Talk:John Rutledge

Earlier Entry

This is what was on the page before, there may be a little bit here(or better wording) that someone might want to merge in the future.

Progressingamerica (talk) 01:40, 21 February 2016 (EST)

In 1761, Rutledge was elected to the provincial assembly of South Carolina. Before Rutledge took office, the Royal Governor, Thomas Boone, had refused allow a newly elected Assemblyman named Christopher Gadsden to take his seat. This led to a political impasse between the Governor and the legislature. Ultimately, the legislature refused to conduct any business until the governor relented.Ref: Flanders 453-454 Rutledge was instrumental in uniting the assembly against the Governor.

In 1774, Rutledge was sent to the First Continental Congress. It is not known for certain exactly what John Rutledge contributed during the First Continental Congress. In the notes we have of the actions of this Congress, the name is given simply as "Rutledge", despite the fact that John's brother Edward Rutledge was also present. In any case, the most important contribution made by "Rutledge" to the Congress was during the debate of how to appropriate votes in the Congress. Some wanted it to be determined by the population of the colonies. Others wanted to give each colony one vote. "Rutledge" observed that as the Congress had no legal authority to force the colonies to accept its decisions, it would make the most sense to give each colony one vote. The other delegates ultimately agreed to this proposal.Ref: Flanders 481-482