The Americas

United States of America Second Republic (United States Congress)
AD 1789 - Present Day

Special Site: American Lives All Modern States Americas Native Americans

The United States of America (usually abbreviated to USA) is a North American presidential constitutional republic which operates under a federal model. By 2023 (and well before that date) it consisted of fifty states, each of which was able to raise its own internal laws, along with a federal district, five major unincorporated territories, nine 'Minor Outlying Islands', and 326 Native American reservations.

It stretches from the Pacific west coast to the Atlantic east coast, and is neighboured to the north by Canada, and to the south by Mexico and several island states in the Gulf of Mexico, many of which had started out as units of the Spanish Empire.

Ideas about governance progressed rapidly during the Revolutionary Wars (or War of Independence). In 1789 the United States congress replaced the 1781 'Congress of the Confederation' which had governed during the later years of the 'War of Independence'. The new government was organised by a new federal constitution, to be headed by a democratically elected president, unlike the previous ceremonial presidents of the earlier, provisional 'Continental Congress' and the congress of the confederation.

General George Washington was sworn in as the first president of the United States on 30 April 1789. His family name already bore an element of notoriety as his great-grandfather, Colonel John Washington, had led an armed mob against some of the Susquehannock survivors in Maryland, wrongly as it turned out and against the governor's express orders.

The independent American government was returned to Philadelphia in 1790, replacing New York as the nation's capital. Immediately beforehand it voted on the creation of a new city which would be known as Washington in the District of Columbia, sited on the banks of the Potomac River between the states of Maryland and Virginia. It took ten years to make the new city ready for occupation, and on 14 May 1800 the US government moved for the last time to its new and permanent home.

When tracing the birth of the first amendment to the constitution, the most logical place to start is with Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and the other 'Founders'. The basis of religious liberty in America went back much farther than this, beginning in the early debates.

(Information by Peter Kessler, with additional information by Edward Dawson and Bruce T Murray, from Theology in America: A Historical Survey, Sydney E Ahlstrom (Princeton University Press, 1961), from Pilgrims in Their Own Land, Martin E Marty (Penguin Books, 1984), from The First Liberty: Religion and the American Republic, William Lee Miller (Paragon House Publishers, 1985), and from External Links: Electoral college explained (The Guardian), and Electoral College (USA Government), and This day in history: NC voted to join the union November 21, 1789 (NC Spin), and Congress certifies Joe Biden as president hours after storming of Capitol (The Guardian), and 1776 Historical Institute (Instagram).)

1789 - 1797

Served two terms. Died of a throat infection 14 Dec 1799.

1789

On 21 November 1789, North Carolina joins the union as the twelfth state (making it one of the very last remaining former British Colonies to do so). The process was not easy, however. In 1788, North Carolina's general assembly had declined to ratify the United States constitution, suggesting many amendments and calling for a bill of rights which was duly added.

Although the USA had successfully forged a new nation from the thirteen colonies, it still had to face internal problems which were related to the native American tribes - although the Algonquian-speaking tribes in the Virginia area had largely been destroyed, there were always new tribes to face on the western frontier

1790

On 29 May 1790, Rhode Island and Providence plantations join the union as the thirteenth state. These areas had first been sighted in 1524 by the Italian explorer, Giovanni da Verrazzano, while in the employ of France, but the area had subsequently fallen under the administration of the shrunken British Colonies.

In the same year, with the Treaty of Fort Harmar (of January 1789) proving worthless, the Americans decide to resolve by force the problems with Native American unrest in Ohio. Faced with another war, the Moravian Delaware leave Ohio for southern Ontario. Known as the 'Moravians of the Thames', by 1792 they establish themselves in a peaceful community at Moraviantown (unfortunately burned to the ground by an American army in 1813).

The Lenni-Lenape were distributed as shown in this map, located mainly in New Jersey and adjacent territories, including the western section of Long Island, with a questionable group of possible Munsee speakers alongside them (click or tap on map to view full sized)

Little Turtle's War (1790-1794) begins with a series of disasters for the Americans as they attempt to destroy the native American alliance villages in north-western Ohio. Josiah Harmar's army of militia is ambushed on the upper Wabash in 1790, and it suffers over two hundred casualties.

1791

On 4 March 1791, the Vermont republic joins the union as the fourteenth state. This territory had probably first been sighted by Jacques Cartier in 1541 as he claimed Canada for France, Vermont had also been claimed as part of New France in 1609, passing to Britain in 1763 and then to the US.

In the ongoing conflict in Ohio, Arthur St Clair suffers an even greater humiliation - the worst defeat ever to be inflicted on a fledgling American army by Native Americans, leaving six hundred dead and four hundred wounded. An enraged President George Washington at Philadelphia finally calms down and sends 'Mad' Anthony Wayne to Ohio.

Arthur St Clair was suffering extensively from gout when his militia was attacked, but he continued bravely to try and lead his outclassed forces as they were butchered in battle

Wayne establishes himself at Fort Washington (in modern Cincinnati) and, during the next two years, he makes careful preparations to destroy the alliance. While a line of forts is built which aims directly towards north-western Ohio, Wayne trains a 'legion' of disciplined regulars to back-up the militia. Meanwhile, the prolonged war is already causing the alliance to disintegrate.

1792

On 1 June 1792, the commonwealth of Kentucky joins the union as the fifteenth state. This territory had originated as part of Virginia from around 1750, but had gradually developed an identity of its own until statehood now detaches it entirely.

The Wabash tribes (Illinois, Kickapoo, Piankashaw, and Potawatomi) make a separate peace with the Americans, and the Fox and Sauk leave because the alliance is having trouble feeding its warriors. Additionally, although the British are still encouraging the war, the Americans have opened negotiations with them to end their support of the alliance and to agree to abandon the forts they still occupy on American territory.

The Susquehanna Valley became the focus of Susquehannock settlement from around the middle of the twelfth century, well before any Europeans had reached the Americas on a permanent basis

Peaceful overtures are also made to the alliance, but the Shawnee kill two of the American representatives whilst they are en route to meet the alliance council.

1795 - 1796

The 'Legion of the United States', a 1792 reorganisation and extension of the Continental Army, had represented a political shift in the new United States, which had only recently adopted its new constitution. Now, following the 1795 Treaty of Greenville with the 'Western Confederacy' of Native Americans and the Jay Treaty with Great Britain, the legion is reduced in size and rechristened as the 'Army of the United States' (in 1796).

1796

On 1 June 1796, Tennessee joins the union as the sixteenth state. This territory had first been explored by the Spanish in 1540, 1559, and 1567, but the first settlement had only appeared in 1756 when Britain constructed Fort Loudoun.

1797 - 1801

Massachusetts delegate.

1801 - 1809

Virginia. Served two terms.

1801 - 1805

Having recommissioned its navy in 1794, the USA is becoming increasingly reluctant to pay tribute to ensure the safe passage of its merchant ships in the Mediterranean. The pasha of Tripoli demands fresh tribute of the new government of Thomas Jefferson which is refused, so Tripoli declares war on the USA. Morocco and Algiers do not join Tripoli in the conflict.

The somewhat colourful view of the Barbary pirates masked their relentless pursuit of captures and their accumulation of wealth at the expense of innocent merchantmen

The small but highly modern American navy defeats Tripoli's vessels in a number of naval skirmishes during the First Barbary War, until Tripoli agrees peace terms and the US buys back its captured seamen.

1803 - 1806

On 19 February 1803, Ohio joins the union as the seventeenth state. This territory had originally been entered by fur traders from New France (which had resulted in the Beaver Wars - see feature link). It had been passed to Britain in 1763 and then to the US in 1783.

On 30 April 1803, Napoleon Bonaparte, first consul of France, sells the New French territory of Louisiana to the United States for eighty million francs. While the USA also claims the former French territory which has been part of West Florida since 1763, Spain refuses to hand it over.

The following year the 'Orleans Territory' is formed as a subdivision of part of it (later to become the state of Louisiana). In 1806, the USA asks the viceroy of New Spain to remove his Spanish Colonial troops from New Orleans so that it can take possession of the area up to the River Sabine. The Spanish agree and the troops are removed.

The ruins of Old Panama are now surrounded by a modern city of Panama which has largely shed its colonial trappings

1808

The importation of slaves is banned by the 'Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves of 1807'. American slaveholders start breeding their own slaves on the plantations in the south (see feature link).

1809 - 1817

Virginia. Served two terms.

1810

On 27 October, parts of West Florida are annexed by the USA, which claims the region as part of the 1803 'Louisiana Purchase'. US forces take control of the republic of West Florida's capital of St Francisville on 6 December, with Baton Rouge falling four days later. Spain continues to protest at the illegal capture but is unable to regain the territory.

1812

Louisiana is formally accepted as a state of the union on 30 April 1812, the eighteenth to be created, and the first to officially declared as a state. The War of 1812 begins as the US declares war on Britain over the interdiction of trade with Napoleonic France. The American push to colonise Canada is repulsed several times by British and Native American forces, leading to US defeat.

The attack and burning of Washington in 1814 resulted from the British operating from other flanks in support of the Canadian border's defenders, and was a direct consequence of US forces burning Government House and the parliament buildings in Toronto (then known as York)

In Florida, the area around Mobile (Alabama) is officially annexed to the Mississippi territory (in 1814), and the captured region is slowly increased in size over the next few years. In the north, the forty-ninth parallel is established as the border between the Rupert's Land British Colonies and the US, heading west towards the Rocky Mountains. The Red River Colony is ceded to the US and joint control of Oregon Country is commenced.

1815 - 1816

The Second Barbary War is fought by the USA in response to renewed pirate raids while it has been preoccupied with the War of 1812. A squadron of US ships captures several Algerian vessels and, after negotiations, the dey of Algiers agrees to return American captives and vessels in return for a large one-off final payment.

Although this concludes the war, it does not conclude the piracy threat, so the following year, Britain sends a 'diplomatic mission' which is eventually forced to bombard Algiers for nine hours on 27 August 1816. The dey loses many of his corsairs and shore defences, and the threat of organised Barbary piracy is ended once and for all.

Algiers came under bombardment several times during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, usually due to its role in leading Berber piracy raids

1816

On 11 December 1816, Indiana is admitted into the union as the nineteenth state. This had been New French territory from 1679 to 1763, and then a territory of the British Colonies between 1763-1783. It had been handed over to the US to form part of the 'Northwest Territory'. In 1800, the Indiana territory was formed after Ohio had been separated from it.

1817 - 1825

Virginia. Served two terms.

1817

On 10 December 1817, Mississippi is admitted into the union as the twentieth state. The Spanish had passed through it in 1540, but the first colony had been established under the administration of New France in 1699 as part of the Louisiana territory, and this had then changed hands between the Spanish, British, and French (up to 1763), before becoming part of the British Colonies and then the Mississippi territory of the US.

1818

On 3 December 1818, Illinois is admitted into the union as the twenty-first state. This territory had formerly been part of New France from around 1673-1763 and had then been a territory of the British Colonies between 1763-1783. It had been ceded by Virginia to the new US 'Northwest Territory' in 1783, with the 'Illinois Territory' being created on 3 February 1809.

René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle ('Lord of the Manor'), had explored the Great Lakes, the Mississippi and the Gulf of Mexico in 1669-1670, claiming the entire Mississippi basin for New France

1819

With the USA keen to support the rebels in New Spain, it signs the Adams-Onis Treaty with Spain on 22 February 1819. This establishes the border between the two countries, with the US gaining Alabama and Florida (the latter following a US 'invasion' in 1816 during the prelude to the First Seminole War), and renouncing its claim to Texas, while Spain renounces its claim to Oregon. On 4 July of the same year, the territory of Arkansas is formally organised.

1820

On 15 March 1820, Maine at the north-eastern corner of US territory is admitted into the union as the twenty-third state. This had originally been the location for the Roanoke and Popham colonies of the British Colonies (in 1586 and 1607 respectively). The province of Maine had been created in 1622, and had passed into US hands in 1783.

1821

On 10 August 1821, Missouri is admitted into the union as the twenty-fourth state. The first Europeans to permanently occupy this region had been existing settlers from New France, in place by about 1750, and it had remained part of the Louisiana territory which had been acquired by the US in 1803.

One of the earliest Spanish areas of exploration in North America, Louisiana provided more of a challenge than had New Spain, with native groups proving quite hostile and New France eager to dominate there

1825 - 1829

Eldest son of John Adams (1797-1801). Massachusetts.

1825

King John VI of Portugal, under pressure from Britain, recognises the independence of Brazil after the USA has already done so. Republican sentiment is soaring in Brazil, but the country immediately becomes entangled in a two year-long war against Argentina.

1831

The state house in Fayetteville in which the decision had been taken in 1789 to make North Carolina a state of the union is destroyed by a fire which devastates much of Fayetteville.

1829 - 1837

Tennessee. Served two terms.

1836

Mexican troops massacre the Texan garrison at the Alamo, an event which enters US mythology. Despite the defeat, the north-eastern core of Texas becomes independent. The following year a US army surprises the Mexican forces in an eighteen-minute fusillade and charge, spurred on with cries of 'Remember the Alamo!' Also in 1836, on 15 June, Arkansas is admitted to the union as the twenty-fifth state.

The Battle of the Alamo was an heroic defeat for the Texan defenders, but the Mexican victory failed to prevent Texas from achieving independence

1837

On 26 January 1837, Michigan is admitted into the union as the twenty-sixth state. This region had initially been explored by the French in 1622. Subsequently drawn into New France, it had become a possession of the British Colonies in 1763.

1837 - 1841

New York. A founder of the Democrat party.

1841

Whig. Died 4 April: pneumonia. First death in office.

1841 - 1845

Whig, Virginia.

1845 - 1849

Democrat, Tennessee.

1845 - 1846

The US annexes the remainder of Texas and triggers the Mexican-American War (or simply the Mexican War), in which it is successful. Under the terms of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, the US also gains Arizona, California (except the small part still held by Russian America), Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. On 29 December 1845, Texas joins the union as the twenty-eighth state.

Britain, which still holds much of the disputed territory of Oregon, is persuaded not to intervene by the 1846 agreement called the Oregon Treaty which divides the territory along the forty-ninth parallel. Britain keeps Vancouver to the north of the line (British Columbia), while the US gains Seattle to the south (Washington and Oregon), plus Iowa, which is admitted into the union on 29 December as the twenty-ninth state.

Oregon headed towards statehood following meetings such as the one at Champoeg which decided on the formation of a government (from a mural by Barry Faulkner which sits in the house chamber of the Oregon Capitol building)

1846

The signing of the Bidlack Mallarino Treaty between New Granada and the USA ensures that Panama will remain within the South American 'Free State of the Isthmus' republic, with both parties joining together to put down liberalist attempts to create an independent state, and with the USA gaining rights to build railways and roads through the isthmus in return.

1848

Following plotting by several US politicians in the southern states to annexe Cuba in order to strengthen the pro-slavery bloc, a pro-annexation rebellion is defeated. Several attempts to invade from Florida are subsequently also defeated.

On 29 May 1848, Wisconsin is admitted into the union as the thirtieth state. This had first been explored by Frenchman Jean Nicolet in 1634, and his Green Bay colony had been settled mainly by fur traders. That had passed to Britain in 1763 and technically to the US in 1783, although Britain remained in control until the War of 1812.

1849 - 1850

Whig. Died in office, 9 July 1850 after taking cherries & milk.

1850 - 1853

Whig, New York.

1853 - 1857

Democrat. New Hampshire.

1853

For some time, no US ship has been allowed to put in at Japanese ports, and shipwrecked American sailors are regularly dispatched to prevent them from polluting the isolated Japanese culture. Commodore Matthew Perry is sent to Japan with a fleet of ships and arrives on 8 July to force Japan to end its period of isolation. This act leads shortly to the ending of the shogunate which governs Japan.

After having forcibly ended Japanese isolation in 1853, Commodore Perry's second visit to Japan in 1854 was recorded on this hand scroll which is now part of the collection of the British Museum

1856

President Pierce recognises the legitimacy of the government of US adventurer, William Walker, after he seizes control of Nicaragua. In the same year, Pierce is persuaded by Walker's enemies to withdraw recognition of his government. He has already been defeated by Costa Rican and mercenary forces in the Second Battle of Rivas. He soon surrenders and is repatriated back to the USA.

1857 - 1861

Democrat, Pennsylvania.

1858

On 11 May 1858, Minnesota joins the union as the thirty-second state. This northern territory had first been entered by French fur traders in the seventeenth century. Most of it had remained part of New France until the 'Louisiana Purchase' of 1803, although the land on the eastern side of the Mississippi had become part of the US at the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1784. It is subsequently settled heavily by Norwegians, lending its modern population a highly distinctive regional accent.

1859

On 14 February 1859, Oregon joins the union as the thirty-third state. The first explorers here had been the Spanish in the late seventeenth century, with British explorers following in the eighteenth century. The territory had subsequently been passed onto the US under the terms of the Oregon Treaty of 1846.

New Orleans and the Mississippi basin have been the home to very distinctive paddle boats, such as this one, the Mississippi Queen, since their invention by Robert Fulton in 1807

1861

On 29 January 1861, Kansas is admitted into the union as the thirty-fourth state. This region had first been explored by Spain in 1541. It had been transferred to US control as part of the 'Louisiana Purchase' of 1803, and had formed part of the Missouri territory between 1812-1821.

1861 - 1865

Whig, Illinois. Assassinated.

1861 - 1865

Within a few months of Lincoln's accession, the southern states break away from the union, forming their own government under the name the Confederate States of America.

The American Civil War breaks out, and Gettysburg, the largest battle ever fought on the North American continent, ends in victory for the union forces of the north in 1863, the same year in which the US annexes the Honduran Swan Islands. The civil war comes to an end in 1865, with the exhausted south unable to fight on.

Abraham Lincoln, who held the northern union together through the American Civil War as the nation's sixteenth president, was born on 12 February 1809

1863

On 20 June 1863, with the American Civil War still raging against the Confederate States of America, West Virginia is admitted into the union as the thirty-fifth state. Consisting of territory which had been divided between Pennsylvania, Virginia, and various land companies, it had remained a strongly secessionist western part of pro-confederate Virginia until the formalisation of its succession, which is swiftly followed by incorporation into the union.

1864

On 31 October 1864, Nevada is admitted into the union as the thirty-sixth state. Situated in the far west, in 1861 the [Sierra] Nevada territory had separated acrimoniously from the Utah territory and its predominantly Mormon population.

The American Civil War against the Confederate States of America reaches a vital stage as the north wins the Battle of Atlanta (see feature link), and breaks through into the CSA heartland. The war becomes little more than a mopping-up effort as it edges towards a conclusion in 1865.

Atlanta History Center's 'Cyclorama' (Atlanta, Georgia) depicts the Battle of Atlanta in superb detail, with Clark Gable, star of the film Gone with the Wind, making a special appearance... somewhere out of shot (click or tap on image to view full sized)

1865 - 1869

Democrat, Tennessee.

1867

The United States senate reluctantly votes to purchase Russian America (Alaska and northern California) from Russia for just US$7.2 million. Czar Alexander of Russia allows this because he fears that the British in Canada will invade and seize it.

In Canada and Britain the act is seen somewhat differently, as a threat to Britain's Pacific coast colony. Also in 1867, on 1 March, Nebraska is admitted into the union as the thirty-seventh state. Lying beyond the initial colonial settlement area, the Nebraska territory had been created in 1854.

The Signing of the Alaska Treaty by Emmanuel Leutze shows Russian minister Eduard Stoeckl standing beside the globe and pointing to 'Russian America', while the seated US secretary of state, William Seward, prepares to sign the treaty (click or tap on image to view full sized)

1869 - 1877

Republican. Ex-general. Served two terms.

1869

The president of Dominican Republic bids to have his country annexed to the USA. He has the support of the president, but the bid is derailed by the American Senate, by just one vote.

1877 - 1881

Republican, Ohio. Pledged not to run for re-election.

1881

Republican, Ohio. Assassinated 19 September 1881.

1881 - 1885

Republican, New York. Became a staunch reformer.

1885 - 1889

Democrat, New York. First term of office.

1889 - 1893

Republican, Indiana.

1889

On 2 November 1889, both North Dakota and South Dakota are admitted into the union as the thirty-ninth and fortieth states respectively. The area had first been entered by French traders in 1738 but had not been settled by the time of the 'Louisiana Purchase' of 1803. Much of the joint territory had been part of the Minnesota and Nebraska territories until 1861.

New France had eventually consisted of five colonies which covered a massive swathe of North America, much of it unexplored and unsettled, and stretching from Hudson Bay in the north to the Gulf of Mexico in the south

On 8 November 1889, Montana is admitted into the union as the forty-first state. This remote region had never been settled. It had been gained by the US as part of the 'Louisiana Purchase', after which it had first been explored by Lewis and Clark in 1804-1806, becoming the Montana territory in 1864.

On 11 November 1889, Washington is admitted into the union as the forty-second state. Again this region had never been settled until now. It had been disputed territory between Britain and the USA until the Oregon Treaty divided the region along the forty-ninth parallel in 1846.

1890

On 3 July 1890, Idaho is admitted into the union as the forty-third state. This had been created as a partition of the 'Oregon Country' in the north-west of the modern USA, it becoming undisputed US territory following the Oregon Treaty of 1846. It had been separated as the Idaho territory in 1863 out of parts of the Dakota, Oregon, and Washington territories.

On 10 July 1890, Wyoming is admitted into the union as the forty-fourth state. This region may have been entered by a few French fur trappers, but the region had not been properly explored until the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804-1806.

The Delicate Balance of Honesty by Robert Griffing depicts four native Americans carefully studying the weight of a bundle of fur pelts brought into a trader's station for sale, where only the best price would do - the pressure to bring in as many pelts as possible resulted in the causes of the Beaver Wars

1893 - 1897

Re-elected but badly damaged by the 'Panic of 1893'.

1896

On 4 January 1896, Utah is admitted into the union as the forty-fifth state. Situated in the far west, the Utah territory had lost the [Sierra] Nevada territory in 1861 when the latter's populace had decided to break away from Utah's predominantly Mormon population.

1897 - 1901

Republican, Ohio. Assassinated 6 months into second term.

1898 - 1902

Spain loses the Spanish-American War. With that it also loses much of the Spanish Caribbean, including Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Spanish East Indies (including the Marianna Islands and the Philippines). It has to sell the Philippines to the USA. The US also supports the newly independent republic of Cuba in 1899-1902 by supervising its finances and foreign affairs, and reserving the right to intervene in its affairs. Cuba also agrees to lease the naval base at Guantanamo Bay to the US.

The USA was seemingly goaded into war against Spain by feverish claims by the press that the Spanish were behind the loss of the USS Maine off the coast of Cuba, but it was a war which Spain was unlikely to win

1901 - 1909

Republican, New York. Fmr vice-president. Served 2 terms.

1902 - 1903

The USA decides to take control of and complete the abandoned French work on the Panama Canal. The Colombian government is naturally reluctant to allow that level of control to fall outside its hands and refuses permission. The US decides to support Panamanian demands for independence and, in 1903, the isthmus separates and becomes the republic of Panama, with a small US military force preventing Colombia from sending troops by sea to regain the territory.

1906 - 1908

The Cuban elections of 1902 are disputed and lead to a revolt and US intervention. US provisional governors take charge of Cuba for three years (the first being William Howard Taft, soon to be US president), before an elected government resumes Cuban control of their affairs, but the US retains its right to intervene.

1907

On 16 November 1907, Oklahoma is admitted into the union as the forty-sixth state. This had first been entered by Spain in 1541, and the region had been claimed by New France in the eighteenth century and passed into US hands in the 'Louisiana Purchase' of 1803.

Shortly before becoming president of the USA, Theodore Roosevelt was photographed in 1898, in command of the Rough Riders on San Juan Hill, Cuba, during the Spanish-American War

1909 - 1913

Republican. Former first provisional governor of Cuba.

1912

On 6 January 1912, New Mexico is admitted into the union as the forty-seventh state. This had first been explored by the Spanish in 1540-1542, with most of it subsequently becoming the province of New Mexico within New Spain in 1598, and then an independent Mexico before being handed over in portions to the US between 1848-1853.

Following an insurrection in Nicaragua, the US asks the Nicaraguan president to ensure that all its citizens are protected, something which he is unable to guarantee. As a result, US marines occupy the country and remain there until 1933, apart from a nine month period in 1925. Alaska becomes an organised territory on 11 May of the same year.

1913 - 1921

Democrat, New Jersey. Served two terms.

1914

The Panama Canal is opened by its US builders and owners, despite it being signed over to them by a French citizen in Panama in 1903 who had no authorisation to do so.

1915

A German U-boat sinks the SS Lusitania on 7 May (see feature link), killing 1,198 and inflaming anti-German feeling in the US. However, Woodrow Wilson has no intention of leading his country to war and instead works actively to bring the combatants to the negotiating table.

The SS Lusitania listed to starboard and towards the bow before sinking beneath the waves with the loss of nearly twelve hundred lives after being torpedoed by an imperial German submarine

There is a large proportion of the US population which is of German descent and many of these campaign through the German-American Bund to keep America neutral. Instead, the USA occupies Haiti in the Caribbean in an attempt to stabilise the political situation there.

1916

The USA occupies Dominican Republic in an attempt to stabilise both that and Haiti and impose lasting governments. US marines land on 19 May 1916 and within three months they secure effective control of the country. In November the USA proclaims a military government, but the marines soon find they have to fight a determined guerrilla action in the east of the country, led by Vicente Evangelista.

1917 - 1919

In 1917, two events change the US stance on involvement in the First World War. Firstly, Germany makes a clumsy attempt to involve Mexico by promising Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico if the US joins the allied side in the war. Secondly, and more telling, is Germany's decision to return to unrestricted submarine warfare, sinking American as well as allied ships.

The Mexican Revolution rumbled on from 1910 until 1920, with sporadic bursts of peace although it generally faded out after 1917, by which time it had already resulted in positive changes in the country

Congress agrees to declare war against Germany on 6 April 1917, with declarations against Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Turkey, and Bulgaria following soon afterwards. Mobilisation begins, but it is only in 1918 that the American weight of numbers and materials begins to make a difference on the Western Front in France. More locally, between 1917-1919, the USA supports the deposed government of Costa Rica in the face of harsh repression by dictator Federico Tinoco Granados.

1921 - 1923

Republican, Ohio. Died in office while visiting San Francisco.

1921 - 1922

The Harding Plan effects a gradual withdrawal of US forces from Dominican Republic and a return to local control, but Haiti remains occupied until 1934. Unfortunately for President Harding, he dies just a year later, and his vice-president has to take over.

The US occupation of Haiti in 1915 in an attempt to provide the fractious nation with a less brutal or unreliable level of government included taking the Palace of Justice

1923 - 1929

30th president. Completed Harding's 1st term & served 2nd.

1929 - 1933

Republican, New York.

1933

When a new, liberal government is installed in Nicaragua, the US finally withdraws its troops who have been there since 1912 and who have been targeted by guerrilla attacks during the last years of the previous government.

1933 - 1945

Democrat. 5th cousin of T Roosevelt. Served 3+ terms.

1941 - 1945

The USA joins the Second World War on 8 December 1941, initially against Japan, then as an ally of Great Britain against Germany and Italy, with Mexico supplying raw materials as one of the allied nations in opposition to the Axis powers. On 6 June 1944 it is a major player in the allied invasion of France via the beaches of Normandy, with the sheer volume of its men and equipment playing a major part in wearing down the weakening Nazi infrastructure.

1945 - 1953

Democrat, Missouri. Served two terms.

1950

Demands for change by the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party result in a three-day revolt known as the Jayuya Uprising which begins on 30 October. Martial law is declared by the US authorities and the military is sent in to pacify the town. At the end of the revolt, two nationalists attempt to assassinate the US president, Harry Truman. One is killed, the other is taken alive.

Harry Truman (left) meets David Ben-Gurion (right), Israel's first chairman of the 'Provisional State Council' in 1948 and its first prime minister

1953 - 1961

Republican. Ex-army general. Served two terms.

1954

The elected president of Guatemala is overthrown in a coup which is backed by the USA. With the Cold War between the USA and the Siviet Union at its height, the US government supports Guatemala with arms and funds.

1956 - 1957

Israel occupies the Sinai peninsula as part of its efforts against Egypt in the Suez Crisis. While its objectives are achieved as part of an agreement with France and Britain, Israel is pressured into withdrawing by the United Nations and even more especially by the USA, which fails to support any of its allies in this affair.

1959 - 1975

Alaska becomes the forty-ninth US state on 3 January 1959, while Hawaii follows as the fiftieth state on 21 August. Also from this year onwards, US forces help to prop up the government of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War, or Second Indochina War, but they are unable to prevent communist forces from North Vietnam from gaining overall control.

1961 - 1963

Democrat, Massachusetts. Assassinated 22 November 1963.

1961 - 1962

An invasion of Cuba on 17 April 1961 by US-trained Cuban exiles, backed by the CIA, fails in the Bay of Pigs when the force runs out of materials. One immediate result of the Cuban-Soviet alliance had been the placement of ballistic missiles on the island, and this precipitates the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. The USA 'blockades' Cuba, and only a last-minute climb-down by the Soviets avoids the spectre of nuclear war.

Photographed together here, John F Kennedy and Nikita Kruschev would, in 1962, play the world's biggest game of brinkmanship as the USA and Soviet Union vied for supremacy

1963 - 1969

Democrat. Completed Kennedy's 1st term & served second.

1964

The issue of the US ownership of the Panama Canal has long been contentious, but on 9 January it reaches boiling point on what becomes known as Martyr's Day. The riots start after a Panamanian flag is ripped during a dispute between the Canal Zone Police and Panamanian students about flying the flag alongside the American stars and stripes. Three days of fighting follow, with the US military becoming involved in regaining control of the canal.

The US congress approves the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution on 7 August 1964, increasing American military involvement in South Vietnam. Otherwise known as the 'South-East Asia Resolution', it is a response to the eponymous fire-fight on 2 August 1964 between US naval forces which have been engaged in clandestine attacks on North Vietnamese installations and three Vietnamese gunboats which fail utterly to scare them off.

French colonial holdings in South-East Asia were generally referred to as French Indochina, but officially they were the Indochinese Union until 1947, and then the Indochinese Federation

The political spin of the incident is enough to win almost universal backing for increased US action in what is now a war in all but name. In contrast to the later President Carter years, this period is notable in that the pro-intervention hawks are Democrats, and the anti-war doves are Republicans.

1965 - 1966

A revolt breaks out in Dominican Republic in 1965 and it takes a landing by US marines and occupation by them and other states from the Americas to bring about a free and fair election in 1966. The 'Dominican Intervention' is largely driven by a fear of the communist threat.

Following the 'Dominican Intervention' by US and other troops, those same US troops now patrol the streets near a food line in Santo Domingo on 5 May 1965, during the Dominican Crisis.

1969 - 1974

Republican, California. Resigned.

1969 - 1973

Heavily involved now in South Vietnam, US forces also find themselves becoming involved in Laos and Cambodia. The latter is plunged into civil war in 1970 when Prime Minister Lon Nol mounts a successful coup against King Sihanouk and then his new government is forced to fight against the Khmer Rouge guerrilla forces. The republic falls after Phnom Penh is captured.

However, the leader of the North Vietnamese forces, Ho Chi Minh has already died (in 1969) and President Nixon has begun to reduce US ground troops in Vietnam as domestic public opposition to the war grows. US troops complete their withdrawal by 1975.

1972 - 1974

The US hands back the Swan Islands to Honduras on 1 September 1972. Then a US-backed coup deposes the democratically-elected president of Chile on 11 September 1973, which allows the creation to take place in 1974 of a dictatorship under Augusto Pinochet.

Richard Milhous Nixon was elected president of the United States in November 1968, assuming office in January 1969, but from the beginning his administration was plagued by leaks to the press

The Watergate scandal breaks. Nixon and his close advisers had been so desperate to win the presidential election of 1972 that they had devised a plan to break into the Democratic headquarters in Washington DC's Watergate hotel.

Caught red-handed by lies and deception, Nixon resigns from office on 8 August 1974 whilst facing the risk of impeachment and trial. His vice-president, Gerald Ford, takes over and straight away grants Nixon a presidential pardon (see feature link for more).

1974 - 1977

Republican. Former vice-president.

1977 - 1981

Democrat, Georgia.

1977

The US and Panama agree the Torrijos-Carter Treaties which will eventually return ownership of the Panama Canal to Panama itself. Torrijos himself steps down in the following year as military dictator of Panama, but pulls the strings of his 'elected' president (under pressure from the US to do so, he plans to return the country to democratic rule for 1984, but his death halts those plans).

Building the Panama Canal was an immense project for its time, but the USA's need for it was vital as it would allow them coast-to-coast access on either side of their country without having to sail all the way around the southern tip of South America

1981 - 1989

Republican, California. Ex-actor. Served two terms.

1989 - 1993

Republican. Former vice president.

1989

Shortly after Manuel Noriega is indicted in the USA for drug trafficking (in 1988), American troops invade Panama on 20 December 1989 and remove him from office. He takes refuge in the Vatican diplomatic mission in Panama City.

The US places intense diplomatic pressure on the Vatican mission, blasting the building day and night with extremely loud rock-and-roll music, just to make sure. Noriega finally surrenders on 3 January 1990. He is detained as a prisoner of war and is tried for his various offences.

1990

The First Gulf War is triggered when Kuwait is occupied by Iraq. A United Nations coalition army is assembled in Saudi Arabia under the overall direction of the USA to force them out, with heavy Iraqi losses.

Washington DC, the capital of the United States, was specifically constructed for the purpose between 1790-1800, capped with what could be described as a 'shining beacon upon a hill'

1993 - 2001

Democrat, Arkansas. Served two terms.

1994 - 1995

An exodus of people in 1994 to the USA follows problems in Cuba. The fall of the Soviet Union has dealt the country a heavy economic blow, as this had been its only source of oil and cheap foodstuffs. In the same year, the US lifts its thirty-year trade embargo on Vietnam, and the following year restores full diplomatic relations.

1999

On the very last day of the year, as part of the Torrijos-Carter Treaties, the US hands full control of the Panama Canal to Panama. This time the US is able to deal with Mireya Moscoso, the country's first female president and the winner of a democratically-free and fair election.

In 1989 the US invaded the country it had helped to create in 1903, in order to depose a dictator which it had supported and who had worked closely with its CIA since 1950

2001 - 2009

Republican, Texas. Son of George H W Bush. 2 terms.

2001

Terrorist attacks take place on 11 September when four passenger planes are hijacked. Two of them are crashed into and destroy both of the Twin Towers in New York, while another plane hits the Pentagon. The fourth plane crashes in open fields after the passengers fight back.

In Afghanistan, the Taliban refuse to hand over terrorist leader and overall organiser of the attack, Osama bin Laden, who is taking refuge there. An invasion is launched, with some US forces being allowed the use of a base in Uzbekistan. By November 2001 the Taliban have been pushed out of Kabul and into the eastern fringes of the country by US and British air strikes and a resurgent native northern alliance.

2003 - 2008

An Anglo-American-led action forces the collapse of Iraq's dictatorial regime after just twenty-one days of fighting. Fighting to make the country secure afterwards takes much longer, as militant bombers and factional divides threaten to destabilise it completely.

The Kurds of northern Iraq proved again - following a similar successful mobilisation during the Second Gulf War (2003) - that they could offer the most united and organised defence and subsequent attack against external opponents, standing against Daesh when the regular Iraqi military had fled the north

2004 - 2006

There is a second exodus of Cubans to the USA, although not as large as previously. Conditions in Cuba are slowly changing as the old guard ages and fades in power. President Fidel Castro is forced by ill health to retire in 2006.

2009 - 2017

Dem. Son of Kenyan man & Anglo-Irish US woman. 2 terms.

2014

The last British troops pull out of Helmand province in Afghanistan, transferring all defensive duties to Afghan forces as the fight against the Taliban continues. US forces in the country are also being reduced to a minimum by the end of the year, although official combat participation formally ends in line with the British on 26 October.

2017 - 2021

Republican. Non-politician. Divisive and ill-controlled.

2020

Three years into a mismanaged and frequently farcical presidential term, President Trump fails to act comprehensively during the world's first pandemic in a century. Covid-19 sweeps through the country and, with the presidential office offering little more than conspiracy theories and often bizarre medical advice, reaction is largely left to individual states. Responses at that level vary wildly, leaving the country with one of the world's highest infection and death tolls before the year is out.

Trump's mismanagement of the pandemic in the USA, plus the onset of a fresh economic depression and a failure to live up to many of his election promises, results in an extremely tight election race in the first week of November. The slow count of mail-in votes eventually turns the tide in favour of a Democrat victory, especially in the key states of Pennsylvania and Georgia.

Joe Biden, a Democrat moderate, was seen as a unifying force by the varying wings of the party, and proved to be the preferred option to Donald Trump's chaotic hard-right-leaning governance, with Kamala Harris as his vice-president

Joe Biden, former vice-president to Barak Obama, becomes president. The Californian senator, Kamala Harris, whose father is British Jamaican and mother is Indian, is his vice-president. Trump refuses to concede defeat - now or ever.

2021

With two weeks left to an increasingly chaotic end of term, Trump encourages the worst of his right-wing supporters to storm the capitol building during the process of congress certifying Biden's victory. The chaotic insurgency results in one police officer death as senators and staff are evacuated, and four insurgent deaths, three of which appear to be due to natural causes.

With the scenes being viewed around the world, even the majority of Republicans are now openly repulsed by Trump's apparent lack of regard for order or human life, with calls for him to be impeached (again) or removed under the terms of the twenty-fifth amendment.

2021 - 2024

Democrat. 46th president. Fmr vice-president.

2021

The US drawdown of troops from Afghanistan has increased massively under the Trump government. Taliban advances in August 2021 suddenly speed up to an alarming rate with towns, cities, and entire regions falling like dominoes. By the weekend of 14-15 August the Taliban have all but secured control of the country, while the coalition allies evacuate their remaining citizens and staff amid chaotic scenes.

Believed to have been in his mid-fifties at the time of his election as supreme head of the Taliban in 2016, Mawlawi Haibatullah Akhundzada would seem to have been selected as the new leader of Afghanistan's government in 2021