The Virginia Conventions were a series of five political meetings in the Colony of Virginia during the American Revolution. Because the House of Burgesses had been dissolved in 1774 by Royal Governor Lord Dunmore, the conventions served as a revolutionary provisional government until the establishment of the independent Commonwealth of Virginia in 1776.
The first convention was organized after Lord Dunmore dissolved the House of Burgesses when th...
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The Virginia Conventions were a series of five political meetings in the Colony of Virginia during the American Revolution. Because the House of Burgesses had been dissolved in 1774 by Royal Governor Lord Dunmore, the conventions served as a revolutionary provisional government until the establishment of the independent Commonwealth of Virginia in 1776.
The first convention was organized after Lord Dunmore dissolved the House of Burgesses when that body called for a day of prayer as a show of solidarity with Boston, Massachusetts, following the Boston Port Act. The Burgesses moved to Raleigh Tavern to continue meeting. The Burgesses declared support for Massachusetts and called for a congress of all the colonies, the Continental Congress. The Burgesses, operating as the first convention, on August 1, 1774, met and elected representatives to the Virginia convention, banned commerce and payment of debts with Britain, and pledged supplies and support to Boston.
The second convention...
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