Editing Vermont (section)

===Sovereignty===

{{Main|Vermont Republic|Constitution of Vermont (1777)}}
[[File:Vermont State House Montpelier October 2021 HDR.jpg|thumb|right|The [[gold leaf]] [[dome]] of the [[neoclassical architecture|neoclassical]] [[Vermont State House]] (Capitol) in [[Montpelier, Vermont|Montpelier]]]]

On January 15, 1777, representatives of the New Hampshire Grants declared the independence of [[Vermont Republic|Vermont]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Second Vermont Republic |website=Vermont's Declaration of Independence (1777) |url=http://www.vermontrepublic.org/vermonts_declaration_of_independence_1777 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927024239/http://www.vermontrepublic.org/vermonts_declaration_of_independence_1777 |url-status=dead |archive-date=September 27, 2007 |access-date=January 17, 2007 }}</ref> For the first six months of its existence, it was called the Republic of New Connecticut.<ref name="Esther Munroe Swift">Esther Munroe Swift, ''Vermont Place-Names: Footprints in History'' Picton Press, 1977</ref>

On June 2, 1777, a second convention of 72 delegates met and adopted the name "Vermont". This was on the advice of [[Thomas Young (American revolutionary)|Thomas Young]], a mentor of Ethan Allen. He advised them on how to achieve admission into the newly independent United States of America as the 14th state.<ref name="Esther Munroe Swift" /> On July 4, they completed the drafting of the first [[Constitution of the Vermont Republic|Constitution of Vermont]] (in effect from 1777 to 1786) at the [[Old Constitution House|Windsor Tavern]], and adopted it on July 8. This was the first written constitution in North America to ban adult [[slavery]],<ref>{{cite web
 | url = http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/new-connecticut-vermont-declares-independence
 | title = New Connecticut (Vermont) declares independence
 | date = March 5, 2019
| website = History Channel
 | publisher = A+E Networks
 | quote = Vermont's constitution was not only the first written national constitution drafted in North America, but also the first to prohibit slavery and to give all adult males, not just property owners, the right to vote.}}</ref> stating that [[History of slavery in Vermont|male slaves become free at the age of 21 and females at 18]]. It provided for universal adult male suffrage and established a public school system.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Old Constitution House {{!}} State Historic Sites |url=https://historicsites.vermont.gov/constitution-house |access-date=April 29, 2023 |website=historicsites.vermont.gov}}</ref>