Birth of the U.S. Army
Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
Created on June 14, 1775 at Independence Hall by the Second Continental Congress, the Continental Army unified a group of colonial militias into the first national military force. It became the oldest and largest branch of the U.S. Armed Forces. THIS WE’LL DEFEND
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
On June 14, 1775, the Second Continental Congress, meeting at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, voted to bring the scattered colonial militias together into a single Continental Army. That decision created the first national military force of what would become the United States, more than a year before independence was formally declared. From it descends today's U.S. Army, the oldest and largest branch of the armed forces.
Why it matters
This act gave the American Revolution a unified fighting force and marks the birthplace of the U.S. Army, an institution older than the nation it defends.
The story behind this marker
AI contextThe era
In the spring of 1775, the American colonies stood at the edge of open war with Britain but had no nation and no army to fight it. Fighting had already broken out in Massachusetts, and colonial militias, local men with their own muster rolls and their own leaders, had taken up arms. What they lacked was any unified command.
Philadelphia had become the political center of the resistance. It was here that the Second Continental Congress gathered, at the building we now know as Independence Hall, to coordinate a response among colonies that had long guarded their independence from one another as jealously as from London.
The great question hanging over that Congress was whether thirteen separate colonies could act as one. Turning scattered bands of militia into a single fighting force was among the first and most consequential tests of that unity.
People & events
On June 14, 1775, the Second Continental Congress took the step that answered part of that question. It voted to bring the separate colonial militias together into a single Continental Army, the first national military force the colonies had ever raised.
The timing matters. This decision came more than a year before independence was formally declared. The colonies were creating an army for a nation that did not yet officially exist, a bold act of faith in a future still very much in doubt.
The motto carried on this marker, "THIS WE'LL DEFEND," belongs to the U.S. Army that grew from that founding vote. It is a phrase with a long reach, tying the modern institution directly back to the men who first agreed, in Philadelphia, to stand and fight together.
Its place in the American story
The founding of the Continental Army gave the American Revolution something it had lacked: a unified force that could act on behalf of all the colonies rather than any single one. Without it, the resistance might have remained a patchwork of local uprisings, easier to isolate and defeat.
From that army descends today's United States Army, the oldest and largest branch of the nation's armed forces. It is, remarkably, older than the country it serves, established while the colonies were still subjects of the Crown.
That makes this a birthplace in the fullest sense. The decision made here helped transform thirteen quarrelsome colonies into something that could act, endure, and eventually win as one.
If you visit
To stand near Independence Hall is to stand where the American story took several of its decisive turns, and the birth of the Army is one of the quieter but no less important among them. The building is famous for what came a year later; this marker points to a founding that came first.
Let the date do its work as you read. Imagine a Congress voting to raise an army for a nation not yet born, wagering everything on the belief that one would follow.
This is a natural stop on any walk through Philadelphia's Revolutionary heart. It sits comfortably alongside the more celebrated landmarks nearby, and it rewards a traveler willing to look past the headline events to the practical, daring decisions that made them possible.
Written by AI to add context, grounded in the marker’s inscription and the historical record. The inscription above is the original, unaltered text.
Plan your visit
NearbyMake a day of it — museums, food, and places to stay near this marker.
Museums & culture
- Independence Hallnearby · 520 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Congress Hallnearby · Philadelphia, PA
- Old City Hallnearby · Philadelphia
- Philosophical Hallnearby · PA
- Liberty Bell Centernearby · 526 Market Street, Philadelphia
- Portrait Gallery in the Second Banknearby · 420 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA
Attractions
- Liberty Bellnearby · 526 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA
- President's Housenearby
- Second Bank of the United Statesnearby · 420 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Carpenters' Hall0.2 mi away · 320 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA
- First Bank of the United States0.2 mi away · 120 South 3rd Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Benjamin Franklin Grave0.2 mi away
Food & drink
- Red Owl Tavernnearby · 433 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Franklin Social0.1 mi away · 401 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA
- La Colombe Coffee Roasters0.1 mi away
- LaScala's0.1 mi away · 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Time & Peace0.1 mi away · 36 South 7th Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Don Barriga0.1 mi away · 703 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA
Places to stay
- Renaissance Philadelphia Downtown Hotel0.1 mi away · 401 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Best Western Plus Independence Park Hotel0.2 mi away · 237 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Wyndham Philadelphia Historic District0.2 mi away · 400 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Morris House Hotel0.3 mi away · 225 South 8th Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Apple Hostels Philadelphia0.3 mi away · 32 South Bank Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Apple Hostels0.3 mi away · 33 Bank Street, Philadelphia, PA
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Related events
- · Founding of the Continental Army
Themes & tags
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