Second Continental Congress (10 май 1775 г. – 1 янв 1789 г.)

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The Second Continental Congress declared independence and led the colonies (now the United States!) through the Revolutionary War and the first few years of peace after the war.

The Battle of Lexington and Concord had begun the Revolutionary War in April, and the Continental Army was created in June with George Washington at its commander. Despite this, the delegates didn't want to declare independence and issued the Olive Branch Petition on July 5, 1775 as a last chance for peace. King George ignored it. Fighting went on.

Eventually, the delegates decided enough was enough and finally passed the Declaration of Independence on the fourth of July. Roughly.

Congress was now able to form alliances with other countries, the most important of which was France.

In 1781, they passed the Articles of Confederation, a document which outlined the rights of Congress and the States. It was very weak, specifically in its lack of ability to collect money through taxes. This hurt the war efforts especially, since they couldn't effectively collect money for military supplies such as weapons, uniforms, and food. Some sites list this as the end of the Second Continental Congress, but most, including the Library of Congress, extend the end date to 1789, when the Constitution replaced the Articles of Confederation and create a new and improved government for the United States.

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