What was the main objective of the First Continental Congress in 1774?

The main objective of the First Continental Congress in 1774 was to organize colonial resistance against British policies. This assembly emerged as a response to growing discontent with British rule, particularly after the Intolerable Acts were imposed. The delegates from the thirteen colonies convened to address their collective grievances and to devise a coordinated strategy to resist what they viewed as excessive British control and taxation without representation.

During this Congress, the delegates discussed various methods to assert their rights, including the implementation of trade boycotts and other forms of protest against British goods. They sought to unify the colonies in their resistance efforts and created the Continental Association, which aimed to enforce these non-importation measures. This was a critical step towards collective action that would eventually lay the groundwork for further resistance and, ultimately, the American Revolution.

The other options, such as drafting the Constitution, negotiating peace, or declaring independence, were not the immediate goals of the First Continental Congress, as the focus was primarily on addressing grievances and mobilizing resistance against British policies. The Constitution would not be drafted until later, following independence, and the question of independence would escalate in subsequent years, particularly with the Second Continental Congress and the Declaration of Independence in 1776.