<P> By 1774, colonists still hoped to remain part of the British Empire, but discontentment was widespread concerning British rule throughout the Thirteen Colonies . Colonists elected delegates to the First Continental Congress which convened in Philadelphia in September 1774 . In the aftermath of the Intolerable Acts, the delegates asserted that the colonies owed allegiance only to the king; they would accept royal governors as agents of the king, but they were no longer willing to recognize Parliament's right to pass legislation affecting the colonies . Most delegates opposed an attack on the British position in Boston, and the Continental Congress instead agreed to the imposition of a boycott known as the Continental Association . The boycott proved effective and the value of British imports dropped dramatically . The Thirteen Colonies became increasingly divided between Patriots opposed to British rule and Loyalists who supported it . </P> <P> In response, the colonies formed bodies of elected representatives known as Provincial Congresses, and Colonists began to boycott imported British merchandise . Later in 1774, 12 colonies sent representatives to the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia . During the Second Continental Congress, the remaining colony of Georgia sent delegates, as well . </P> <P> Massachusetts Governor Thomas Gage feared a confrontation with the colonists; he requested reinforcements from Britain, but the British government was not willing to pay for the expense of stationing tens of thousands of soldiers in the Thirteen Colonies . Gage was instead ordered to seize Patriot arsenals . He dispatched a force to march on the arsenal at Concord, Massachusetts, but the Patriots learned about it and blocked their advance . The Patriots repulsed the British force at the April 1775 Battles of Lexington and Concord, then lay siege to Boston . </P> <P> By spring 1775, all royal officials had been expelled, and the Continental Congress hosted a convention of delegates for the 13 colonies . It raised an army to fight the British and named George Washington its commander, made treaties, declared independence, and recommended that the colonies write constitutions and become states . The Second Continental Congress assembled in May 1775 and began to coordinate armed resistance against Britain . It established a government that recruited soldiers and printed its own money . General Washington took command of the Patriot soldiers in New England and forced the British to withdraw from Boston . In 1776, the Thirteen Colonies declared their independence from Britain . With the help of France and Spain, they defeated the British in the American Revolutionary War . In the Treaty of Paris (1783), Britain officially recognized the independence of the United States of America . </P>

Which had control of the greater number of states