250 Years Since: Rewriting the Revolution

In celebration of 250 years of American independence, delegates will step into one of the most consequential moments in modern history. This historical crisis committee places participants at the center of the escalating conflict between colonial self-determination and imperial authority in 1776. Delegates will represent members of the Second Continental Congress and settlers with varying interests, struggling to transform a fragile uprising into a viable nation; against you stands the leadership of the British Empire, who are determined to preserve imperial order across the Atlantic.

As the war intensifies, you must navigate a volatile political and military landscape. The revolution faces crippling financial shortages, divided loyalties within the colonies, and the overwhelming power of the British Army and Royal Navy. Fortunately, the British also are not without trouble. They must suppress your rebellion without provoking wider international conflict or overextending imperial resources. Delegates will command armies, negotiate secret alliances, manage propaganda, and confront the ideological contradictions of liberty in a world shaped by empire and enslavement. The outcome of 1776 is far from predetermined, but whether the revolution succeeds, fails, or takes an entirely different course will depend on the decisions made in committee. Your decisions will create the identity of the United States.

Two hundred and fifty years later, the legacy of the Revolution still shapes the United States and the global political order. As delegates rewrite the events of 1776, they should consider how altering the course of the Revolution could reshape the nation that emerges from it and how different choices in that might change the trajectory of the United States and the world we know today.