops from the states to support the war effort. Individual states frequently ignored these requests.

Congress was moving towards declaring independence from the British Empire in 1776, but many delegates lacked the authority from their home governments to take such drastic action. Advocates of independence moved to have reluctant colonial governments revise instructions to their delegations, or even replace those governments which would not authorize independence. On May 10, 1776, Congress passed a resolution recommending that any colony with a government that was not inclined toward independence should form one that was. On May 15, they adopted a more radical preamble to this resolution, drafted byJohn Adams,which advised throwing off oaths of allegiance and suppressing the authority of the Crown in any colonial government that still derived its authority from the Crown. That same day, theVirginia Conventioninstructed its delegation in Philadelphia to propose a resolution that called for a declaration of independence, the formation of foreign alliances, and a confederation of the states. Theresolution of independencewas delayed for several weeks, as advocates of independence consolidated support in their home governments.

On June 7, 1776,Richard Henry Leeoffered a resolution before the Congress, declaring the colonies independent. He urged Congress to resolve "to take the most effectual measures for forming foreign Alliances" and to prepare a plan of confederation for the newly independent states.[11]Lee argued that independence was the only way to ensure a foreign alliance since no European monarchs would deal with America if they remained Britain's colonies. American leaders had rejected thedivine right of kingsin theNew World,but recognized the necessity of proving their credibility in theOld World.[12]

Congress formally adopted theresolution of independence,but only after creating three overlapping committees to draft the Declaration, aModel Treaty,and theArticles of Confederation.The Declaration announced the states' entry into the international system; the model treaty was designed to establish amity and commerce with other states, and the Articles of Confederation established "a firm league" among the thirteen free and independent states. These[3]three things together constituted an international agreement to set up central institutions for conducting vital domestic and foreign affairs.[11]Congress finally approved the resolution of independence on July 2, 1776. They next turned their attention to a formal explanation of this decision, theUnited States Declaration of Independencewhich was approved on July 4 and published soon thereafter.

Provisional government[edit]

The Congress moved toBaltimorein the winter of 1776–77 to avoid capture by British forces who were advancing on Philadelphia.Henry Fite's tavernwas the largest building in Baltimore at the time and provided a comfortable location of sufficient size for Congress to meet. Its site at the western edge of town was beyond easy reach of the BritishRoyal Navy's ships should they attempt to sail up theharborand thePatapsco Riverto shell the town. Congress was again forced to flee Philadelphia at the end of September 1777, as British troopsseized and occupied the city;they moved toYork, Pennsylvania,where they continued their work.

Congress passed theArticles of Confederationon November 15, 1777, after more than a year of debate, and sent it to the states forratification.Approval by all 13 states was required for theestablishmentof the constitution. Jefferson's proposal for a Senate to represent the states and a House to represent the people was rejected, but a similar proposal was adopted later in theUnited States Constitution.One issue of debate was large states wanting a larger say, nullified by small states who feared tyranny. The small states prevailed, and each state was afforded one vote.[13]Another revolved around the issue ofwestern land claims;states without such claims wanted those with claims to yield them to Congress. As written, western land claims remained in the hands of the individual states. Congress urged the states to give their assent quickly, and most did.[14]The first to ratify was Virginia on December 16, 1777; 12 states had ratified the Articles by February 1779, 14 months into the process.[15]The lone holdout, Maryland, finally ratified the Articles on February 2, 1781, doing so only after Virginia relinquished its claims on land north of the Ohio River to Congress.[14]

List of sessions[edit]

Independence Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The south facade ofIndependence Hall,initially known as the Pennsylvania Statehouse, inPhiladelphia,the principal meeting site of the Second Continental Congress
Historical 13-cent postage stamp commemorating the Articles of Confederation 200th anniversary
A 1977 13-cent U.S.postage stampcommemorating theArticles of Confederationbicentennial; the draft was completed inYork, Pennsylvaniaon November 15, 1777
May 10, 1775 – December 12, 1776
Location: Pennsylvania State House,Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
President: Peyton Randolph (until May 24, 1775)[16]
John Hancock (from May 24, 1775)[16]
December 20, 1776 – February 27, 1777
Location: Henry Fite House,Baltimore, Maryland
President: John Hancock
March 5, 1777 – September 18, 1777
Location: Pennsylvania State House, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
President: John Hancock
September 27, 1777
Location: Court House,Lancaster, Pennsylvania
President: John Hancock
September 30, 1777 – June 27, 1778
Location: Court House,York, Pennsylvania
President: John Hancock (until October 29, 1777)[16]
Henry Laurens(from November 1, 1777)[16]
July 2, 1778 – July 20, 1778
Location: College Hall, Philadelphia
President: Henry Laurens
July 21, 1778 – March 1, 1781
Location: Pennsylvania State House, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
President: Henry Laurens (until December 9, 1778)[17]
John Jay(from December 10, 1778, until September 28, 1779)[17]
Samuel Huntington(from September 28, 1779)[17]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^Cogliano (2000),p. 113.
  2. ^Burnett, Edward Cody (1941).The Continental Congress.New York: Norton. pp. 64–67.
  3. ^abFowler, William M. Jr. (1980).The Baron of Beacon Hill: A Biography of John Hancock.Boston: Houghton Mifflin. p.189.ISBN0395276195.
  4. ^abCashin, Edward J. (2005)."Revolutionary War in Georgia".New Georgia Encyclopedia.Georgia Humanities and the University of Georgia Press.RetrievedApril 22,2019.
  5. ^Cogliano, Francis D. (2000).Revolutionary America, 1763–1815: A Political History.London & New York City:Routledge.p. 59.ISBN978-0415180573.
  6. ^Marsh, Esbon R. (1941)."The First Session of the Second Continental Congress".The Historian.3(2): 188.doi:10.1111/j.1540-6563.1941.tb00537.x.JSTOR24435926.RetrievedOctober 9,2022.
  7. ^Maier, Pauline(1997).American Scripture: Making the Declaration of Independence.New York:Knopf.pp. 24–25, 249–250.ISBN978-0679454922.
  8. ^Shippey, Judith A. (October 17, 2003)."Midway".New Georgia Encyclopedia.Georgia Humanities and theUniversity of Georgia Press.RetrievedApril 22,2019.
  9. ^Deaton, Stan (September 12, 2002)."Lyman Hall (1724–1790)".New Georgia Encyclopedia.Georgia Humanities and the University of Georgia Press.RetrievedApril 22,2019.
  10. ^Bancroft, George (1874).History of the United States of America, from the discovery of the American continent.Boston, Massachusetts:Little, Brown and Company.p. 353.RetrievedApril 22,2019– viaMaking of Americadigital library,University of Michigan Library.
  11. ^ab"The Declaration of Independence in World Context".Organization of American Historians, Magazine of History.18(3): 61–66. 2004. Archived fromthe originalon July 3, 2015.
  12. ^Jones, Howard (2001).Crucible of power: a history of American foreign relations to 1913.ISBN978-0842029186.
  13. ^Miller, John C.(1948). "22".Triumph of Freedom, 1775–1783.Little, Brown & Company.ISBN978-1404748330.
  14. ^ab"Maryland finally ratifies Articles of Confederation".history.com.A&E Television Networks.RetrievedApril 28,2019.
  15. ^"Articles of Confederation, 1777–1781".Milestones in the History of U.S. Foreign Relations.Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of State.Archivedfrom the original on December 30, 2010.RetrievedApril 28,2019.
  16. ^abcdJillson, Calvin C.; Wilson, Rick K. (1994).Congressional Dynamics: Structure, Coordination, and Choice in the First American Congress, 1774–1789.Palo Alto, California:Stanford University Press.p. 77.ISBN978-0804722933.
  17. ^abcFollett, Mary Parker(1909) [First edition, 1896].The speaker of the House of Representatives.New York: Longmans, Greene, and Company. p.337.RetrievedApril 22,2019– via Internet Archive, digitized in 2007.

Further reading[edit]

  • Adams, Willi Paul; Kimber, Rita (1980).The First American Constitutions: Republican Ideology and the Making of the State Constitutions in the Revolutionary Era.Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.ISBN978-0742520691.
  • Baack, Ben. "Forging a nation state: the Continental Congress and the financing of the War of American Independence."Economic History Review(2001) 54#4 pp: 639–656.online
  • Davis, Derek H.Religion and the Continental Congress, 1774–1789: Contributions to Original Intent(Oxford University Press, 2000).
  • Henderson, H. James (2002) [1974].Party Politics in the Continental Congress.Rowman & Littlefield.ISBN0819165255.
  • Horgan, Lucille E.Forged in War: The Continental Congress and the Origin of Military Supply and Acquisition Policy(Greenwood, 2002).
  • Irvin, Benjamin H.Clothed in Robes of Sovereignty: The Continental Congress and the People Out of Doors(Oxford University Press, 2011).
  • Kruman, Marc W. (1997).Between Authority and Liberty: State Constitution Making in Revolutionary America.University of North Carolina Press.ISBN0807847976.
  • Montross, Lynn(1970) [1950].The Reluctant Rebels; the Story of the Continental Congress.Harper.ISBN038903973X.
  • Rakove, Jack N.(1979).The Beginnings of National Politics: An Interpretive History of the Continental Congress.Knopf.ISBN978-0394423708.
  • Wilson, Rick K., and Calvin Jillson. "Leadership Patterns in the Continental Congress: 1774–1789."Legislative Studies Quarterly(1989): 5–37.online

Primary sources[edit]

External links[edit]

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May 10, 1775 – March 1, 1781 		Succeeded by
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