King George: What Was His Problem?

The Continental Congress served as the government of the American colonies, and later the United States, from 1774 to 1789. Initially convened in response to the Intolerable Acts, the First Continental Congress met in 1774, comprised of delegates from the colonies. In 1775, the Second Continental Congress convened after the American Revolutionary War had already begun. In 1776, it declared America’s independence from Britain.

The Declaration of Independence is the foundational assertion of self-governance by the American people. As armed conflict erupted between American colonists and British soldiers in April 1775, the Americans were only fighting for their rights as subjects of the British crown. By the time the American Revolutionary War was in full swing, the movement for independence had intensified. Delegates of the Continental Congress, including Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin, convened to draft a formal statement of the colonies’ intentions. Adopted on July 4, 1776, in Philadelphia, the Declaration of Independence, largely penned by Jefferson, marked the birth of American independence, asserting the birth of a new nation: The United States of America.

In the American Revolutionary War, “Hessians” refers to German soldiers allied with the British. This umbrella term is used for all Germans who fought on the British side because the vast majority came from the German states of Hesse-Kassel and Hesse-Hanau. Their inclusion in the British military efforts highlights the global dimensions of what is often considered a primarily American-British conflict. The Hessians were noted for their discipline and effectiveness in battle. Around 30,000 Hessians fought for the British, comprising approximately 25% of their land forces in North America.

The phrase “one, if by land, and two, if by sea,” coined by Henry W. Longfellow in his poem “Paul Revere’s Ride,” referred to Revere’s secret signal to alert people of a British attack. Revere arranged for one lantern to signal the land route taken by British troops and two for the sea route. The tower signal served as Revere’s backup plan, ensuring the warning reached Charles Town in case he was arrested on his journey to alert people of the British plans at Lexington and Concord. On April 18, 1775, Robert Newman, sexton of the Old North Church, lit two lanterns to signal the British departure from Boston Common by sea.