The Major Decisions made during the Convention of 1836

March 1: The Convention Begins

On March 1, 1836, 59 delegates gathered at Washington-on-the-Brazos for the Convention of 1836. Richard Ellis was elected president of the convention.

One of the delegates’ first actions was to create a committee to prepare a declaration explaining why Texas should separate from Mexico. George C. Childress led the five-member committee that drafted the document. 

On March 2, the committee presented the Texas Declaration of Independence to the convention. The delegates adopted it and declared Texas independent from Mexico.

The delegates also began the process of writing a constitution for the new Republic of Texas. A constitution is a written plan that explains how a government is organized and what powers it has.

The convention also had to organize the military while Mexican forces were advancing through Texas. On March 4, the delegates selected Sam Houston as commander in chief of the regular and volunteer Texas army.

On March 7, the convention took additional steps to strengthen the military. It established a military draft and called for the organization of the armed forces of the new republic.

The delegates understood that declaring independence was only one part of their task. Texas also needed soldiers, military leadership, and supplies to continue fighting.

While delegates worked on a permanent constitution, they also needed a government that could begin operating immediately. On March 16, the convention adopted a plan for an ad interim government. Ad interim means temporary.

The temporary government would include a president, vice president, and cabinet officials. It was given authority to organize the military, raise money for the defense of Texas, appoint government and military officials, and communicate or negotiate with other countries.

These decisions created a government that could operate while the new republic organized itself and continued the war.

On March 17, the delegates adopted the Constitution of the Republic of Texas. The Constitution established the structure of the new national government.

The convention also selected leaders for the temporary government. David G. Burnet became president, and Lorenzo de Zavala became vice president.

After completing its work, the Convention of 1836 adjourned. In just over two weeks, the delegates had declared independence, created a constitution, established a temporary government, and taken steps to organize the military.

Their work took place during an active war. The Alamo fell on March 6 while the convention was still meeting, and Mexican forces continued advancing through Texas. The delegates were therefore building a new government while the outcome of the revolution was still uncertain.