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, was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army on June 15 , 1775 .]] The Continental Army was the unified command structure of the Thirteen Colonies fighting Great Britain during the American Revolutionary War . The Army was created by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14 , 1775 . Most of the Continental Army was disbanded on November 3 , 1783 after the Treaty Of Paris . A small residual force remained at West Point and some frontier outposts, until Congress created the United States Army by their resolution of June 3 , 1784 . CREATION, ORGANIZATION AND REORGANIZATION On June 7 the Continental Congress decided to proceed with the establishment of a Continental Army for purposes of common defense. Referring to themselves as "the twelve United Colonies", ( Georgia was not yet represented), the congress adopted forces already in place in Cambridge, Massachusetts as the first units of the Continental Army. They then elected, by unanimous vote, George Washington , on June 15 , as commander-in-chief. Washington accepted the position without any compensation, except reimbursement of his expenses. Four major-generals ( Artemas Ward , Charles Lee , Philip Schuyler , and Israel Putnam ) and eight brigadier-generals ( Seth Pomeroy , Richard Montgomery , David Wooster , William Heath , Joseph Spencer , John Thomas , John Sullivan , and Nathanael Greene ) were appointed in the course of a few days. As the Continental Congress increasingly accepted the responsibilities and posture of a legislature for a sovereign state, the role of the Continental Army was the subject of considerable debate. There was a general aversion to maintaining a standing army among the Americans; but, on the other hand, the requirements of the war against the British required the discipline and organization of a modern military. As a result, the army went through several distinct phases, characterized by official dissolution and reorganization of units. Broadly speaking, Continental forces consisted of several successive armies, or "establishments":
In addition, a number of militia units, raised and funded by individual colonies/states, participated in battles. The financial responsibility for providing pay, food, shelter, clothing, arms, and other equipment to specific units was assigned to states as part of the establishment of these units. States differed in how well they lived up these obligations. There were constant funding issues on the one hand and morale problems on the other as the war continued. THE EMERGENCE OF COMBAT CAPABILITIES
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