Which body adopted the Declaration of Independence, whose 250th anniversary America celebrates in 2026?

The Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence, whose 250th anniversary America celebrates in 2026.

The Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia beginning in May 1775, after fighting had broken out between colonial forces and Britain. It acted as the governing body for the thirteen colonies during the Revolutionary War and eventually approved the formal declaration of separation.

Congress voted for independence on July 2, 1776. It then debated and revised the Declaration, adopting the final document on July 4. That distinction explains why July 4 became the celebrated anniversary while July 2 was the date of the formal independence vote.

The First Continental Congress had met in 1774 to coordinate colonial resistance and petition Britain. The Constitutional Convention, by contrast, met in 1787 to draft the U.S. Constitution, more than a decade after the Declaration.