Zachariah
Banned
The First Continental Congress met briefly in Carpenter's Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from September 5 to October 26, 1774. It consisted of fifty-six delegates from twelve of the thirteen colonies that were to become the United States of America. The President of the First Continental Congress was Peyton Randolph, and the delegates, who were all elected by their respective colonial assemblies, included George Washington, Patrick Henry, John Adams, Samuel Adams, Joseph Galloway and John Dickinson. Benjamin Franklin had put forth the idea of such a meeting the year before, but had been unable to convince the colonies to do so until the 1773 British blockade of Boston in response to the Boston Tea Party. All of the colonies sent delegates except for the newest and most southerly one, the Province of Georgia – which needed the British Army's protection in order to contend with attacks from several Native American tribes, and had no interest in independence at that time. Most of the delegates were not yet ready to break away from Great Britain, but they wanted the King and Parliament to act in what they considered a fairer manner.
Convened in response to the 'Intolerable Acts' passed by Parliament in 1774, the delegates organized an economic boycott of Great Britain in protest, and petitioned the King for a redress of grievances. The Congress rejected a "Plan of Union" to establish an American parliament that could approve or disapprove of the acts of the British parliament. Instead, they merely endorsed the Suffolk Resolves (a declaration not to cooperate with the royal authorities), and demanded the repeal of all Parliamentary acts passed since 1763, not merely the tax on tea and the "Intolerable Acts". They stated that Parliament had no authority over internal matters in America, but that they would "cheerfully consent" to trade regulations, including customs duties for the benefit of the empire. They also required Britain to acknowledge that unilaterally stationing troops in the colonies in a time of peace was "against the law". Although the Congress lacked any legal authority, it ordered the creation of Patriot committees who would enforce a boycott of British goods starting on December 1, 1774, if the British failed to acknowledge their petition prior to this date.
The colonies were united in their effort to demonstrate to Great Britain their authority by virtue of their common causes and their unity; but their ultimate objectives weren't consistent. The Pennsylvania and New York provinces had sent their delegates with firm instructions to pursue a resolution with Great Britain; and while all the other colonies all held the idea of colonial rights as paramount, even they were split between those who sought legislative equality with Britain and those who instead favored independence and a break from the Crown and its excesses. On October 1st, 1774, The 1st Congress unanimously resolved- "That a loyal address to his Majesty be prepared, dutifully requesting the royal attention to the grievances that alarm and distress his Majesty's faithful subjects in North-America, and entreating his Majesty's gracious interposition for the removal of such grievances, thereby to restore between Great-Britain and the colonies that harmony so necessary to the happiness of the British empire, and so ardently desired by all America."
The goal of the address was to persuade the King to revoke unpopular policies such as the Coercive Acts, which were imposed on the Colonies by the British Parliament, and to reassure the King that, following the successful repeal of the Coercive Acts, the Colonies would restore favorable relations with Britain. On October 25, 1774, after some amendments, the First Continental Congress resolved "That the address to the King be enclosed in a letter to the several colony Agents, in order that the same may be by them presented to his Majesty; and that the Agents be requested to call in the aid of such Noblemen and gentlemen as are esteemed firm friends to American liberty." On November 2nd, the petition departed Philadelphia on board the ship Britannia, captained by W. Morwick. However, a storm forced the ship to return to port, delaying the delivery of the petition. It was then discovered that the paper had been damaged by the storm, and was unfit to be presented. The second copy left port on November 6th on board the ship Mary and Elizabeth, captained by N. Falconer. It was confirmed on November 14th that the document successfully arrived in London.
In Britain, a number of London merchants expressed interest in joining the Americans when the petition was presented, as had been suggested in the resolution passed by the Congress on Oct 25th, but Benjamin Franklin advised against the proposition. As a result, the presentation of the petition was considerably delayed- on November 30th, King George III had already opened Parliament with his speech condemning Massachusetts and the Suffolk Resolves. The King never gave the Colonies a formal reply to their petition- because he had never received it IOTL, and apparently, never would. And as a result of that speech, the road towards the American Revolutionary War became set in stone, forcing the Continental Congress to convene once again, and to submit the Declaration of Independence. It would only be on December 21st that Benjamin Franklin, Lee, and Bollan were notified by Lord Dartmouth that the petition was "decent and respectful" and that it would be presented as soon as possible to the Houses of Parliament.
However, Franklin wrote two days later that the petition could not be presented to Parliament until after the Christmas recess. And it was only on January 19th 1775 that the petition was presented to the House of Commons by Lord North, and was also presented to the House of Lords the following day. In the words of Benjamin Franklin: "It came down among a great did not Heap of letters of Intelligence from Governors and officers in America, Newspapers, Pamphlets, Handbills, etc., from that Country, the last in the List, and was laid upon the Table with them, undistinguished by any particular Recommendation of it to the Notice of either House; and I do not find, that it has had any further notice taken of it as yet, than that it has been read as well as the other Papers." Because the petition was intermingled with many other documents, and given the increasing turmoil of the times, little attention was given to the petition by Parliament.
Edmund Burke introduced a motion to repeal all the Acts of Parliament the Americans objected to and waive any rights of Britain to tax for revenue, but it was defeated 210–105. Parliament voted to restrict all colonial trade to Britain, prevent them from using the Newfoundland fisheries, and to increase the size of the army and navy by 6,000. In February 1775 Prime Minister Lord North proposed not to impose taxes if the colonies themselves made "fixed contributions". This would safeguard the taxing rights of the colonies from future infringement while enabling them to contribute to maintenance of the empire. But this was rejected by the Second Continental Congress when it met and discussed the matter in July 1775 as an "insidious maneuver, since hostilities had already begun with the Battles of Lexington and Concord.
So, that's the background IOTL. My question is, how differently might things have played out in this alternative scenario:
POD: W. Morwick, captain of the ship Britannia, elects to leave port in Philadephia and set sail across the Atlantic a day or two earlier. As a result, he avoids the storm and successfully delivers the undamaged first copy of the Petition to London by November 9th 1774.
Second divergence: In spite of Franklin's initial aversion to going along with the original proposition on how best to present the document to the King, the colony agents eventually come to a consensus to allow the most influential and powerful of the numerous London merchants who'd expressed their interest in joining the Americans to present the petition to the King to do so, as the "noblemen and gentlemen" and the "esteemed firm friends to American liberty" which the original resolution had called for. As a result of their influence, Lord Dartmouth gives the petition higher priority, dealing with it far more quickly, and having it presented to King George and before Parliament prior to November 30th.
Results/Main impact: King George III opens Parliament on November 30th with a different speech, having already received and read the Petition, and refrains from condemning Massachusetts and the Suffolk Resolves. The petition is presented to the House of Commons by Lord North in its own right in December 1774, and it receives far more attention from Parliament; and while Edmund Burke's motion is still defeated, albeit by a slim majority, Parliament doesn't pass the votes to either restrict all colonial trade to Britain, or prevent the colonies from using the Newfoundland fisheries ITTL. Lord North's proposal not to impose taxes if the colonies themselves make "fixed contributions" is offered before the end of the year, and the provincial councils of both Pennsylvania and New York swiftly acknowledge Lord North's offer as a acceptable resolution to the crisis, along with the majority of the loyalist delegates to the First CC.
How much might this have affected the course of history? Would this have butterflied away the USA entirely? And what would be most likely to emerge in its stead- a larger British North America more closely resembling Canada? Or several different nations, with many of the original 13 states of OTL becoming independent of the British, independently of one another, and following different courses of action to achieve their independence; competing with each other for territory when it comes to expanding westward, and potentially even going to war with one another over it? How different might the history of America, the British Empire, and eventually that of the entire world have been in such a TL?
Convened in response to the 'Intolerable Acts' passed by Parliament in 1774, the delegates organized an economic boycott of Great Britain in protest, and petitioned the King for a redress of grievances. The Congress rejected a "Plan of Union" to establish an American parliament that could approve or disapprove of the acts of the British parliament. Instead, they merely endorsed the Suffolk Resolves (a declaration not to cooperate with the royal authorities), and demanded the repeal of all Parliamentary acts passed since 1763, not merely the tax on tea and the "Intolerable Acts". They stated that Parliament had no authority over internal matters in America, but that they would "cheerfully consent" to trade regulations, including customs duties for the benefit of the empire. They also required Britain to acknowledge that unilaterally stationing troops in the colonies in a time of peace was "against the law". Although the Congress lacked any legal authority, it ordered the creation of Patriot committees who would enforce a boycott of British goods starting on December 1, 1774, if the British failed to acknowledge their petition prior to this date.
The colonies were united in their effort to demonstrate to Great Britain their authority by virtue of their common causes and their unity; but their ultimate objectives weren't consistent. The Pennsylvania and New York provinces had sent their delegates with firm instructions to pursue a resolution with Great Britain; and while all the other colonies all held the idea of colonial rights as paramount, even they were split between those who sought legislative equality with Britain and those who instead favored independence and a break from the Crown and its excesses. On October 1st, 1774, The 1st Congress unanimously resolved- "That a loyal address to his Majesty be prepared, dutifully requesting the royal attention to the grievances that alarm and distress his Majesty's faithful subjects in North-America, and entreating his Majesty's gracious interposition for the removal of such grievances, thereby to restore between Great-Britain and the colonies that harmony so necessary to the happiness of the British empire, and so ardently desired by all America."
The goal of the address was to persuade the King to revoke unpopular policies such as the Coercive Acts, which were imposed on the Colonies by the British Parliament, and to reassure the King that, following the successful repeal of the Coercive Acts, the Colonies would restore favorable relations with Britain. On October 25, 1774, after some amendments, the First Continental Congress resolved "That the address to the King be enclosed in a letter to the several colony Agents, in order that the same may be by them presented to his Majesty; and that the Agents be requested to call in the aid of such Noblemen and gentlemen as are esteemed firm friends to American liberty." On November 2nd, the petition departed Philadelphia on board the ship Britannia, captained by W. Morwick. However, a storm forced the ship to return to port, delaying the delivery of the petition. It was then discovered that the paper had been damaged by the storm, and was unfit to be presented. The second copy left port on November 6th on board the ship Mary and Elizabeth, captained by N. Falconer. It was confirmed on November 14th that the document successfully arrived in London.
In Britain, a number of London merchants expressed interest in joining the Americans when the petition was presented, as had been suggested in the resolution passed by the Congress on Oct 25th, but Benjamin Franklin advised against the proposition. As a result, the presentation of the petition was considerably delayed- on November 30th, King George III had already opened Parliament with his speech condemning Massachusetts and the Suffolk Resolves. The King never gave the Colonies a formal reply to their petition- because he had never received it IOTL, and apparently, never would. And as a result of that speech, the road towards the American Revolutionary War became set in stone, forcing the Continental Congress to convene once again, and to submit the Declaration of Independence. It would only be on December 21st that Benjamin Franklin, Lee, and Bollan were notified by Lord Dartmouth that the petition was "decent and respectful" and that it would be presented as soon as possible to the Houses of Parliament.
However, Franklin wrote two days later that the petition could not be presented to Parliament until after the Christmas recess. And it was only on January 19th 1775 that the petition was presented to the House of Commons by Lord North, and was also presented to the House of Lords the following day. In the words of Benjamin Franklin: "It came down among a great did not Heap of letters of Intelligence from Governors and officers in America, Newspapers, Pamphlets, Handbills, etc., from that Country, the last in the List, and was laid upon the Table with them, undistinguished by any particular Recommendation of it to the Notice of either House; and I do not find, that it has had any further notice taken of it as yet, than that it has been read as well as the other Papers." Because the petition was intermingled with many other documents, and given the increasing turmoil of the times, little attention was given to the petition by Parliament.
Edmund Burke introduced a motion to repeal all the Acts of Parliament the Americans objected to and waive any rights of Britain to tax for revenue, but it was defeated 210–105. Parliament voted to restrict all colonial trade to Britain, prevent them from using the Newfoundland fisheries, and to increase the size of the army and navy by 6,000. In February 1775 Prime Minister Lord North proposed not to impose taxes if the colonies themselves made "fixed contributions". This would safeguard the taxing rights of the colonies from future infringement while enabling them to contribute to maintenance of the empire. But this was rejected by the Second Continental Congress when it met and discussed the matter in July 1775 as an "insidious maneuver, since hostilities had already begun with the Battles of Lexington and Concord.
So, that's the background IOTL. My question is, how differently might things have played out in this alternative scenario:
POD: W. Morwick, captain of the ship Britannia, elects to leave port in Philadephia and set sail across the Atlantic a day or two earlier. As a result, he avoids the storm and successfully delivers the undamaged first copy of the Petition to London by November 9th 1774.
Second divergence: In spite of Franklin's initial aversion to going along with the original proposition on how best to present the document to the King, the colony agents eventually come to a consensus to allow the most influential and powerful of the numerous London merchants who'd expressed their interest in joining the Americans to present the petition to the King to do so, as the "noblemen and gentlemen" and the "esteemed firm friends to American liberty" which the original resolution had called for. As a result of their influence, Lord Dartmouth gives the petition higher priority, dealing with it far more quickly, and having it presented to King George and before Parliament prior to November 30th.
Results/Main impact: King George III opens Parliament on November 30th with a different speech, having already received and read the Petition, and refrains from condemning Massachusetts and the Suffolk Resolves. The petition is presented to the House of Commons by Lord North in its own right in December 1774, and it receives far more attention from Parliament; and while Edmund Burke's motion is still defeated, albeit by a slim majority, Parliament doesn't pass the votes to either restrict all colonial trade to Britain, or prevent the colonies from using the Newfoundland fisheries ITTL. Lord North's proposal not to impose taxes if the colonies themselves make "fixed contributions" is offered before the end of the year, and the provincial councils of both Pennsylvania and New York swiftly acknowledge Lord North's offer as a acceptable resolution to the crisis, along with the majority of the loyalist delegates to the First CC.
How much might this have affected the course of history? Would this have butterflied away the USA entirely? And what would be most likely to emerge in its stead- a larger British North America more closely resembling Canada? Or several different nations, with many of the original 13 states of OTL becoming independent of the British, independently of one another, and following different courses of action to achieve their independence; competing with each other for territory when it comes to expanding westward, and potentially even going to war with one another over it? How different might the history of America, the British Empire, and eventually that of the entire world have been in such a TL?