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The history of the lands that became the United States began with the arrival of the first people in the Americas around 15,000 BC. Numerous indigenous cultures formed. After European colonization of North America began in the late 15th century, wars and epidemics decimated indigenous societies.
The United States of America (USA or U.S.A.), commonly known as the United States (US or U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal union of 50 states, which also includes its federal capital district of Washington, D.C., and 326 Indian reservations.
- Background
- American Revolution
- Confederation Period
- Westward Expansion
- Economy
- Culture and Media
- Science and Education
- Demographics
- See Also
- References
During the 17th and 18th centuries, British colonies in America were given considerable autonomy under the system of salutary neglect. This autonomy was challenged in the 1760s by several acts of the Grenville ministry, including the Stamp Act 1765 and the Quartering Acts. These acts provoked an ideological conflict between Great Britain and the Th...
Declaration of Independence
On July 2, 1776, the Second Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, voted unanimously to declare independence as the "United States of America". Two days later, on July 4, Congress signed the Declaration of Independence. The Second Continental Congress was not initially formed to declare independence. Support for independence had grown gradually in 1775 and 1776 as Great Britain refused the colonists' demands and hostilities became more pronounced. The political pamphlet Common Sensefu...
Treaty of Paris
King George III formally acknowledged American independence and ordered the end of hostilities on December 5, 1782. Peace negotiations took place in Paris, with John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and John Jay representing the United States. Negotiations concluded with the Treaty of Paris, which legally recognized the United States as an independent country. Great Britain agreed to give up portions of southwestern Canada, though the boundary with the rest of British Canada remained unsettled.Some...
Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation were proposed by the Continental Congress on November 15, 1777, and they were ratified on March 1, 1781. It replaced the administrative boards and appellate courts that Congress had created during the early stages of the Revolutionary War. While the Articles of Confederation granted certain powers to the Congress of the Confederation, they also imposed restrictions that made governance difficult. These restrictions were by design, as many Americans feared that a...
Foreign affairs
Congress oversaw foreign policy, but the states had the final say in their own foreign relations, with each state ratifying treaties individually. Relations with Great Britain were still troubled after the war. Many states did not comply with the terms of the Treaty of Paris regarding the treatment of British nationals, and the British Army maintained a presence in the western territories. Britain also hurt American trade through restrictions on American products to promote Canadian growth. T...
Constitutional Convention
Economic conflict grew between the states as the Confederation period went on, and Congress had no power to prevent it. By 1786, many of the most prominent Americans in government were expressing concerns that the government under the Articles of Confederation was not sufficient, as it lacked both the economic and military security that had previously been provided by Great Britain. The Annapolis Convention was held in 1786 to address trade issues, but it saw meager attendance with most state...
Settlement of Trans-Appalachia grew during the Revolutionary War, increasing from a few thousand to 25,000 settlers. Westward expansion stirred enthusiasm even in those who did not move west, and many leading Americans, including Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and John Jay, purchased lands in the west. Land speculators founded groups like the Ohio ...
The American Revolution had large scale effects on the economies of the Thirteen Colonies. The Continental Congress did not have the power to levy taxes, so it depended on the newly formed state governments to raise funds, and they were forced to raise taxes to cover war expenditures. It also caused a labor shortage as workers enlisted in the Patri...
A distinct American culture separate from Britain had already developed by the 1750s. A plainness in fashion and speech was common, originating from Puritan standards of the colonial era and reasserted by the revolution. The United States in the 18th century saw a proliferation of newspapers and magazine, many of which were in print only briefly. P...
Historians categorize the time of the American Revolution as part of a broader American Enlightenment, in which the ideas of the Age of Enlightenment began to influence American science and philosophy. This included a shift away from religious groundings in philosophy. Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson were prolific philosophic writers in this...
The population of the Thirteen Colonies was 2.5 million in 1776. The first national census was taken in 1790, shortly after the end of the Confederation period. It found that the United States had a population of 3,929,214 residents with an average of 4.5 people per square mile. There were five cities with a population over 10,000 residents. The la...
Alden, John R. (1969). A history of the American Revolution. New York, Knopf. LCCN 69-10201.Bell, James B. (2008). A War of Religion: Dissenters, Anglicans and the American Revolution. Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 9780230583214.Berkin, Carol (2003). A Brilliant Solution: Inventing the American Constitution. Harcourt. ISBN 0-15-100948-1.Cogliano, Francis D. (2009). Revolutionary America, 1763–1815: A Political History (2nd ed.). Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-96486-9.13 hours ago · When Columbus arrived, he found the New World inhabited by peoples who in all likelihood had originally come from the continent of Asia. Probably these first inhabitants had arrived 20,000 to 35,000 years before in a series of migrations from Asia to North America by way of the Bering Strait.
Aug 12, 2019 · A map showing the locations of the original thirteen colonies of the United States. After 1620, British colonization in America grew rapidly. The colonies of New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Connecticut were founded as extensions of Massachusetts.
20 hours ago · America was the first of the European colonies to separate successfully from its motherland, and it was the first nation to be established on the premise that sovereignty rests with its citizens and not with the government.
Jul 5, 2024 · In the early 1770s, more and more colonists became convinced that Parliament intended to take away their freedom. In fact, the Americans saw a pattern of increasing oppression and corruption happening all around the world.
