| Background: |
Britain's American colonies broke
with the mother country in 1776 and were recognized as the new nation of
the United States of America following the Treaty of Paris in 1783. During
the 19th and 20th centuries, 37 new states were added to the original 13
as the nation expanded across the North American continent and acquired a
number of overseas possessions. The two most traumatic experiences in the
nation's history were the Civil War (1861-65) and the Great Depression of
the 1930s. Buoyed by victories in World Wars I and II and the end of the
Cold War in 1991, the US remains the world's most powerful nation-state.
The economy is marked by steady growth, low unemployment and inflation,
and rapid advances in technology. |