The Royal Gazette was published by Loyalist printer James Rivington in British-held New York City from 1777 to 1783. This Jan. 24, 1778, issue contains the complete text of the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, adopted for ratification by the Continental Congress in November 1777. Although final ratification did not occur until 1781, the Articles acted as the de facto system of government for the United States from the end of 1777 until the ratification of the United States Constitution in 1788.