Which document did the Second Continental Congress adopt as the first U.S. national framework of government?

The Articles of Confederation were the first U.S. national framework of government.

The Second Continental Congress adopted the Articles in November 1777, while the Revolutionary War was still underway. They established a “firm league of friendship” among the states and created a Congress responsible for national affairs such as diplomacy, war, and western territories.

The Articles deliberately preserved extensive state sovereignty. Congress had no independent power to tax individuals, regulate interstate commerce, or compel states to provide funds. Each state had one vote in Congress regardless of population, and major decisions often required a supermajority.

The Articles should not be confused with the Declaration of Independence, which announced the colonies’ separation from Britain, or the Constitution, which replaced the Articles with a stronger federal system. After the Constitution took effect in 1789, the Articles became an earlier stage in the development of the United States government celebrated in the nation’s 250-year story.