The Provisional Congress of the Confederate States, fully the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States of America, was a unicameral congress of deputies and delegates called together from the Southern States which became the governing body of the Provisional Government of the Confederate States from February 4, 1861, to February 17, 1862. It sat in

Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama. Named for Continental Army major general Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River on the Gulf Coastal Plain. The population was 2 ...

, until May 21, 1861, when it adjourned to meet in

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

, on July 20, 1861. In both cities, it met in the existing state capitols which it shared with the respective secessionist state legislatures. It added new members as other states seceded from the Union and directed the

election An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...

on November 6, 1861, at which a permanent government was elected. Provisional_Confederate_government_flag

First Session

The First Session of the Provisional Congress was held at Montgomery from February 4, 1861, to March 16, 1861. Members were present from Alabama,

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, Georgia,

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

, Mississippi,

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

, and

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. It drafted a provisional constitution and set up a government. For president and vice president, it selected Jefferson Davis of Mississippi and Alexander H. Stephens of Georgia.

Constitutional Convention

The Confederate States Constitutional Convention was held at Montgomery from February 28, 1861, to March 11, 1861.

Second Session

The Second Session of the Provisional Congress was held at Montgomery from April 29, 1861, to May 21, 1861. Members were present from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, and

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

Third Session

The Third Session of the Provisional Congress was held at Richmond from July 20, 1861, to August 31, 1861. Members were present from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas,

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

, and Tennessee.

Fourth Session

The Fourth Session of the Provisional Congress was held at Richmond on September 3, 1861. Members were present from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina, and Tennessee.

Fifth Session

The Fifth Session of the Provisional Congress was held at Richmond from November 18, 1861, to February 17, 1862. Members were present from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina, Tennessee,

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

, and

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

. One non-voting member was present from the Arizona Territory.

Leadership

* President: Howell Cobb

Members

Deputies

Deputies from the first seven states to secede formed the first two sessions of the Congress. Alabama * Richard W. Walker * Robert H. Smith * Colin J. McRae * John Gill Shorter (''resigned'' November 1861) ** Cornelius Robinson (''took his seat on'' April 29, 1861 – ''Elected to fill vacancy; resigned'' January 24, 1862) * W. P. Chilton * Stephen F. Hale * David P. Lewis (''resigned'' April 29, 1861) ** Nic. Davis, Jr. (''took his seat on'' April 29, 1861 – ''Elected to fill vacancy'') * Thomas Fearn (''resigned'' April 29, 1861) ** H. C. Jones (''took his seat on'' April 29, 1861 – ''Elected to fill vacancy'') * J. L. M. Curry

* J. Patton Anderson (''resigned'' April 8, 1861) ** George Taliaferro Ward (''took his seat on '' May 2, 1861 – ''Elected to fill vacancy; resigned ''February 5, 1862) ** John Pease Sanderson (''took his seat on '' February 5, 1862 – ''Appointed to fill vacancy'') * James B. Owens * Jackson Morton (''took his seat on ''February 6, 1861) Georgia * Robert Toombs * Howell Cobb * F. S. Bartow (''killed'' July 21, 1861 ''at the First Battle of Bull Run'') ** Thomas Marsh Forman (''took his seat on'' August 7, 1861 – ''Appointed to fill vacancy'') * M. J. Crawford * E. A. Nisbet (''resigned'' December 10, 1861) ** Nathan Henry Bass, Sr. (''took his seat on'' January 14, 1862 – ''Appointed to fill vacancy'') * B. H. Hill * A. R. Wright * T. R. R. Cobb * A. H. Kenan * A. H. Stephens

* John Perkins, Jr. * Alexander de Clouet * Charles M. Conrad * Duncan F. Kenner * Edward Sparrow * Henry Marshall Mississippi * A. M. Clayton (''resigned'' May 11, 1861) ** Alexander Blackburn Bradford (''took his seat on'' December 5, 1861 – ''Elected to fill vacancy'') * James T. Harrison * William S. Barry * J. A. P. Campbell * Wiley P. Harris * Walker Brooke * William S. Wilson (''resigned'' April 29, 1861) ** J. A. Orr (''took his seat on'' April 29, 1861 – ''Elected to fill vacancy'')

* Robert Barnwell Rhett * Robert W. Barnwell * Christopher Gustavus Memminger * James Chesnut, Jr. * William Porcher Miles * Laurence M. Keitt * Thomas J. Withers (''resigned'' May 21, 1861 ''after second session'') ** James Lawrence Orr (''took his seat on'' February 17, 1862 – ''Appointed to fill vacancy'') * William W. Boyce

* John Gregg (''took his seat on'' February 15, 1861) * Thomas N. Waul (''took his seat on'' February 19, 1861) * W. S. Oldham (''took his seat on'' March 2, 1861) * J. H. Reagan (''took his seat on'' March 2, 1861) * John Hemphill (''took his seat on'' March 2, 1861; ''died'' January 4, 1862) * W. B. Ochiltree (''took his seat on'' March 2, 1861) * L. T. Wigfall (''took his seat on'' March 2, 1861)

Delegates

Representatives from states that seceded after the Battle of Fort Sumter were referred to as delegates, in contrast to the deputies from the original seven states, even though they all had the same obligations.

* Augustus Hill Garland * Robert Ward Johnson * Albert Rust * Hugh French Thomason * William Wirt Watkins