Provisional Congress
of the
Confederate States
Logo
Flag of the Confederate States (1861–1863)
Type
Type
History
FoundedFebruary 4, 1861 (1861-02-04)
DisbandedFebruary 17, 1862 (1862-02-17)
Succeeded byConfederate States Congress
Leadership
President
Meeting place
First Capitol of the Confederate States (1861)
Alabama State Capitol
Montgomery, Alabama
Confederate States of America
Second Capitol of the Confederate States (1861-1865)
Virginia State Capitol
Richmond, Virginia
Confederate States of America
Constitution
Constitution for the Provisional Government
of the Confederate States

The Provisional Congress of the Confederate States, also known as the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States of America, was a unicameral congress of deputies and delegates called together from the Southern States which became the governing body of the Provisional Government of the Confederate States from February 4, 1861, to February 17, 1862. It sat in Montgomery, Alabama, until May 21, 1861, when it adjourned to meet in Richmond, Virginia, on July 20, 1861. In both cities, it met in the existing state capitols which it shared with the respective secessionist state legislatures. It added new members as other states seceded from the Union and directed the election on November 6, 1861, at which a permanent government was elected.[1]

First Session

The First Session of the Provisional Congress was held at Montgomery from February 4, 1861, to March 16, 1861.[2] Members were present from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina,[3] and Texas.[4] It drafted a provisional constitution and set up a government. For president and vice president, it selected Jefferson Davis of Mississippi and Alexander H. Stephens of Georgia.[1]

Constitutional Convention

The Confederate States Constitutional Convention was held at Montgomery from February 28, 1861, to March 11, 1861.[2]

Second Session

The Second Session of the Provisional Congress was held at Montgomery from April 29, 1861, to May 21, 1861.[2] Members were present from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia,[5] and Arkansas.[6]

Third Session

The Third Session of the Provisional Congress was held at Richmond from July 20, 1861, to August 31, 1861.[2] Members were present from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina,[7] and Tennessee.[8]

Fourth Session

The Fourth Session of the Provisional Congress was held at Richmond on September 3, 1861.[2] Members were present from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina, and Tennessee.

Fifth Session

The Fifth Session of the Provisional Congress was held at Richmond from November 18, 1861, to February 17, 1862.[2] Members were present from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina, Tennessee, Missouri,[9] and Kentucky.[10] One non-voting member was present from the Arizona Territory.[11]

Leadership

President
Howell Cobb
Howell Cobb

Members

Deputies

Deputies from the first seven states to secede formed the first two sessions of the Congress.

Alabama

Florida

Georgia

Louisiana

Mississippi

South Carolina

Texas

Delegates

Representatives from states to secede after the Battle of Fort Sumter were referred to as delegates, in contrast to the deputies from the original seven states.

Notes

  1. 1 2 Voorhees & Bok 1983, p. 683
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, p. 5.
  3. ↑ S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, p. 7.
  4. ↑ S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, pp. 60, 92.
  5. ↑ S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, p. 193.
  6. ↑ S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, p. 244.
  7. ↑ S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, p. 271.
  8. ↑ S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, p. 337.
  9. ↑ S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, p. 510.
  10. ↑ S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, p. 574.
  11. ↑ S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, p. 701.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, pp. 12–13.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, p. 159.
  14. ↑ S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, pp. 13–14.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, p. 14.
  16. ↑ S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, pp. 22–23.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 6 S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, pp. 14–15.
  18. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, p. 15.
  19. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, pp. 15–16.
  20. ↑ S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, pp. 53–54.
  21. ↑ S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, p. 64.
  22. 1 2 3 4 5 S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, p. 97.
  23. ↑ S. Doc. No. 234, 58th Cong., 2nd Sess. 1904, pp. 638–69.
  24. ↑ Thomas 1998, p. 32

References

  • Root, Elihu, ed. (1904) [1st pub. 1861–1862]. Journal of the Congress of the Confederate States of America, 1861–1865. Volume I: Journal of the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States of America. Senate document (United States. Congress. Senate); 58th Congress, 2nd session, no. 234. Washington: GPO. LCCN 05012700 – via Internet Archive.
  • Thomas, Emory M. (1998), The Confederate State of Richmond: A Biography of the Capital, Louisiana State University Press.
  • Voorhees, David William; Bok, H. Abigail, eds. (1983). Concise Dictionary of American History. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. ISBN 0-684-17321-2. OCLC 9111110.

Further reading

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