Final answer:
The Continental Congress established the Navy in October 1775, during the early years of the American Revolutionary War, as they prepared for escalating conflict.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Continental Congress established the Navy in October 1775. This occurred in the context of the escalating conflict between the American colonies and Great Britain. The Second Continental Congress, which convened in May 1775 following the Lexington and Concord skirmishes, quickly moved from seeking reconciliation to preparing for war. The Congress, recognizing the need for a naval force to challenge British control of the seas, voted to outfit two sailing vessels, armed with ten carriage guns, as well as swivel guns, and manned by crews of eighty, and to send them out on a cruise of three months to intercept transports carrying munitions and stores to the British army in America. This was the original formation of what would become the United States Navy.