<P> Although the delegates were divided early on as to whether to break from Crown rule , the second Continental Congress on July 2 , 1776 , passed a resolution asserting independence , with no opposing vote recorded . The Declaration of Independence was issued two days later declaring themselves a new nation : the United States of America . It established a Continental Army , giving command to one of its members , George Washington of Virginia . It waged war with Great Britain , made a militia treaty with France , and funded the war effort with loans and paper money . </P>
when did the continental congress vote to adopt the declaration of independence
July 2 , 1776