Empire · since 1776 · Southern North America

United States of America

Also known as United States, United States Virgin Islands, American Samoa

Thirteen British colonies along the Atlantic coast declared independence on 4 July 1776 and won it in the Revolutionary War with French help. The Constitution of 1787 created a federal republic with an elected president, Congress and courts, and George Washington became the first president in 1789.

The young nation expanded westward through the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, war with Mexico in 1846–48 and the acquisition of Oregon and Alaska, displacing Native American nations by force and treaty. Disputes over slavery led to the Civil War of 1861–65, in which the Union's victory abolished slavery. Rapid industrialisation and mass immigration made it the world's largest economy by the 1890s. After the world wars the United States emerged as a superpower, leading the West in the Cold War against the Soviet Union.

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Years

since 1776

Capital

Washington, D.C. (from 1800; earlier New York and Philadelphia)

Greatest extent

1959, about 9.83 million km²

Region

Southern North America

After Alaska and Hawaii became states