List of delegates to the Continental Congress

Delegates from the various colonies did indeed reconvene for a Second Continental Congress as scheduled, but by the time they gathered, the Revolutionary War had begun.

Moderates in the Congress still hoped that the colonies could be reconciled with Great Britain, but a movement towards independence steadily gained ground.

At this juncture Congress simultaneously sent an Olive Branch Petition to King George III, hoping for a rapprochement, and issued a Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms, which contained the words "Our cause is just.

Congress functioned as a de facto national government from the outset by establishing the Continental Army, directing strategy, and appointing diplomats.

During this period, in addition to successfully managing the war effort, its primary achievements included: drafting the Articles of Confederation, the first U.S. Constitution; securing diplomatic recognition and support from foreign nations; and resolving state land claims west of the Appalachian Mountains.

It convened in eight sessions (a ninth failed to achieve a quorum) prior to being supplanted in 1789, when the United States Congress became the nation's legislative branch of government under a new Constitution.

Prior to 1781, delegates to the Continental Congress served at the pleasure of the state legislature that commissioned them; neither term limits nor specific start– / end–date of service existed.