Vermont Republic

The Vermont Republic, officially known at the time as the State of Vermont, was an independent state in New England that existed from January 15, 1777, to March 4, 1791. The state was founded in January 1777, when delegates from 28 towns met and declared independence from the jurisdictions and land claims of the British colonies of Quebec, New Hampshire, and New York. The republic remained in existence for the next fourteen years, albeit without diplomatic recognition from any foreign power. On March 4, 1791, it was admitted into the United States as the State of Vermont, with the constitution and laws of the independent state continuing in effect after admission.

The delegates forbade adult slavery within their republic, although the Vermont constitution continued to make allowances for the enslavement of men under the age of 21 and women under the age of 18. Many Vermonters took part in the American Revolution on the side of the Revolution, but the Continental Congress did not recognize the independence of Vermont (then also known as the New Hampshire Grants) due to objections from New York, which had conflicting property claims. In a response to this, members representing Vermont conducted negotiations to join the Province of Quebec, which were accepted by the British, who offered generous terms for the republic's reunion. When the British surrendered at the Siege of Yorktown in 1781, however, American independence became apparent. Vermont, later bordered on three sides by U.S. territory, ended negotiations with Britain and instead negotiated terms to become part of the United States.

Many of its citizens favored political union with the United States rather than full independence. While the Continental Congress did not allow a seat for Vermont, Vermont engaged William Samuel Johnson, representing Connecticut, to promote its interests. In 1785 the Vermont General Assembly granted Johnson title to the former King's College Tract as a form of compensation for representing Vermont.

The constitution and other official documents referred to the country as the "State of Vermont.” The 1777 constitution refers to Vermont variously: the third paragraph of the preamble, for example, mentions "the State of Vermont,” and in the preamble's last paragraph, the constitution refers to itself as "the Constitution of the Commonwealth." The currency used by the country, the Vermont copper, carried the legend that read Vermontis. Res. Publica, which in Latin means: Republic of Vermont.

Prior to June 2, 1777, it was also known as the Republic of New Connecticut, and the Republic of the Green Mountains.

After 1724, the Province of Massachusetts Bay built Fort Dummer near Brattleboro, as well as three other forts along the northern portion of the Connecticut River to protect against raids by Native Americans farther south into Western Massachusetts. After 1749, Benning Wentworth, the Royal Governor of New Hampshire, granted land to anyone in a land-granting scheme designed to enrich himself and his family. After 1763, settlement increased because of easing security concerns after the end of the French and Indian Wars. The Province of New York had made grants of land, often in areas overlapping similar grants made by the Province of New Hampshire; this issue had to be resolved by King George III in 1764, who granted the land to New York, but the area was popularly known as the New Hampshire Grants. The "Green Mountain Boys," led by Ethan Allen, was a militia force from Vermont that supported the New Hampshire claims and fought against the British during the American Revolution.

Following controversy between the holders of the New York grants and the New Hampshire grants, Ethan Allen and his militia of "Green Mountain Boys" suppressed Loyalists through their enforcement of the Sequestration Act, (which permitted the seizure and resale of properties owned by known loyalists). On January 15, 1777, a convention of representatives from towns in the territory declared the region independent, choosing the name the Republic of New Connecticut (although it was sometimes known colloquially as the Republic of the Green Mountains). On June 2 of that year, the name was officially changed to "Vermont" (from the French, les verts monts, meaning the Green Mountains) upon the suggestion of Thomas Young, a member of the Sons of Liberty, a Boston Tea Party leader, and mentor to Ethan Allen.

John Greenleaf Whittier's poem The Song of the Vermonters, 1779 describes the period in ballad form. First published anonymously, the poem had characteristics in the last stanza that were similar to Ethan Allen's prose and caused it to be attributed to Allen for nearly 60 years. The last stanza reads: