Second Continental Congress

Examples of Second Continental Congress in the following topics:

• The Second Continental Congress

  • During the Revolutionary War, the Second Continental Congress acted as the national government of the Thirteen Colonies in rebellion.
  • The First Congress established that the Second Continental Congress would convene on May 10, 1775.
  • Many of the same 56 delegates present at the First Continental Congress were in attendance at the Second Congress.
  • By the time the Second Continental Congress met, the American Revolutionary War was already underway.
  • The resolution for independence was among the most important accomplishments of the Second Continental Congress.

• Pursuing Both War and Peace

  • In the period of uncertainty leading up to the formal declaration of war, the Second Continental Congress attempted to pacify the British and declare allegiance to the Crown, while simultaneously asserting independence and engaging British forces in armed conflict.
  • When the Second Continental Congress convened in May 1775, most delegates supported John Dickinson in his efforts to reconcile with George III of Great Britain.
  • When the petition arrived, it was rejected unseen by King George III, and the Second Continental Congress was dismissed as an illegal assembly of rebels.
  • The Second Continental Congress maintained that they still hoped to avoid a "civil war."
  • The Olive Branch Petition, issued by the Second Congress, was a final attempt at reconciliation with the British.

• The Spreading Conflict

  • When the petition citing grievances was disregarded by King George III, a Second Continental Congress was planned.
  • By the time of the Second Continental Congress, fighting was underway .
  • By the time the Second Continental Congress met, the American Revolutionary War had already started with the Battles of Lexington and Concord.
  • The Assembly Room in Philadelphia's Independence Hall, where the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence.
  • Examine how the approach of the Second Continental Congress differed from the First

• The American Military Forces

  • The Second Continental Congress established the Continental Army in June 1775 and elected George Washington as Commander-in-Chief.
  • On June 14, 1775, the Second Continental Congress established the Continental Army, raising 22,000 troops from the Boston area and 5,000 from New York.
  • As the Continental Congress increasingly adopted the responsibilities and posture of a legislature for a sovereign state, the role of the Continental Army was the subject of considerable debate.
  • Congress also created a Continental Navy in 1775.
  • Identify the challenges that the Continental Congress faced in establishing an army.

• Congress of the Confederation

  • The Congress of the Confederation was the governing body of the United States from 1781 to 1789.
  • As the immediate successor to the Second Continental Congress, it referred to itself as the Continental Congress throughout its 8-year history.
  • The Congress of the Confederation opened in the final stages of the American Revolution.
  • The membership of the Second Continental Congress automatically carried over to the Congress of the Confederation when the latter was created through the ratification of the Articles of Confederation.
  • The last meeting of the Continental Congress was held March 2, 1789, 2 days before the Constitutional government assumed power.

• Conclusion: The Fight for Independence

  • In the petition, the Second Continental Congress, as drafted by Pennsylvania delegate John Dickinson, swore loyalty to the Crown and requested tax reforms to ease existent tensions.
  • By June 1776, the Second Continental Congress had appointed a “Committee of Five”, consisting of John Adams of Massachusetts, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, Robert R.
  • The Second Continental Congress established the Continental Army in June 1775 and elected George Washington as its commander-in-chief.
  • Congress predictably refused the British peace terms.
  • Washington petitioned Congress for supplies and provisions, but received no support.

• The First Continental Congress

  • The Congress also called for another Continental Congress in the event that their petition was unsuccessful in halting the enforcement of the Coercive Acts.
  • Their appeal to the Crown had no effect, and so the Second Continental Congress was convened the following year to organize the defense of the colonies at the onset of the American Revolutionary War.
  • On October 26, 1774, the First Continental Congress adjourned.
  • At that point, it became clear that the Continental Congress would have to convene once again.
  • Compare the goals of the various participents in the Continental Congress with the outcomes achieved

• Philadelphia and Saratoga

  • The Capture of Philadelphia was ultimately a setback for the British because it did not lead to the capture of the Continental Congress or end the rebellion.
  • The Philadelphia campaign (1777-1778) was a successful British initiative to gain control of Philadelphia, the seat of the Second Continental Congress.
  • The Continental Congress abandoned Philadelphia, relocating to York, Pennsylvania.
  • The British were quickly defeated at the Battle of Bemis Heights, or the Second Battle of Saratoga, with nearly 900 casualties versus the mere 150 suffered by the Continental Army.
  • General Howe resigned during the occupation of Philadelphia and was replaced by his second-in-command, General Sir Henry Clinton.

• The Politics of Inflation

  • The declining value of Continental currencies was hardest on Continental soldiers and the poor, as their wages bought less.
  • Congress and the American states had no end of difficulty financing the war.
  • Congress made two issues of paper money, in 1775–1780, and in 1780–81.
  • By 1780, the paper money was "not worth a Continental", as people said, and a second issue of new currency was attempted.
  • The second issue quickly became nearly worthless, but it was redeemed by the new federal government in 1791 at 100 cents on the dollar.

• Paine's Common Sense

  • Paine also argues that all men are equal at creation and therefore the distinction between kings and subjects is a false one and attacks one type of mixed state—the constitutional monarchy in which the powers of government are separated between a Parliament or Congress that makes the laws, and a monarch who executes them.
  • Paine proposed a Continental Charter (or Charter of the United Colonies) that would be an American Magna Carta and he wrote that a Continental Charter "should come from some intermediate body between the Congress and the people" and outlines a Continental Conference that could draft a Continental Charter.
  • Each colony would hold elections for five representatives; these five would be accompanied by two members of the colonies' assembly, for a total of seven representatives from each colony in the Continental Conference.
  • The Continental Conference would then meet and draft a Continental Charter that would secure "freedom and property to all men, and… the free exercise of religion. " The Continental Charter would also outline a new national government, which Paine thought would take the form of a Congress.
  • The second reason involves the way the vast majority of people felt about the idea of independence from British rule.