Founding of America as a nation. A Brief History of the United States

1607 Founding of Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in what is now the United States.

1617 - Beginning of an epidemic of smallpox brought to America by Europeans.

In two years, the disease killed about 90% of the Indians who lived in the Massachusetts Bay area. The fact that the colonists managed to seize land in the New World relatively easily was due precisely to the mass death of the indigenous population from infectious diseases, against which the Indians had no immunity.

1619 - The first black slaves were brought to Virginia. The slave era began in US history.

1634 - At the founding of the Maryland colony, freedom of religion was first proclaimed as a principle of government.

1675 - The beginning of the so-called King Philip's War - between the white colonists and the Indians.

"King Philip" is the nickname of an Indian chief who decided once and for all to expel the aliens from America. In terms of the number of victims per capita, it was the bloodiest war in US history - every fifth male was killed - a white settler fit for military service, and some Indian tribes were completely destroyed.

1735 - Trial of New York publisher John Peter Zenger, who went to prison for articles against the governor.

The jury found him not guilty, and the Zenger case was the beginning of the development of a free press in the United States.

1773 - Boston Tea Party.

In response to the illegal and unfair actions of the British government, the colonists threw 45 tons of tea belonging to the influential English East India Company into the sea. The result was an acute political crisis in relations between London and the New World, which subsequently resulted in the separation of the North American colonies from England.

1775 - American War of Independence begins.

1776 - Thirteen colonies declare independence from the English crown.

1777 - Battle of Saratoga.

For the first time, the American militias managed to win a major victory over the British army. As a result, France began to provide financial and military assistance to the colonists, without which the American Revolution would hardly have been successful.

1786 Rebellion led by Daniel Shayes.

Contrary to the promises of the leaders of the American Revolution, ordinary citizens did not gain anything from secession from England and therefore began to demand from the propertied classes a fair distribution of land and fair trial and taxation. The uprising contributed to the reform of the entire state system in the United States.

1787 - Adoption of the US Constitution, the world's first constitution in its modern sense.

1789 - Industrialist Samuel Slater brought cotton processing technology from England to the United States, starting the American Industrial Revolution.

1803 - Marbury v. Madison.

The US Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional for the first time a parliamentary law, which led to the creation of a system of checks and balances between the three branches of government: legislative, executive and judicial.

1807 — American inventor Robert Fulton built the first steamboat, which laid the foundation for a transportation revolution.

Fertile lands, a mild climate and a large supply of minerals could provide the country with financial well-being, but for the export of crops and raw materials, transport was needed - primarily river and sea. Steam traction solved this problem.

1821 - The Second Great Awakening - a mass social movement of Christians who believed that any person can be saved if he repents and takes the right path.

Christian public organizations, on their own initiative, began to fight against vices: drunkenness, prostitution, slavery, and so on. The Second Great Awakening led to the rise of many new denominations and also established a tradition of social responsibility for citizens.

1831 Slave rebellion led by Nat Turner.

Frightened southerners began to impose a ban on the education of blacks, on their right to gather together without white supervision, and so on. As a result, the protest movement only began to expand, both among the slaves and among the abolitionists.

1844 - American inventor Samuel Morse sent the first telegram from Washington to Baltimore. This marked a revolution in the communications system in the United States.

1846 - Beginning of the American-Mexican War, which resulted in the annexation of California, New Mexico, Arizona and other territories in the south and southwest to the United States. Mexico received a $18,250,000 settlement.

1848 California gold rush.

As a result, about 300 thousand people migrated to the state. The village of San Francisco turned into a large city at that time. Roads, churches, schools and other infrastructure were built. At the same time, during the years of the Gold Rush, about 100 thousand native inhabitants of California died (mainly from diseases introduced by settlers).

1861 - the beginning of the Civil War between North and South.

The problem was that the slave-owning South hampered the development of the country, brought chaos to the tax and customs policy of the federal government, and was an eternal source of social tension. In addition, the moral aspect played a big role: many Christians considered slavery incompatible with the status of an advanced developed state, which the United States of America wanted to see itself.

1862 - President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation.

Slavery was completely abolished in 1865 by making a corresponding amendment to the Constitution.

1872 - The creation of a national park in Yellowstone marked the first attempts by the state to preserve its natural resources.

1862 - Passage of the Homestead Act.

Under this law, 600 million acres of land in the Western United States were declared free, resulting in the greatest migration in American history. At the same time, the culture and aesthetics of the western was born, which became the "trademark" of America.

1876 ​​- Beginning of the era of segregation.

After the defeat in the Civil War, many southern states began to pass local laws that deprived the black population of civil rights and freedom. African-Americans were recognized as "equal", but they had to live "separately". They were not allowed into schools and restaurants for whites, they could not claim equal salaries, positions, etc. with whites.

1876 ​​- The beginning of the Great Sioux War, during which the Indians, who lived in the northwest of the Great Plains, tried to expel white settlers from their territories.

Despite temporary victories over the US Army, the Indians were defeated and taken to the reservations. Great War The Sioux contributed greatly to the creation of the western genre and the romanticization of the image of a noble Indian fighting against white conquerors.

1886 - The Haymarket Riot in Chicago sparked the first case of "red menace" hysteria in the United States.

During a workers' demonstration, a bomb was thrown by a provocateur, which killed a policeman. His colleagues opened fire, resulting in heavy casualties. The police staged a cleansing operation in poor neighborhoods, and subsequently several anarchists were sentenced to death, who were accused of preparing a terrorist attack. In memory of what happened, May 1 was declared the international day of solidarity of workers.

In the United States, the labor movement gradually began to grow and the influence of trade unions increased. Subsequently, this helped to form a balanced relationship between employers and employees, as well as to build a system of labor protection and social protection.

1898 - The Spanish-American War marked the end of US isolation and its entry into world politics. The Spanish empire was finally destroyed as a superpower, and the United States received the former Spanish colonies of Puerto Rico, the Philippines and Guam. Cuba became a dependent state, and the States themselves embarked on the path of redistribution of the colonial world.

1900 - Beginning of the Great Migration of African Americans to the north and west of the country, which significantly influenced the demographics and culture of the United States. The black population was leaving the southern states, where racism created unbearable living conditions.

1903 - The second transport revolution.

Henry Ford founded The Ford Motor Company, which later made the car accessible to the middle class. In the same year, the Wright brothers' airplane made its first flight, marking the birth of aviation.

1907 - European immigration to the United States peaks.

During this year, 1,285,349 people moved to America. In total from 1836 to 1914. About 30 million Europeans immigrated to the United States.

Hookworm victims were millions of people in the south of the country. Through the efforts of the Commission, the disease was practically brought to naught. All this had a great influence on the formation of a culture of healthcare and philanthropy in the United States.

1917 - USA enters the First world war on the side of the Entente.

The reason was the attacks of German submarines on American ships en route to the shores of Great Britain, as well as America's desire to participate in the redistribution of the colonial world. President Wilson called on Congress to begin a "war against all wars."

1919 - Mass strikes and clashes between workers and police take place in the United States.

Eyewitness accounts of the revolution and the Civil War in Russia get into the press, and this gives rise to massive fear of the “red threat”.

Prohibition is adopted, which leads not to general sobriety, but to the emergence of organized crime in the United States. Smugglers and underground liquor producers united in powerful organizations and soon began to dictate their terms to the state and trade unions. With the abolition of Prohibition, mafia structures did not disintegrate, but were engaged in drug trafficking, weapons, illegal immigration, etc.

1920 - After a tense struggle for women's rights, the 19th Amendment is introduced to the US Constitution, which prohibits the disenfranchisement of a person because of his gender.

In the 1920s, the culture of Hollywood is created, which has a powerful impact on the world.

Cinema begins to form aesthetics, ethics, fashion, cultural stamps and values. So the release of the film Flappers in 1920 led to the emergence of the social phenomenon flappers - freedom-loving, active girls who do not want to live according to old dogmas. Gradually, gossip columns switch from the aristocracy to movie actors, who become idols and role models.

1929 - The beginning of the Great Depression, a sharp decline in production and massive unemployment.

1933 - President Franklin Delano Roosevelt launches his New Deal, a series of economic programs designed to alleviate the effects of the Great Depression.

Great Constructions begin in the USA - including a network of highways, the Hoover Dam, etc.

1941 - After the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, the United States enters World War II.

1945 - The atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the final acquisition of US superpower status.

Large-scale construction of private houses begins in America. The middle class is moving to the suburbs.

1948 - The beginning of the Cold War with the USSR and the arms race.

1950 - Television becomes a force to unite Americans around watching sports, political debates, TV shows, and so on.

Based on this shared experience, a completely new cultural environment is being formed.

1960 - Birth control pills go on sale.

With the advent of effective birth control, the status of women in the family and society is changing.

1964 - After powerful protests by African Americans against racism, the Civil Rights Act is passed to prohibit discrimination based on race and gender. The idea of ​​equality and tolerance is gradually entering the public consciousness.

In the same year, the United States intervenes in the military conflict in Vietnam. Thus, the US government, worried about the victory of the Communists in China, is trying to stop the spread of the "red infection" in Southeast Asia.

1968 - The Tet Offensive in Vietnam leads to heightened anti-war sentiment in the US and pressure to bring troops home.

1969 - Americans Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin land on the moon.

1973 - The appearance of the first analog mobile phone.

1974 - The Watergate scandal reveals facts of corruption and illegal political intrigues among the country's top leadership. This event significantly undermines the reputation of the American government as such.

1975 - The appearance of the personal computer.

1989 - The fall of the Berlin Wall, a wave of revolutions in Eastern Europe and the end of the Cold War.

The economic crisis in the USSR marked its complete inability to maintain the status of a superpower, and the United States became the sole leader of world politics.

1991 - The US goes to war with Iraq for the liberation of Kuwait.

Millions of viewers watch the course of hostilities, which gives the events the status of a “television war”. The United States is gaining a reputation as a "world policeman", which assumes the functions of a judge and an executor of sentences in international conflicts.

The 1990s saw the rapid development of the Internet.

The creation of a global information network, electronic communications and electronic commerce has a huge impact on the development of the US economy and culture.

1999 - US participation in the NATO operation aimed at ending ethnic cleansing in Yugoslavia.

The opinion of the world community was divided: in some countries it was believed that it was not worth it to come to the aid of the Albanians, who were killed without trial or investigation, because, firstly, it was an invasion of a sovereign state without UN sanction, and secondly, the invasion led to even greater casualties among civilians, and thirdly, significant damage was caused to the economy and ecology of the region.

2001 - Terrorist attack on the Twin Towers in New York and the Pentagon building near Washington. The beginning of hostilities against the Taliban in Afghanistan, which supported the terrorists.

The world is witnessing a gradual escalation of the conflict between the West (primarily the US and Israel) and radical Islamists.

2003 - Invasion of Iraq to overthrow the regime of Saddam Hussein, who, according to Washington, was a danger to the world community.

During the campaign, numerous facts of document fraud, false evidence and erroneous decisions of the US government were revealed. The war cost US taxpayers almost $2 trillion and did not solve either the problem of security in the region or the problem of global terrorism.

2008 - Election of the first black president, Barack Obama.

First Americans

According to one theory, the first people appeared in America 10-15 thousand years ago, having got to Alaska through the frozen or shallow Bering Strait. The tribes of the mainland of North America were divided and periodically feuded with each other. The famous Icelandic Viking Leif Eriksson discovered America, calling it Vinland. The first visits to America by Europeans did not have an impact on the life of the indigenous population.

Discovery of America by Europeans

After the Vikings, the first Europeans in the New World were the Spaniards. In October, a Spanish expedition led by Admiral Christopher Columbus arrived on the island of San Salvador. At the end of the XV - beginning of the XVI century. Several expeditions were made to the regions of the Western Hemisphere. The Italian Giovanni Cabot, who was in the service of the English King Henry VII, reached the coast of Canada (1497-1498), the Portuguese Pedro Alvares Cabral discovered Brazil (1500-1501), the Spaniard Vasco Nunez de Balboa founded the first city on the American mainland and left to the Pacific Ocean (1500-1513), who was in the service of the Spanish king Ferdinand Magellan in 1519-1521. circumnavigated America from the south.

In 1507, the Lorraine geographer Martin Waldseemüller proposed that the New World be called America in honor of the Florentine navigator Amerigo Vespucci. At the same time, the development of the mainland began. In 1513, the Spanish conquistador Juan Ponce de Leon discovered the Florida peninsula, where the first permanent European colony arose and the city of St. Augustine was founded. In the late 1530s, Hernando de Soto discovered the Mississippi and reached the Arkansas River valley.

By the time the British and French began to colonize America, the Spaniards were well established in Florida and the American Southwest. The power and influence of the Spaniards in the New World began to decline after the defeat in the Spanish Invincible Armada. During the 16th century, information was collected about new lands, documentary sources were translated into many European languages.

Colonial period (1607-1775)

Colonization of America by the British (1607-1775)

The first English settlement in America began in 1607 in Virginia and was named Jamestown. The trading post, founded by members of the crews of three English ships under the command of Captain Newport, served at the same time as an outpost on the path of the Spanish advance deep into the continent. In just a few years, Jamestown turned into a prosperous village thanks to the tobacco plantations laid there in 1609. Already by 1620 the population of the village was about 1000 people. European immigrants were attracted to America by the rich Natural resources distant continent, and its remoteness from European religious dogmas and political predilections. The exodus to the New World was financed primarily by private companies and individuals who received income from the transportation of goods and people. In 1606, the London and Plymouth Companies were formed in England, which took up the development of the northeast coast of America. Many immigrants moved to the New World with entire families and communities at their own expense. Despite the attractiveness of the new lands, there was a constant shortage of human resources in the colonies.

thirteen colonies

Over the course of 75 years after the appearance of the first English colony of Virginia in 1607, 12 more colonies arose - New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.

In each colony, a portion of the population remained loyal to the royal government, but nowhere did the loyalists wield sufficient influence to control the local government. Their actions came under the scrutiny of the local Committees of Safety, created by resolutions of the first Continental Congress in 1774, which now acted as provisional local executive bodies of the Congress. The property of loyalists who opposed the revolution was confiscated, and they themselves fled to the protection of the royal troops.

After the revolution, the rest of the federal authorities were created as a result of the constitutional reform of 1786-1791.

The course of hostilities

Hostilities began even before the declaration of independence as a result of severe pressure from the British army, who tried to disarm the local police and arrest the leaders of the colonists. Since the forces of the British crown in America that were available by 1776 were not enough to take control of the entire territory of the colonies, and the armed detachments of the colonists even tried, in August 1776 a large British army landed in New York. Detachments of the local militia were defeated, and the approaching army of General Washington, after several defeats, was forced to retreat through New Jersey to Pennsylvania. The British held New York City until the peace treaty of 1783, turning it into their main stronghold in North America.

Following the retreating American troops, the British army invaded New Jersey, but here it was attacked by the army of General Washington, which by this time had regrouped and crossed the Delaware River on Christmas night, in December 1776. The British were defeated at Trenton and Princeton and retreated back to New York.

The master plan of the British, developed in London, was to organize a simultaneous offensive from Canada and along the Hudson River in order to capture Albany in 1777 and cut off New England from the southern colonies. But the Canadian army under the command of General Burgoyne was defeated at Saratoga, and from New York the British army headed not for Albany, but for Philadelphia. As a result, the British who survived near Saratoga were captured with the condition of repatriation to Great Britain, but the Continental Congress did not approve the terms of their surrender, and the prisoners were imprisoned.

The victory of the colonists hastened the entry of France into an alliance with the United States, which was concluded in 1778. Spain and the Netherlands then joined the alliance, and a new global war began.

In the future, the British concentrated their forces on attempts to capture the southern states. With a limited contingent of troops, they relied on loyalist mobilization. Such tactics helped them to hold their ground in the Northwest Territories, despite the defeat of Canadian troops in an attempt to advance on Albany.

At the end of 1778, the British fleet landed troops and captured the capital of Georgia, the city of Savannah. Charleston was taken in the same way in 1780. But the loyalists gathered under the British banner were not enough to advance inland, and the British had to be content with control of the port cities. Further advances into North Carolina and Virginia faltered, guerrilla warfare broke out in the occupied territories, and loyalist units were massacred.

The remnants of the British army headed for the city of Yorktown, where they were going to board the ships of the British fleet. But the fleet ran into the Chesapeake Bay with the French fleet and retreated. The trapped troops of British General Cornwallis surrendered in October 1781 to General Washington. When news of this defeat reached Britain, Parliament decided to open peace talks with the American rebels.

The Formation of the American State (1783-1865)

Expansion (1783-1853)

Since the early 19th century, thousands of Americans have been leaving the increasingly densely populated east of the United States and heading west from the Mississippi, into a completely undeveloped region called the Great Plains. At the same time, New Englanders rushed to forest-rich Oregon, and people from the southern states settled in the expanses of Texas, New Mexico and California.

The main means of transport for these pioneer settlers were wagons drawn by horses or oxen. Caravans of several dozen wagons each set off on their way. In order to get from the Mississippi Valley to the Pacific coast, such a caravan took an average of about six months.

Settlers. 1866

Louisiana Purchase (1803-1804)

The growth of the US territory in 1800-10.

In 1803, thanks to the successful actions of American diplomats, a deal was concluded between the United States of North America and France, called the Louisiana Purchase, which allowed the States to almost double its territory. But the main achievement of this deal for the United States of that time was the provision of the Mississippi River, an important transportation artery that was previously a border river, at the full disposal of American farmers and merchants.

Anglo-American War (1812-1815) and demarcation of borders with Canada

In the Napoleonic Wars, the US remained neutral and tried to trade with all belligerents, but both France and Britain discouraged trade with their adversaries. After the defeat of the French fleet in the Battle of Trafalgar (1805), the British fleet blockaded American ports in an attempt to prevent Franco-American trade relations. Moreover, on their ships, the British still treated the Americans as their rebellious subjects and forced the sailors from the intercepted American ships to serve in the Royal Navy. In addition, Great Britain entered into an alliance with Indian tribes and supported their resistance to American expansion into Indian territories. In 1812 Congress declared war on England. After heavy fighting, which lasted until 1815, a peace was concluded, as a result of which the warring parties remained in the same borders, but Great Britain refused to ally with the Indians, who turned out to be the most affected side of the conflict. The United States emerged from the war with self-confidence, in particular, thanks to an impressive victory in the decisive battle with the British near New Orleans.

Despite the end of hostilities, there were still many contentious issues between the United States and Great Britain, including the borders between the United States and British Canada. To a large extent, they were settled during the post-war negotiations, which ended with the conclusion of the Anglo-American Convention of 1818. Issues that remained unsettled, in particular, about the status of the modern Northwest of the United States, were settled at the conclusion of the Webster-Ashburton Treaty of 1842 and the Oregon treaties of 1846

Treaty of Adams-Onis (1819)

Main article: Adams-Onis Treaty

In 1819, an agreement was also concluded on the demarcation of the Spanish-American border in North America, according to which Florida was part of the United States.

Rent War (1839-1846)

Main article: Anti-Rent War

In the middle of the XIX century. in the United States, a series of local civil wars took place, which became a prelude to the crisis of American statehood and the civil war of 1861-1865. Among them in 1839-1846. a series of civil unrest and armed clashes took place in the state of New York. Local laws, which had developed during the period of Dutch domination, no longer corresponded to the economic and political realities of the United States. In 1839 the Albany County farmers refused to pay what they considered extortionate land rents. The impetus for this was the death on January 26, 1839 of the largest landowner and lieutenant governor of New York, Stephen Van Rensselaer. Farmers soon moved from protest meetings to pogroms. The governor of the state was forced to turn to the federal army to put an end to the violence, but the farmers put up armed resistance and started a guerrilla war in the state. In 1845 martial law was declared in the region. By 1846, the US government made concessions and abolished enslaving rent laws.

Oregon Treaty

In April 1861, the first battle took place in the state of South Carolina, during which the Confederate armed forces took control of Fort Sumter, the military base of the federal army. At first, the war was fought with varying success and mainly in the territory of Virginia and Maryland. The turning point in it occurred in 1864, when Lincoln appointed Ulysses Grant as commander in chief. The northern army under William Sherman led a successful advance from Tennessee to Atlanta, Georgia, defeating troops led by Confederate Generals Johnston and Hood. During the famous "march to the sea", Sherman's army destroyed about 20% of all farms in Georgia and reached Atlantic Ocean in Savannah in December 1864. The war ended with the surrender of General Lee's army in Virginia on April 9, 1865.

Reconstruction and industrialization (1865-1890)

Reconstruction, the period after the end of the Civil War, lasted from 1877 to 1877. During this time, the "Reconstruction Amendments" were made to the Constitution, expanding civil rights for Americans. These amendments include the Thirteenth Amendment, which outlaws slavery, the Fourteenth Amendment, which guarantees citizenship to all born or naturalized within the United States, and the Fifteenth Amendment, which guarantees the right to vote for men of all races. In response to Reconstruction, a number of Southern organizations emerged, including the Ku Klux Klan, which opposed the realization of the civil rights of the colored population. Violence by such organizations was opposed by the federal army and the authorities, who passed, in particular, the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1870, which declared it a terrorist organization. However, in the U.S. v. Cruikshank Supreme Court case, it was up to the states to uphold the civil rights of the population. The economic crisis of 1873 exacerbated the failure of the Republican authorities. Eventually, the Republican governments lost the support of the electorate of the southern states, and the Democrats returned to power in the South, who did not restore slavery, but passed discriminatory laws called Jim Crow laws. In 1877, the participation of the army in state administration in the South was terminated. As a result, African Americans became second-class citizens, and racist white supremacy continued to dominate public opinion. The Democratic party's monopoly of power in the southern states continued thereafter until the 1960s.

The expansion of gold miners, farmers and owners of vast ranches to the "Wild West" was accompanied by numerous conflicts with the Indians. The last large-scale armed conflict between white Americans and the native population was the Black Hills War (1876-77), although some skirmishes with small groups of Indians continued until 1918.

By 1871, the US authorities had come to the conclusion that agreements with the Indians were no longer required and that no Indian people or tribe should be considered an independent people or state. By 1880, as a result of the mass shooting of the American bison, almost its entire population had disappeared, and the Indians had lost the object of their main trade. The authorities forced the Indians to give up their usual way of life and live only on reservations. Many Indians resisted this. One of the leaders of the resisters was Puke the Cat, chief of the Sioux tribe. The Sioux dealt some stunning blows to the American cavalry, winning the Battle of the Little Big Horn in 1876. But the Indians could not live on the prairies without bison, and, exhausted by hunger, they eventually submitted and moved to reservations.

USA at the end of the 19th century

The end of the 19th century was a time of powerful industrial development in the United States. "Gilded Age", as the classic of American literature dubbed this era Mark Twain. The richest class in American society basked in luxury, but also philanthropy, which Carnegie called the "Gospel of Wealth," supported thousands of colleges, hospitals, museums, academies, schools, theaters, libraries, orchestras, and charitable societies. John Rockefeller alone donated over $500 million to charity, which accounted for more than half of his total income. An unprecedented wave of immigrants brought to the United States not only the labor force for American industry, but also created a diversity of national communities that inhabited the sparsely populated western territories.

It is believed that the modern American economy was created during the Gilded Age. In the 1870s and 1880s, both the economy as a whole and wages, wealth, national product, and capital in the United States grew at the fastest pace in the history of the country. So between 1865 and 1898. wheat crops increased by 256%, corn - by 222%, coal production - by 800%, and the total length of railway lines - by 567%. The corporation has become the dominant form of business organization. By the beginning of the 20th century, per capita income and industrial output in the United States had become the highest in the world. Per capita income in the US was twice that of Germany and France, and 50% that of Britain. In the era of the technological revolution, businessmen built new industrial cities in the Northeast of the United States with city-forming factories and plants, which employed hired workers from different countries Europe. Multimillionaires such as John Rockefeller, Andrew Mellon, Andrew Carnegie, John Morgan, Cornelius Vanderbilt, the Astor family, gained a reputation as robber barons. Workers began organizing into then-small trade unions such as the American Federation of Labor.

USA before World War I (1890-1914)

United States between the world wars (1918-1941)

Main article: US History (1918-1945)

"Prosperity" (1922-1929)

The era of "prosperity" or prosperity refers to the period of economic growth in the United States in the 1920s. In literature, the era of "prosperity" most often means unhealthy, dubious prosperity. Post-war America took the lead in terms of economic growth, thanks to which it further strengthened its leading position in the world. By the end of the 1920s, America produced almost as much industrial output as the rest of the world. The wages of the average worker increased by 25%. The unemployment rate did not exceed 5%, and in some periods even 3%. Consumer credit flourished. Prices were kept stable. The pace of US economic development remained the highest in the world.

After the end of the second presidential term of Woodrow Wilson, Republicans came to power for 12 years: Warren Harding (1921-1923), then after his death Calvin Coolidge (1923-1929) and Herbert Hoover (1929-1933). The US population was tired of progressive reforms, and therefore the transition to conservatism was more than ever welcome. Republicans in this period saw as their main goal: 1. stability, 2. ensuring reliable economic performance, 3. helping firms with the organization of their activities, opening foreign markets for them.

However, the boom period began very unpleasantly: government orders and overseas demand for American goods decreased. The soldiers who returned from the fronts could not find work. The number of unemployed increased from 0.5 million to 5 million. In 1920, the 18th amendment to the Constitution - the Dry Law - came into force. The smuggling of alcohol and the production of moonshine at home began. In this regard, in 1920-21. there was a recession in the economy and only 1923 began with the process of recovery.

The reasons for the rise of the American economy are seen in the strengthening of American imperialism, the emergence of the United States in a leading position in international politics and its transformation into the financial center of the world. With considerable funds at their disposal, the American monopolies successfully renewed their fixed capital and built new plants and factories. In 1924, the Dawes Plan was adopted to restore the German economy. The United States took the lead. Germany was allocated a loan, a significant part of which was provided by US banks. The desire of the United States to contribute to the economic stability of Europe was explained by the desire to conquer new markets for American goods, as well as the desire to prevent the spread of communist ideology. At the same time, in 1921, the United States provided Soviet Russia, where famine was rampant, with charitable assistance. By 1929, the total value of American exports was $85 million.

President Harding formed a cabinet of prominent financiers, millionaires, and people versed in economics. In 1921-1932, the post of US Secretary of the Treasury was held by the multimillionaire E. Mellon. On his initiative, the tax rate on incomes exceeding $1 million was reduced first to 66-50%, and in 1926 even to 20%. The wartime laws enacted to control the price level were abolished. With respect to corporations, the use of antitrust laws has ceased, which were effectively annulled by the Supreme Court through various clarifications and interpretations. At the same time, the persecution of trade unions intensified, and by 1930 their number had decreased by 1.5 times. In 1925, Calvin Coolidge declared, "The business of America is business," domestic politics meant following the principles of Laissez-faire, which opened up freedom of action for businessmen and guaranteed them from state interference in the activities of the private sector of the economy.

The high protectionist customs tariffs of the end of the 19th century were returned, which were declared one of the foundations of prosperity. The public debt has decreased, taxes have gone down.

During the years of prosperity, the increase in per capita income and production efficiency led to a 40% increase in GNP. The country enjoys the highest standard of living in the world, with low unemployment, low inflation and low interest rates on loans. industrial production as a whole increased by 1929 by 72%. The production of consumer goods developed especially successfully. The impetus for its development was the widespread use of electrical energy. The electrified homes of Americans began to be equipped with household appliances - radios, refrigerators, etc. By the end of the 1920s, most industrial enterprises switched to electricity.

During the presidency of Coolidge, extremely low purchase prices were set for agricultural raw materials to be used in industry. The concentration of capital took place mainly in the electric power industry, the automotive industry, the radio and the developing film industry. The national wealth of the USA by 1928 reached $450 billion.

Big business just got bigger. Corporations such as General Motors, Chrysler, General Electric, US Rubber and others came to the fore. Increasing the output of goods and capturing sales markets, such companies received more and more profits, which went to further development and expansion of production capacity. As a result, even more goods were produced, which were eagerly bought up by consumers. In the 1920s, the United States became the world's largest lender and increased its share of loans by 58%.

Symbol of America in the 1920s. you can count Henry Ford and his Model T Ford, the first mass-produced car in world history. This vehicle was affordable to many, as it cost less than $300, and the average annual earnings of an industrial worker was $1,300. As a result, the car ceased to be a luxury and turned into a means of transportation. In the 1920s the car park grew by 250%, and by 1929 it exceeded 25 million cars, despite the fact that the US population at that time was 125 million people.

The development of the automotive industry contributed to: infrastructure development (construction and development of roads, hotels, gas stations, fast food outlets). Legislative acts of 1916, 1921 and 1925 provided for the creation of a nationwide network of numbered highways. By 1929, 250,000 miles of modern highways had been built - 1.5 times more than existed 20 years earlier; growth in US exports as the automobile became a top export product; the development of the chemical and steel industries (production increased by 20% per year), the fuel and energy complex (oil production increased 1.5 times), the production of glass, rubber, etc.; the emergence of new jobs: every 12th worker was employed in the automotive industry; the development of conveyor production (this allowed the capitalists to reduce the number of workers, leaving only the most hardy and able-bodied, who received higher wages).

In general, the 1920s is the time of the formation of a consumer society. The average American was under massive pressure from the manufacturers of goods: he was constantly besieged by calls to buy and buy more. In this regard, modern advertising began to develop. Manufacturers did everything to force the buyer not to save money on the back burner, but to immediately spend it. Those who did not have the required amount with them were offered an installment purchase. There was a concept - life on credit, when most of the cars, refrigerators, radios were purchased in this way. However, the problem of uneven distribution of income was not taken into account: two-thirds of American families were unable to purchase even basic necessities.

Part of the profits of the monopolies turned into securities (shares), which absorbed retained earnings. Stocks were valued because they were bought and could be earned. The country advertised easy ways to wealth through stocks. And by 1929, at least 1 million Americans were playing on the stock exchange, who, having invested all their limited funds in buying shares, were waiting for success. J. Raskob, chairman of the financial committee of General Motors, argued in those years that if you save $ 15 a week and buy shares with this money, then in 20 years you will be able to accumulate capital of $ 80,000. Holders of securities got into huge debts and actively used loans.

Results:

For the first time in American history, cities outnumbered rural areas, resulting in the emergence of urban agglomerations (the so-called decline in the rural population in the prosperity decade was 6.3 million people).

By the end of 1929, the US was producing 5.4 million cars annually. The United States accounted for 48% of the industrial production of the entire capitalist world - 10% more than Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Japan combined. The lion's share of production fell on large corporations, which can be called the creators of prosperity. The volume of production increased by 4.5 times, and the total market value tripled. The development of the US economy was not of a permanent nature: in 1924 and 1927. there were minor, short-term recessions. But each time after the American economy continued to develop with renewed vigor.

However, in 1929, at the end of October, the Great Depression began and after 4 years the United States lay in economic ruins. Living on credit has not led to endless and unhindered growth. In banking, 5,000 banks were closed in the 1920s. The level of industrial production fell by a third, unemployment rose by 20%. The decline in agriculture was outlined as early as 1921. There were also problems in the international arena: persistently seeking debt repayment from the European powers (in total, the Entente countries owed about 20 billion dollars), the Americans contributed to an increase in customs duties on European goods.

At the same time, during the Prosperity period, such industries as coal, light (shoe, food and textile) industries, shipbuilding did not develop properly. Coal production decreased by 30%. The economic boom led to a crisis of overproduction: by 1929 the market was overflowing with various goods, but these goods were no longer in demand.

The Great Depression and the New Deal

The Great Depression in the United States began with the stock market crash at the end of 1929 and continued until the entry into World War II. Unwinding deflation made the production of goods unprofitable. As a result, production declined while unemployment rose sharply, rising from 3% in 1929 to 25% in 1933. A drought occurred in the rural areas of the Great Plains, which, combined with shortcomings in agricultural practices, led to extensive soil erosion. caused an ecological catastrophe. Cities have been bombarded by dust storms for several years. The population, deprived of housing and livelihoods in the Dust Bowl, migrated further west, mainly to California, taking on any low-paying job and knocking down wages there, already low due to the economic crisis. Local authorities sought a way out in the deportation of illegal immigrants from Mexico. In the American South, an already fragile economy was collapsing. Rural residents migrated in droves to the North in search of work in industrial centers, in particular, Detroit. In the Great Lakes region, farmers, suffering from lower prices for their products, flooded the courts with cases of private bankruptcy.

From the USA, the crisis spread to the rest of the capitalist world. Industrial production declined in the US by 46%, in the UK by 24%, in Germany by 41%, in France by 32%. Stock prices of industrial companies fell in the US by 87%, in the UK by 48%, in Germany by 64%, in France by 60%. Unemployment reached colossal proportions. According to official data, in 1933 there were 30 million unemployed in 32 capitalist countries, including 14 million in the United States. These circumstances required state intervention in the economy, the use of methods of state influence on spontaneous processes in the capitalist economy in order to avoid shocks, which accelerated the outgrowth of monopoly capitalism into state-monopoly capitalism.

In 1933, President Franklin Roosevelt, a candidate from the Democratic Party, came to power in the United States, who offered the American people a "new course", as his policy was later called. The Republicans, who were accused, if not of the onset of the economic crisis, then of inability to cope with it, suffered a crushing defeat in the presidential election of 1932 and could not subsequently take the White House for many years. Such was the success of the New Deal that Roosevelt became the only president in US history to be re-elected four times in a row, and he remained in office until his death in 1945. period, for example, the Social Security program, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Securities and Exchange Commission are still operating in the United States. The most successful initiative of President Roosevelt is considered to be assistance to the unemployed, who were recruited by the federal government to work in the Civilian Environmental Protection Corps and a number of other government services.

Although the measures taken by the Roosevelt administration prevented a further decline in production, or at least eased the effects of the economic crisis on the general population, ultimately the Great Depression in America did not end until the outbreak of World War II. The administration began financing military orders, while the production of civilian products was sharply reduced, and its consumption became a quota. This allowed the economy to cope with difficulties. From 1939 to 1944 production has almost doubled. Unemployment fell from 14% in 1940 to less than 2% in 1943, although the labor force grew by 10 million people.

World War II (1939-1945)

As in World War I, the United States did not enter World War II for a long time. However, already in September 1940, the United States, under the Lend-Lease program, provided assistance with weapons to Great Britain, which, after the occupation of France, fought alone with Nazi Germany. The US also supported China, which was at war with Japan and declared an oil embargo on Japan. After the German attack on the USSR in June 1941, the lend-lease program was extended to the USSR.

On December 7, 1941, Japan launched a surprise attack on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor, justifying its actions with references to the American embargo. The next day, the US declared war on Japan. In response, Germany declared war on the United States.

Paradoxically, the defeat of Nazi Germany raised the international status of America, although it did not play a decisive role in the military victory over Nazism. The credit for achieving this victory must be given to Stalin's Soviet Union, Hitler's odious rival.

The US is a fairly young country, and Americans are one of the youngest nations in the world. Nevertheless, American history is interesting and rich. To all students English language it will be useful to have an idea about it, especially if you are going to work, live or.

America before European discovery

The first people appeared on the territory of the modern United States about 13 thousand years ago, when the Bering Strait between Alaska and Asia was either frozen or shallow. These people formed divided and warring tribes and became the ancestors of the American Indians.

The Icelandic Viking Leif Eriksson was the first to discover America in 1000 AD. He even tried to colonize new lands, but the colonies did not take root. Eriksson's discovery did not have a significant impact on the history of the local population.

In 1492, Christopher Columbus rediscovered America for Europeans. This fact has already turned the fate of the continent, Europe and the whole world. The colonization of America began in 1565 with the Spanish colonies in Florida. Then the British, French and other Europeans began to arrive on the new continent.

English colonies

In 1607, in the territory of America, in the province of Virginia, the first successful English colony arose - Jamestown. It was sponsored by the London Virginia Company founded there. Before her, the British twice tried to colonize the coast North America, but to no avail: the colonies did not survive due to the raids of the Indians.

The village of Jamestown developed rapidly thanks to tobacco plantations. By 1620, about a thousand people lived in it. But the relations of the colonists with the local Indians deteriorated greatly due to the seizure of land for plantations. In 1622, the Powhatan tribe carried out a massacre in the city, in which about a third of the entire population of Jamestown died. The colony managed to recover from the attack with several retaliatory strikes.

Plymouth, also known as The Old Colony, became even more successful and, most importantly, significant for US history. It was founded by the famous Pilgrim Fathers who arrived on the American coast on the Mayflower ship. This event is considered one of the most significant in the history of the country, since it was from Plymouth that the purposeful colonization of the continent by the British began. The Pilgrim Fathers laid the foundations of American democracy, civil liberties, and traditions. And their blood flows today in tens of millions of modern Americans.

The Pilgrims were English Puritans who were unhappy with the Church of England's leaning toward Catholicism. They wanted to create a democratic colony with their own church next to Jamestown. After a difficult two-month voyage, the ship sailed to the shores of America, but much north of the intended point due to an error in building a course. The settlers discussed the situation and decided to create the "Mayflower Agreement", in which they expressed their intention to establish a colony independent of Virginia.

The first years for the pilgrims were difficult, half of the settlers died in the first winter. One of the local Indians helped the colonists: he taught them to grow pumpkin and maize, to catch local fish and game. Largely thanks to him, the colony survived and began to develop. The following year, Governor Bradford declared a Thanksgiving Day, on which the settlers celebrated their success and gave thanks to God and the Indians. This tradition spread to other colonies and later became a national holiday in the United States.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, the British founded thirteen British colonies in North America: Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Georgia and others. All of them were quite scattered, different in national composition, religion and culture. English Catholics settled in some, German Lutherans or French Huguenots came to others.

Great Britain tried to completely control the economy of the American colonies and supplied industrial goods in exchange for local resources, being completely uninterested in the development of industry in America. Nevertheless, the colonies successfully developed in the industrial area and found new markets for manufactured goods.

Great Britain tried to forbid the colonies to build workshops and engage in foreign trade. American society began to show dissatisfaction with colonial policy and felt the need for independence.

War for independence

Back in 1754, Benjamin Franklin created a project for the union of the English colonies in America with their own government. He invited Great Britain to appoint its own president so that the mother country would retain its power. But London did not like this initiative.

In 1773, the Americans held a protest in Boston against the "tea law," which had shortly been passed by the British Parliament. This law violated the rights of the colonists, as it increased duties on British tea. In response, the Americans destroyed the British cargo of tea. This event became known as the "Boston Tea Party" and was the impetus for the Revolutionary War.

In 1774, the First Continental Congress of the English Colonies met in Philadelphia. Among others, George Washington took part in it. The delegates formulated demands in the UK, but London reacted strongly negatively and demanded full compliance. The Americans realized that it was time to fight for independence, using the main force - unity.

In 1776, the British colonies created the Continental Army and appointed Washington as general. Thus began the War of Independence, more commonly referred to in American literature as american revolution- The American Revolution. Convened for the second time, the Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence, which formed the basis of the constitution of the future United States.

The British king sent troops to America to put down the rebellion. The British managed to occupy New York and Philadelphia. At first, the Americans had a hard time, they lost battles and retreated. The first victory for the colonists was at the Battle of Saratoga. Then the Americans enlisted the support of France and Spain, thanks to which they gained an advantage.

The British captured Georgia and Charleston, but could not advance inland, maintaining control only over the port cities. The Americans launched a successful guerrilla war, thanks to which they defeated the British and loyalists who wanted to maintain dependence on the mother country. In 1781, the British fleet was trapped in the Chesapeake Bay and surrendered to Washington. By that time, Britain had already stopped supporting the war.

In 1782, the British House of Commons voted to end the war. Great Britain began negotiations with the colonies, as a result of which they made peace and recognized the independence of the United States of America. The United States abandoned claims to Canada and the west coast of the Mississippi.

US expansion

After the Revolutionary War, the borders of the States were the Great Lakes to the north, the Mississippi River to the west, and Spanish Florida to the south. The Northwest Territories passed to the United States in 1795 after the signing of a peace treaty with the Indians.

America began an active period of expansion of its lands. The new country explained its expansionism with a popular expression Manifest Destiny- Clear intent. The idea of ​​being chosen by God was the American justification for its ambition to extend the territory of the United States to the very Pacific Ocean. It was difficult for the Indians to resist the Americans, since Great Britain stopped supporting the local population.

In 1803, the Americans made a successful deal, which they called the Louisiana Purchase: they acquired a huge territory from France, which now includes the states of Arkansas, Oklahoma, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas and others. The banks of the Mississippi River were completely taken over by the United States.

The Americans left the habitable eastern lands, crossed the Mississippi and looked for new regions for life. They explored the Great Plains, the forests of Oregon, the steppes of Texas, the rich lands of California. Entire caravans of ox-drawn wagons traveled across the continent. The California Gold Rush increased the influx of settlers.

In 1845, Mexican Texas passed to the United States. In 1846, the United States declared war on Mexico, defeated the Mexican army and occupied the country's capital. The Mexicans had to cede almost half of the territory of their state - part of the states of Arizona and New Mexico.

Civil War

The slave system flourished in the southern American states in the 18th and 19th centuries. The descendants of blacks, forcibly taken out of Africa, worked as slaves on plantations. By the second half of the 19th century, much of the US national wealth was based on slave labor.

At the same time, there was no slavery in the northern part of the country. Most of the runaway slaves went there. In 1850, the US Congress passed a new law requiring the entire American population, including residents of the northern states, to participate in the capture of runaway slaves. The American movement against this law grew into a movement to abolish slavery. President Lincoln came to power and announced that the new states would be free from slavery. Between the north and the south, which by that time had become separate economic regions, serious contradictions were brewing that led to the American Civil War.

The Civil War began in 1861. 24 northern non-slave states united in the Union, and 11 southern slave states formed the Confederacy. The union was initially in more favorable conditions: 23 million people lived on its territory, almost all of the country's industry and most of the bank deposits were located.

The pretext for war was the battle for Fort Sumter in Charleston Bay: the Confederates attacked the fort, opened fire and captured it. This allowed Lincoln to announce the muster of the army. The South also began calling for volunteers.

The main fighting took place on the territory of the state of Virginia. At first, the Confederation was in the lead, it had excellent commanders on its side. The Southerners won the Battle of Bull Run, then captured Washington. In July 1863, the turning point in the war came: the Confederate army lost at the Battle of Gettysburg. From that moment on, things went better for the Union: the Northern army was able to cut off Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas from other parts of the Confederacy. In 1865, the Confederation lost the capital, and capitulated a few days later.

Losses in the Civil War were huge: several hundred thousand people were killed on each side. The south was completely devastated and destroyed. After the war, slavery in the United States was abolished: a corresponding amendment to the constitution appeared in 1865.

Reconstruction

The period of reconstruction of the country - in particular, its southern part - lasted more than twenty years after the war. It is known as the era of Reconstruction. At this time, the American constitution was supplemented by several amendments that expanded the rights of the black population. Reconstruction affected the social and administrative changes of the South. For example, the law on homesteads contributed to the development of farming.

In 1877 the Democratic and Republican Parties of the USA, representing the rights of the South and the North respectively, made a number of concessions to each other. The Republicans withdrew federal troops from the southern states and passed laws to restrict the rights of African Americans. Republican incumbent Rutherford Hayes vowed not to run for a second term. Northerners volunteered to help build a railroad across Texas and industrialize the southern states. The Democrats, in turn, pledged to respect the rights of blacks and recognize Hayes as the legitimate president. This oral agreement is called the Compromise of 1877. It officially ended the period of Reconstruction.

After the Civil War and Reconstruction, the United States began to actively develop. This period is called the Gilded Age. Many economists and historians believe that it was at this time that the modern American economy was founded. Industry and agriculture grew at a tremendous pace, large corporations appeared, the population increased rapidly, and immigrants came from other countries.

At the end of the 19th century, the per capita income of the United States exceeded that of Britain, Germany, and France. Large industrial cities with huge factories were formed in the north-east of the country. Workers' unions emerged, including the American Federation of Labor. It was at this time that the dynasties of multimillionaires arose - Rockefellers, Astors, Carnegies.

The Gilded Age in the United States ended in 1893, when the country was gripped by an economic crisis. In 1896, one of the most dramatic American presidential elections took place: Republican McKinley defeated Democrat William Jennings Bryan by 4.3% of the vote. Thus began a new period in the history of the United States, which is called the era of progressivism.

USA in the 20th century

The era of progressivism lasted until 1920. At this time, the middle class and social classes in the United States were highly politically active, which led to several major reforms - for example, the introduction of an income tax, granting women the right to vote, the emergence of juvenile courts, and the modernization of the education system.

During this period, the economy continued to develop rapidly. Conveyor production appeared, which stimulated the growth of the middle class. Trade unions have become an influential force in politics. The Hawaiian Islands and other lands joined the United States after the war with Spain.

In 1917, the American Congress decided to enter the First World War and declare war on Germany. American troops replenished the armies of the Entente and helped defeat Germany, which by that time was running out of strength. The United States considered the Treaty of Versailles unfair and concluded a separate treaty with Germany.

In 1920, Prohibition was passed in the United States - a ban on the production, transportation and sale of alcohol. It operated for 13 years and helped to reduce the level of alcohol consumption in the country by almost half. But the law also had its downsides. There were many criminal organizations that were engaged in bootlegging. Corruption began to flourish among politicians and policemen. In 1933, Prohibition was repealed.

The period from 1922 to 1929 is called the era of prosperity in the United States - Prosperity. The economy continued to develop, wages grew, the States took a leading position in the world. Big business continued to grow. During this period, a consumer society was formed in the United States. The symbol of America in these years is Henry Ford with his Ford company and the Ford Model T, which became the first mass-produced car in the world. The automotive industry developed at a particularly high rate during this period.

In 1929, the Great Depression began in America - a deep economic crisis that affected many countries. Due to the strong decline in commodity prices, production became unprofitable and began to decline. Unemployment has risen. A drought in the Great Plains led to crop failure and an environmental disaster that became known as the Dust Bowl. For several years, the US prairies were regularly covered by the strongest dust storms.

In 1933, Franklin Roosevelt came to power, proposing a new policy called the New Deal. Many of the president's decisions were controversial, but overall he was able to stabilize the economy. He began the fight against unemployment, restored industries, passed a series of laws on labor and pensions, stimulated housing construction and supported culture. Roosevelt was so popular among the people that he was elected as many as four times in a row.

The United States participated in World War II and provided assistance to Great Britain, China and the USSR. In 1945, Japan refused to surrender, and American bombers dropped atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, causing great destruction. This is the only example of the combat use of nuclear weapons in history.

From the end of World War II until 1995, the United States was in a state of cold war with the USSR. Both states fought for world influence and carried out an arms race, periodically entering into dangerous conflicts.

In recent US history, one of the most significant events is the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack - the largest in the history of mankind. The terrorists have taken over passenger aircraft and sent them to the towers of the World Trade Center in New York, resulting in the deaths of almost three thousand people.

The US President is currently Donald Trump of the Republican Party.

America in the modern sense of the term "United States" began to exist since 1776. In our time, the United States is a superpower with great human and intellectual resources and a huge potential for development. And this is no coincidence. Over the centuries, theoretical concepts and practical methods of state regulation of economic policy have been formed.

It is generally accepted that for the first time the news of the existence of America was brought to Europe by Christopher Columbus, who, as you know, having lost his course, accidentally discovered new lands. It happened in 1492 in the West Indies, and in 1493, making a second trip to these lands, he landed on the territory of the island of Puerto Rico, which today belongs to the United States.

The discoverers of America, according to some sources, were a certain Viking merchant Bjarni, who, during his journey in 985, from Iceland to Greenland, was carried by waves to the West to a wooded country. Fifteen years later, Leif Eirikson with a squad along the route indicated by Bjarni went to those very places. He, unlike his predecessor, examined the area, found that it was rocky. In honor of his stay, Eirikson named it Helluland - the Land of Flat Stones. The places where there was a forest were named by him Markland - Forest Country. Thus, part of the indigenous population of America came there from Greenland and existed there until the middle of the fourteenth century. Such a conclusion can be drawn on the basis of the testimony of Bishop Ivar Bordson, who in 1350, having landed on the shores of the Norman settlements, found there only empty churches, abandoned settlements, feral animals.

The end of the 15th century can be called decisive in the discovery of America, since new expeditions arrived from different parts of the globe to hitherto unknown lands, which turned the beginning of the 16th century for Europeans into the era of the “conquest of the New World”. The Spaniards should be called the first in a series of masters. This is Admiral Christopher Columbus in 1492 with an expedition to San Salvador.

The Spaniard Ferdinand Magellan in 1519-1521 rounded America from the south. The notorious Florentine, Amerigo Vespucci, in honor of whom the continent was renamed in 1507 at the suggestion of the geographer Martin Waldseemüller, went down in history as a discoverer. Following the discovery of the Florida peninsula in 1513, the city of St. Augustine was laid out in 1565 and the first permanent European Spanish colony was established.

They are followed by the British, who reached the coast of Canada in 1497-1498. led by Giovanni Cabot.

Colonization of America by the British

In the fifty years that have passed since the discovery of America by the Spaniards, they quickly settled in Florida and the southwest of the continent. After the defeat in 1588 of the Invincible Armada of the Spaniards in the battle with the English fleet, Spain lost its influence and power. Colonists rushed to America from England, Holland and France. The first colony was founded in 1607 by the British in what is now Virginia. Settlers were attracted by gold. The gold rush drove the poor, the youth, the criminals here; people who preach Puritanism were forced to move here by the persecution of the authorities. So, in 1620, in the northern part of the mainland, at Cape Cod, 102 "wandering pilgrims" landed. Later, the city of New Plymouth was built on this site.

Gradually, thirteen colonies formed on the territory of the Atlantic coast:

On the territory of the colonies lived two main tribes from among the indigenous Indians - the Algonquins and the Iroquois. They numbered about 200,000 people. They taught the colonists everything that helped them survive in unfamiliar conditions: clearing the territory for crops, growing maize and tobacco, hunting wild animals, and baking shellfish. Europeans bought furs from the natives for a penny, and the island where the central part of New York - Manhattan is located, was bought for a set of knives and beads, worth only ... 24 dollars !!!

War for independence

The English colonists tightened the exploitation of the population, introduced decrees restricting the movement of residents to the west, and did not allow the opening of new enterprises. They took every measure to strengthen the power of the king in the colonies. In 1773, the people of Boston attacked British ships in port and threw bales of taxed tea overboard. In 1774, the first meeting of the Continental Congress was held in Philadelphia. Congressmen condemned the policy of England, although they did not take decisive action to break it. Armed action was taken on April 19, 1775. Thus began the American Revolutionary War.

Mexican–American War (1846–1848)

The cause of the war was the forcible annexation by the United States of the free state of Texas, which was formed by American settlers in place of the Mexican state, in December 1845. Mexican troops had to leave the occupied territory. In addition, the United States did not manage with a simple annexation, and James Polk, who was then President of the United States, offered to buy California and New Mexico from Mexico, but the Mexican government refused to negotiate on this issue. Then in March 1846, the American General Zachariah Taylor, elected president at the end of the war, invaded the disputed territories with his army and captured Point Isabel at the mouth of the Rio Grande. The resistance of the Mexicans led to the declaration of war by the American side on May 12, 1946. As a result of two years of hostilities, the cities of Santa Fe, Los Angeles, Veracruz were conquered, in February 1847 - Buena Vista. The majority of California's population went over to the American side. The Americans stormed the fortified positions at Chapultepec, and then on September 14, 1847, occupied Mexico City without a fight.

On March 10, 1848, a peace treaty was adopted and ratified by the US Senate. California, New Mexico and a number of other border territories departed to the USA. Mexico received $15 million in compensation for the ceded territories. As a result of the war with Mexico, the United States increased its holdings in North America.

Slavery in the USA

Most of the slaves consisted of Africans and their descendants, forcibly removed from their places of residence. The poor settlers, "white slaves", appeared due to the fact that they could not pay for the road, they entered into enslaving agreements from 2 to 7 years with merchants and ship owners, who then resold them in America. These people were called "indentured servants." It was difficult to get the Indians to work. Along with the "white slaves", the importation of blacks began in 1619. Slave labor was especially widely used in the fields. Only the strong power of the colonists made it possible to maintain such a method of exploitation for two hundred years in the conditions of the simultaneous development of capitalist relations. Nevertheless, in the entire history of the existence of slavery in America, more than two hundred attempts at conspiracies and rebellions were made by slaves. In 1860, out of a population of 12 million in the 15 American states where slavery persisted, 4 million were slaves. Of the 1.5 million families living in these states, more than 390,000 families had slaves.

American Civil War

The American Civil War (War of the North and the South) of 1861-1865 was a war between the states of the North and the eleven slave states of the South to abolish slavery. By 1861, each state lived under federal laws, meaning there was minimal interaction between the states. In the North, where there was a rapid development of production, and in the South, where slavery and farming persisted, two different economic systems developed. Therefore, the Northerners, who carried out reforms and thereby improved the living conditions of citizens, posed a danger to the unconditional power of the Southerners. The beginning of the Civil War falls on April 12, 1861, when Fort Sumter was shelled, the end dates to May 26, 1865, when the remnants of the army of the southerners under the command of General K. Smith finally surrendered. The main goal of the northerners in the war was the proclamation of the safety of the Union and the integrity of the country, the southerners - the recognition of the independence and sovereignty of the Confederation. During the war there were about 2,000 battles. More US citizens have died in this war than in any other war in which the US has been involved.

US in World War I (1914–1918)

The relationship between America and Western European countries in the hostilities of 1914-1918 can be divided into three periods:

1. The period of neutrality (1914-1917), when the United States tried to act as an intermediary - a peacemaker between the conflicting parties. As long as England controlled the waters of the oceans and allowed neutral countries to trade by blocking only German ports, America remained neutral.
2. Period 1917-1918 After the sinking of the British passenger ship Lusitania in 1915, on which there were 100 American citizens, Wilson declared a violation of international law. Germany partially stopped the "underwater" war. But in 1917, after a new sinking of American ships in March, under pressure from Congress, on April 6, 1917, the American government announced its entry into the war against Germany. To participate in hostilities, it was decided to mobilize one million adults from 21 to 31 years old.
3. The period of completion of hostilities (1918-1921). For America, it was a long period of formal withdrawal from the war. It ended only in 1921, when Congress (already under the Harding administration) finally passed a joint resolution of both chambers officially announcing the end of hostilities. The League of Nations began its work without the participation of the United States.

The Great Depression

The times of the Great Depression are called the long, from 1929 to 1940, economic crisis that began in the United States and left a deep mark on the global economy. Officially ended in 1940, but in reality the US economy began to recover after World War II.

USA in World War II (1939-1945)

Remoteness from Europe and, as a result, from the theater of operations, gave the United States many advantages, including the improvement of the economy through military orders. But the country still had to participate in World War II. December 7, 1941 is considered the day the war began, when a squadron of 441 Japanese aircraft attacked the American military base at Pearl Harbor. 4 battleships, 2 cruisers and 1 mine layer were sunk by bombing. The casualties in this battle amounted to 2,403 people. Roosevelt, six hours after this bombing, announced war on Japan by radio. In November 1942, the Mediterranean theater of operations was added. In June 1944, as allies of the USSR, US troops took part on the Western Front in Europe. American troops were operating in France (in Normandy). And also in Italy, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg. The total US casualties in World War II were 418,000. The most bloody battle for the American army was the Ardennes operation. After her in terms of the number of losses are the Normandy operation, the Battle of Monte Cassino, the Battle of Iwo Jima and the Battle of Okinawa.

USA during the Cold War

The period of the Cold War is considered to be the time period from March 5, 1946 to December 26, 1991. The term "Cold War" was originally used by George Orwell in the Tribune article "You and the Atomic Bomb" on October 19, 1945. This name refers to the ideological, geopolitical, economic confrontation between America and its allies and the USSR and its allies.

The main reason for the Cold War is different models of development of countries - capitalism and socialism. In his opinion, the possession of nuclear weapons made it possible to divide the world among themselves "superpowers". Remaining invincible, on the one hand, thanks to atomic bombs, these countries would be forced to maintain an unspoken agreement never to use atomic bombs against each other, while being in a state of cold war or peace, which is not peace by definition.

Recent US history

In the 90s, America entered under the leadership of President George W. Bush, who represented the Republican Party. Events that mark recent history, were multidirectional. On the one hand, the end of the Cold War with the USSR was announced, on the other hand, in January 1991, America, together with a coalition of Western countries, carried out an air action "Desert Storm" of an anti-Iraqi orientation, which intensified the policy of confrontation with the rest of the socialist camp.

There were positive developments in domestic policy. For example, in 1991 the United States adopted a law on universal literacy of the population, according to which all citizens of the country received the right to secondary education. 1992 brought victory to the Democrats, led by Clinton. The fruits of his activity: reform in the field of education and health care, measures to protect the poor, tax incentives for small businesses. The reforms allowed Clinton to win a large number of supporters and be elected to a second term. 2001 brought victory to George W. Bush. It is overshadowed by the events of 11 September.

US policy remains today a source of not only political but also economic tension in the world. The strategy of massive influence on all is the most important and most characteristic feature of modern US foreign economic policy.

Brief information about the country

Date of Independence

Form of government

Presidential republic

Territory

9,519,431 km² (4th in the world)

Population

320 194 478 people (3rd in the world)

Washington

US dollar (USD)

Timezone

Largest cities

New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Antonio

$16.724 trillion (1st in the world)

Internet domain

Telephone code

- one of the largest and most influential states of the modern world. It is located in North America and is the fourth largest after Russia, Canada and China. The United States of America is a multifaceted and diverse country that has made a significant contribution to world culture and science. It is able to offer travelers almost everything that is rich in modern world or nature: from the wonders of the Grand Canyon, the Great Lakes, the mountains and the Pacific coast to the metropolises of New York, Las Vegas and Miami. Here you can enjoy whale watching in Oregon, skiing in the Rocky Mountains, clubbing in San Francisco, see incomparable shows and gambling in Las Vegas or attend theater performances in between shopping trips in Manhattan.

Video: USA

general information

The area of ​​the country is truly huge - 9.5 million km², and the continental part, the largest, accounts for 7.83 million km². The remaining regions - the states of Alaska (with adjacent islands) and Hawaii, consisting of 24 islands - are separated from the mainland of the United States. The population of the country, according to estimates for January 2017, is 324,932,000 people - this is the third largest in the world after China and India. The capital of the United States is the city of Washington, the largest cities are New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Houston, Seattle and Boston.

During the Cold War, Soviet propaganda spared no epithets for the United States of America. “The stronghold of world imperialism”, “the center of the reactionary ideology”, “the conductor of a brazen expansionist policy”, “the instigator of the third world war” - and this is only a small part of the clichés used in the press that formed the image of the enemy. In fairness, it should be said that the American mass media and representatives of the ruling circles also did not remain in debt, calling the USSR an "evil empire." With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the situation began to change, former Soviet citizens - Russians - began to travel to America more often as tourists, discovering many new and interesting things for themselves. "Uncle Sam", as it turned out, is not as scary as he was painted ...

If we talk about the United States as a tourist destination, then it should be noted that it is year-round. And this is a great advantage that many other countries do not have. Whenever you come to the United States, whatever region or city you choose to travel to, you won't be bored. In California, Colorado and Utah, high-class mountain resorts are at your service, in sunny Florida and exotic Hawaii, chic beaches await you. Finding yourself - either passing through, or purposefully - in small towns in the heart of the country, you can plunge into the world of the Wild West during the civil war in the second half of the 19th century. A trip to the largest metropolitan areas will allow you to get in touch with history, cultural and architectural heritage. And in the USA you will find the best shopping, acquaintance with new technologies, the world of television and film industry. Although the spectator sports here are predominantly American - baseball, basketball, ice hockey and American football - they also provide a lasting experience. And all this will be flavored with sincere smiles from Americans who, despite the aggravation of the world situation, the growth of the terrorist threat and the global confrontation between major powers, are always glad to those who come to their country with an open heart and pure intentions.

US cities

All US cities

Geography and climate

The United States stretches from west to east for almost 5,000 kilometers and is washed by the waters of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The country is bordered by Canada in the north and Mexico in the south. The Bering Strait, which separates Alaska from Chukotka, serves as a maritime boundary with Russian Federation. According to the Constitution, the United States is a federal state, consisting of 50 states and one federal district - Columbia, which includes the capital. In addition, the United States owns the island of Puerto Rico and the Virginia Archipelago in the Caribbean, the Northern Mariana Islands, Wake Atoll, Guam, Eastern Samoa, and others in the Pacific Ocean. Russian citizens will need a US visa to enter both the mainland and other regions.

The vast territory predetermined the variety of climatic zones, ranging from the tropics (Hawaii, California, Florida) to arctic and subarctic weather conditions (Alaska). Among the main factors that determine the climate of the United States is the atmospheric jet stream: it captures air masses and moisture in the North Pacific Ocean and transfers it to the continent. This circumstance causes heavy precipitation in the form of rain and snow on the northwest coast. In the south - for example, in California - the wet season falls mostly in autumn and winter, but the summer in these parts is hot and dry. Air masses heading inland rest on the Pacific Coast Mountains, stretching along the entire west coast from the border with Canada to the cordon with Mexico, and the Rocky Mountains, the main massif in the Cordillera system of North America, in the western United States and Canada. For this reason, mostly dry weather persists in the west of the Great Plains and in the Intermountain Plateaus.

As for the general temperature background, it is distinguished by uniformity. In most parts of the United States, summer temperatures range from +22 to +28 °C. Moreover, if in the northern and southern states the difference is fixed by thermometers, then it is relatively small. Winters are quite mild, the January temperature ranges from 2° with a minus sign (in the north) to +8 degrees in the southern regions. However, you should not relax: significant temperature fluctuations are possible due to the unhindered penetration of air masses from the Arctic. By the way, the same applies to summer temperatures, with the difference that atmospheric flows move from tropical latitudes.

Precipitation is unevenly distributed across the United States. If in Hawaii, the southeast of the country and the Pacific coast, respectively, 4000 and 2000 mm of rain can fall, then in the interior of California and Nevada this figure can be - just imagine! - no more than 200 mm. The level of precipitation is also influenced by the terrain. Thus, in the Atlantic states and on the western slopes of the mountains, more rain usually falls. But what is interesting: no matter what region of the country you are in, weather(regardless of the time of year) are the least likely to interfere with a comfortable stay. For example, in the north and in the central part of the Atlantic coast, the swimming season usually runs from June to August-September. But this does not mean at all that it is still impossible to swim in May, and in October it is no longer possible, because even in these months the water maintains a quite comfortable temperature regime.

Fans of taking sea baths at any time of the year choose Florida for their holidays, where the average water temperature, even in winter, rarely drops below 22 degrees. In July-September, in the most "tropical" state of America, the weather is very hot (+36 ... +39 ° С), which, moreover, is distinguished by high, up to 100%, air humidity. However, hurricanes, which are quite frequent from June to November, can interfere with carefree pastime. It is noticeably hot in the summer and in the southern part of the Rocky Mountains, from 26 to 34 degrees with a plus sign. In this regard, it is recommended to plan a trip to these parts in spring or autumn.

Tourists are happy to visit Alaska, despite its harsh climate: 30% of the state is located beyond the Arctic Circle. In the northern and central regions, a subarctic climate reigns, which is characterized by very low temperatures down to -45 ... -50 ° С. But in summer the air in Alaska warms up to +16 ... +20 ° С, with the exception of the northern regions, where thermometers show +2 ... +6 degrees. And all this with minimal humidity: about 250 mm of precipitation falls here annually. In the center and south of the state, it can even be very hot in summer, the air can warm up to +30 degrees, the amount of precipitation is 400-600 mm per year.

Nature, fauna and flora

The chain of the majestic Cordilleras, the picturesque Grand Canyon in Colorado, the vast coastlines of two oceans, rivers and unique lakes, the famous Niagara Falls and the ominous Death Valley in California - all this is the United States of America with its diverse and unique natural landscape. On the vast territory of the country, evergreen forests and mountain ranges, endless expanses of plains teeming with life and arid deserts “coexist”. It is hardly possible to feel the beauty of local natural landscapes virtually - you need to comprehend and feel it visually, being present on the spot. Visiting the habitats of wild animals, the coasts of mountain rivers and the Great Lakes, exploring the steep slopes and observing the vast expanses of the steppes is a real tourist's dream!

Mountain ranges, plateaus of the Cordillera and plateaus occupy almost half of the territory of the United States. The landscape of the mountainous regions of the country is very diverse. Here, on the slopes, there is everything: and thick mixed forests, and wastelands, and even alpine meadows. Numerous rivers of the United States begin their run from the slopes: Missouri, Arkansas, Colorado, Columbia, Cheyenne, Platte, Klamath, Rio Grande, Umpkua and others.

Alaska, as we have already said, is separated from the main part of the United States - in the northwest of the mainland. Its territory (by the way, the largest of all states) is formed by many plains - both alluvial and moraine - and the northern spurs of the Cordillera mountain range. It is in Alaska that the highest point in North America is located - Mount McKinley, also known as Denali, rushing into the sky at 6194 meters. Many island groups protruding far into the Pacific Ocean - the Aleutian Islands, the Alexander Archipelago, the islands of St. Matthew, Pribylova and others - are a continuation of the local mountain systems.

And finally, sunny Hawaii. The archipelago, which forms the 50th US state, is located in the North Pacific Ocean. The chain of its islands is of volcanic origin. The largest islands - Hawaii, Lanai, Maui, Kauai and Molokai - are formed by the slopes of volcanoes and, accordingly, have a mountainous landscape. The region is famous not only for its stunning resorts, but also for its very high volcanic activity. The most famous local volcano that travelers come to see is Kilauea, which is considered the hallmark of the archipelago. However, at the beginning of 2017, he ordered a long life: on January 2, as a result of an eruption, a huge piece of the volcano collapsed directly into the ocean. For this reason, the authorities decided for security reasons to close the access of tourists to the sights.

The diversity of the natural landscape also implies the diversity of wildlife. Wooded areas cover a third of the United States, their character changes as you move from west to east and from north to south - in accordance with climatic zones. Coniferous trees, coupled with tundra vegetation, are typical of Alaska, while deciduous trees (oak, birch, ash) and unique cedar forests are typical for the central and eastern regions, respectively. It is impossible not to mention the excellent seascape of California, the true decoration of which are the majestic palm trees and representatives of citrus plants. In general, magnolias and rubber plants are characteristic of the southern states. There are also many types of mangroves - evergreen deciduous forests, usually growing in the tidal zone of sea coasts and estuaries. In the famous American deserts, there are cacti typical of such places and evergreen tree-like yuccas.

According to the same principle, depending on the location of the territory and climatic zones, the fauna of the United States of America was formed. The fauna of the northern latitudes is represented by bears and deer, lynxes and ground squirrels. East of the Rocky Mountains, on the Great Plains, herds of bison, other ungulates and steppe dogs feel comfortable. Grizzly bears, wolves, badgers, foxes and skunks are found in the cedar forests. These lands are also chosen by exotic birds: pelicans, flamingos and kingfishers. In the western United States, in the deserts, reptiles such as lizards and poisonous snakes live. Here you can also meet American hares and marsupial rats. The "masters" of the mountainous areas are elk and mountain goats, tolstologs and pronghorns, representatives of other mammals that have adapted to this habitat. In the south, for example, in Florida, there are graceful cougars and toothy alligators, not to mention exotic birds - pink flamingo, purple moorhen, tree ibis.

US history

The honor of the discoverer of America undoubtedly belongs to the legendary Christopher Columbus, who made four expeditions starting from 1492. However, none of them directly reached the shores of the current United States. Other pioneers of the New World are the Spaniard Ferdinand Magellan, who rounded it from the south in 1519-1521, and the notorious traveler of Florentine origin Amerigo Vespucci. In honor of the latter - America - it was proposed by the cartographer Martin Waldseemüller to name this large continent in the western hemisphere. However, the native Indians, who became the first people who settled in America about 30 thousand years ago after moving there along the Bering Isthmus from Asia, can also be considered candidates for the discoverers.

In 1565, on the Florida peninsula, after the laying of the city of St. Augustine, the first permanent colony of Europeans on the continent, namely the Spaniards, arose. In 1588, they lost the battle with the English fleet, the Spanish crown lost its power and influence, and, in addition to the British, Dutch and French colonists rushed to the continent. The first colony on the territory of the modern United States (Virginia) was founded in 1607 by the British. All the settlers were mainly from the poor - young people looking for their place under the sun, criminals and even people professing puritanism. All were united by one thing - the desire to find gold on new lands and live a decent life. In the period from 1607 to 1732, as the Atlantic coast was settled, thirteen colonies arose: Virginia, Massachusetts, New York, Maryland, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Delaware and others.

The native Indians living in the colonies - the tribes of the Iroquois and Algonquins, their total number was approximately 200 thousand people - passed on to strangers their invaluable experience in surviving in unfamiliar conditions. The colonists, in "gratitude", began to exploit the local population, limited their movement and did everything to strengthen the power of the king in America. The response was not long in coming. For example, residents of Boston in 1773 attacked British ships in the local port and threw all the goods into the water - expensive tea. A year later, the Continental Congress met in Philadelphia, which condemned the policy of the British, but did not take concrete steps to break off relations with the metropolis.

The first armed resistance took place on April 19, 1775. It marked the beginning of the war for the sovereignty of the North American colonies, which ended only in 1883. On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress adopted the United States Declaration of Independence, proclaimed two days earlier. On September 3, 1783, the new state was recognized by Great Britain. In 1789, the first presidential election was held - it was a major slave owner and one of the founding fathers of the United States, George Washington, who received 100% of the electoral vote (all subsequent American leaders could only dream of such comprehensive support). In the same 1789, the Bill of Rights was adopted - the first ten amendments to the Constitution, which guaranteed the country's citizens basic rights and freedoms. In 1800, the capital was transferred from Philadelphia to the city of Washington, founded on the banks of the Potomac River in 1790.

Initially, the territory of the United States was small and gradually expanded to the current borders. In December 1845, the Free State of Texas, formed by the Americans on the site of the former Mexican state, was annexed, moreover, by force. As a result of the expansion, the troops of the neighboring state had to retreat. American appetites continued to grow, and President James Polk took the initiative to buy California from Mexico, which was refused. In response, the United States invaded the disputed lands and, faced with resistance, declared war on its neighbors. The American-Mexican armed conflict lasted from 1846 to 1848. As a result, California, New Mexico and some other border territories were annexed to the United States. Mexico had to make do with the $15 million it was paid as "compensation".

Another significant page in the history of the United States of America is the Civil War of 1861-1865, also known as the War of the North and the South. It involved 24 northern states (20 non-slave and 4 slave) and 11 southern states that retained slavery. One of the objective causes of the war was the gap between the North and the South, which arose as a result of the existence of two different economic systems. The improvement of the life of the northerners was perceived by the southerners as a danger to the unconditional power of the ruling circles there. Over 2,000 battles took place during the war. Human casualties: The North lost 360 thousand people killed, more than 275 thousand received various injuries. The "Confederates", as the southerners were called, lost about 258 thousand people. More citizens died in this conflict than in any other war where the United States took part. It ended with the victory of the northern states. Slavery was officially abolished by the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. Fun fact: The last Civil War veteran died in 1959. It turned out to be 110-year-old Walter Williams.

When the First World War broke out in 1914, America initially remained neutral and even tried to act as a peacemaker between the parties to the conflict. But as soon as in 1915 Germany sank the British passenger ship Louisiana with 100 American citizens on board, President Wilson declared a gross violation of international law. In March 1917, several more American ships were destroyed in a similar way, and the US government had no choice but to declare war on Germany - the authorities made an official decision on this on April 6th. A total of one million young people aged 21-31 were mobilized to participate in hostilities.

Formally, the United States withdrew from the war in 1921, although World War I officially ended in 1918. And after some eight years, a deep economic crisis began in the country. This period went down in history as the Great Depression and ended only in 1940. That, however, did not prevent the “stronghold of world capitalism” from entering the Second World War, the fire of which flared up in 1939 and blazed until 1945, taking tens of millions of lives of innocent people with it.

The war gave the US economy a lot of benefits due to increased military orders, which somewhat softened the blows of the Great Depression. However, the United States did not manage to avoid participation in the hostilities, despite the fact that they and warring Europe were separated by an ocean. It all started with an attack on December 7, 1941 by a Japanese squadron, numbering 441 aircraft, at the Pearl Harbor base in Hawaii. After this large-scale bombing, which led to the death of 2403 people, President Franklin Roosevelt declared war on Japan.

In June 1944, the Americans, being allies of the USSR, became participants in the so-called second (western) front in Europe, landing in Normandy. US troops also operated on the territory of the Third Reich, in Italy, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Belgium, and even in Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco. The most bloody for the American troops was the participation in the Ardennes operation in the south-west of Belgium, during which the losses amounted to 89.5 thousand people, including 19 thousand killed. In total, the United States lost 418,000 people in World War II.

After 1945, when Nazism was defeated, the United States finally overcame the consequences of the Great Depression and economic growth began in the country. At the same time, a global confrontation between the USA and the USSR, the capitalist and socialist systems as a whole, which went down in history as the Cold War, emerged. This period is characterized by various international crises (for example, the Middle East conflict, the Caribbean crisis, the wars in Vietnam, Afghanistan) and the arms race. With perestroika in the Soviet Union, the end of the Cold War was announced, positive changes also occurred within the United States: in the first half of the 1990s, a law on universal literacy of the population was adopted, reforms were carried out in the field of medicine, preferential taxation for small businesses was introduced, a number of measures to support the poor.

Meanwhile, in the foreign policy arena, the United States took a direct part in various conflicts. The Korean War and the Lebanese Civil War, the Iran-Iraq War, the invasion of Grenada, Haiti and Iraq, the occupation of the Dominican Republic, the bombing of the former Yugoslavia, the Persian Gulf War, the air strikes on Libya, and finally the civil war in Syria - these are only a small list of US military operations abroad. Eloquent statistics: by the end of the 20th century alone, America used military force outside its borders more than two hundred times in total.

In the new century, the involvement of the United States in foreign conflicts continues. American officials attribute it to the need to "combat international terrorism," especially after the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington by al-Qaeda that killed 2,977 people. It remains to add to the above that such foreign policy activity is often criticized by many states, including Russia.

sightseeings of USA

In the USA, every traveler will be able to find interesting places for himself. The main attractions of the United States include both wildlife and man-made architectural monuments.

Landmarks of Washington

Let's start our acquaintance with the sights of America from the capital - Washington, famous for a large number of various buildings, including world-famous historical buildings, malls and memorial parks, galleries and national museums. By the way, the entrance to the latter - this may surprise someone - is completely free.

You probably won't find a person who has never heard of the majestic residence of American leaders and the symbol of the nation on Pennsylvania Avenue - the White House. The total area of ​​the building exceeds 5 thousand square meters. It has 4 overground and 2 underground floors and 132 rooms. The most famous is the Oval Office, where US presidents work. And also - the Oval Blue Hall (it is intended for ceremonial receptions), the Green Hall - for meetings "without ties", the Dining Room for official receptions on behalf of the head of state, the Great Hall and others. The White House ensemble also includes the Rose Garden, laid out by the wife of President Wilson (on the west side) and the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden, located at the east wing.

Now let's move to the Capitol, the same snow-white, effectively illuminated at night. In its building, consisting of 540 rooms, the highest Legislature countries - Congress, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. A tour of the building is also free, and from the premises, public access is open only to the famous Rotunda, which houses a small collection of sculptures and paintings. Tourists are even given the opportunity to watch the meetings of the Congress - for this it is enough to go to galleries specially designated for this. True connoisseurs and simply connoisseurs of architectural forms will definitely pay attention to the monumentality and at the same time gracefulness of the Capitol - they amaze the imagination.

The Pentagon, which has become a symbol of American military power, in Soviet times was not used to scare only babies. However, we are not talking about the US Department of Defense, but about the building with the same name, built in the first half of the 20th century - its headquarters. True, this world's largest office building of a recognizable pentagonal shape is located not within the city, but nearby. It looks somewhat mundane, but it has its own deep meaning: military architects did not design a skyscraper, as it could become easy prey for would-be terrorists. Prior to the September 11, 2001 attacks, the Pentagon was open to all tours. Now tourists are allowed here in limited numbers, and all excursions must be agreed in advance.

Landmarks of New York

The Statue of Liberty, the world-famous skyscrapers of Manhattan, Fifth Avenue, the UN Headquarters, the Metropolitan Opera and Broadway glowing with all the lights - this is New York, the largest city in the United States, spread out on the Atlantic coast of the country. It seems that the metropolis absorbs into itself, but that's why it is attractive: to inspect and study its majestic sights, as it were, "from the inside" is very entertaining and insanely interesting. And how many new things you can discover! Not everyone knows that the Statue of Liberty is a gift from France for the 100th anniversary of the American Revolution of 1775-1783 and that 25 windows in its crown symbolize earthly treasures, and 7 rays symbolize the seas and continents. Few people know that the strength of the famous Brooklyn Bridge, opened in May 1883 over the East River Bay, was tested ... with the help of elephants. How? Very simple. 21 animals from a circus touring nearby were simply led through this hanging beam structure 1825 meters long and that's it.

A special flavor emanates from the so-called ethnic areas of New York, founded by migrants from among the Chinese, Jews, Italians, Germans, Spaniards and others in the middle of the century before last. Many of them are still heard today: Chinatown, Yorkville, Atlantic Avenue, the Lower East Side, Harlem, the Bronx, Little Italy. We will not exaggerate if we say that each of these quarters is a real open-air museum of the people whose representatives live in it. And, of course, do not miss the opportunity to visit Central Park - one of the most famous sights of the almost 8.4 million metropolis. Here you can just take a walk on your own, find something to do for your child, or sit down with a friendly company for an impromptu picnic right on the grass.

Landmarks of California

Well, now let's head to California - the land of eternal summer! This state, one of the largest in the US, is the cultural and entertainment center of both the West Coast and the entire country. In terms of the number of famous attractions, California surpasses even Europe, and the list is, of course, not limited to Hollywood, Silicon Valley, Santa Barbara and the ominous Death Valley. The face of the state is also defined by magnificent castles, national parks and mountain ranges, creating a unique landscape. Not to mention the beach ski resorts that made California famous all over the world.

Los Angeles is a large and vibrant metropolis. This is a showcase for all of America - not only California, despite the fact that it has no administrative functions (Sacramento is the state capital). It is in Los Angeles that the legendary Hollywood is located - the heart of the American and world film industry. In this city, stars of the first magnitude, as if descended from the pages of the tabloids, can be found just on the street, like their old acquaintances. The richest museums coexist here with entertainment centers, architectural sights - with expensive restaurants and modern hotels. No wonder it is called the city of contrasts.

Coming to sunny California and missing out on a visit to Disneyland? Is it possible? The very first park of the famous Walt Disney is located in the city of Anaheim and was opened back in 1955. Interesting facts: the opening ceremony was held by the talented Hollywood actor Ronald Reagan, who in 1981 became the 40th President of the United States. So many years have passed, but the embodied dream of the animation master continues to live and develop. Not only children, but also adults rejoice here at the revived heroes of modern cartoons and the opportunity to relax on the latest attractions. Over 500 million people from all over the world have visited Disneyland over the 60 years of its existence.

Another visiting card of California is the city of San Francisco. Its symbol is one of the most visited historical monuments - the Golden Gate Bridge. The ambiguously perceived sights of the United States include the former Alcatraz prison (Alcatraz): the prisoners were kept here in very harsh conditions ...

Do you want to taste exclusive dishes from fresh seafood? Then you are at Pier 39 with its well-known restaurants. But before you have a delicious meal, you can ride the local cable car - the only one in the world that is manually operated in the 21st century. It is very interesting to visit Silicon or Silicon Valley. Semiconductors based on this element at one time began to be developed here, but today this place is in more associated with products from companies such as Apple, Intel, and Google. The famous Stanford University is also located here.

Landmarks in Florida

Another sunny American region is Florida, located on the peninsula of the same name and being the most southeastern US state. From the west it is washed by the Gulf of Mexico, in the east the waves of the Atlantic Ocean break on its shores. The total length of the coastline is 1660 km. People come here to relax not only in summer, but also in winter. The west coast is chosen by connoisseurs of family vacations with children, as it is most suitable for this. The East seems to be created for surfers, for whom the high waves characteristic of these places are a real gift of fate.

Florida's famous theme parks - Disney World, Universal Studios, Sea World, Cyprus Gardens, Daytona Speedway, Kennedy Space Center - are located in Central Florida. In the northern part of the state, it is interesting to visit cities such as Jacksonville and Gainesville. The tourist showcase of the south is the Florida Keys - a chain of coral islands, and, of course, the capital of finance and business, the center of the entertainment industry and nightlife in the southeastern United States - the city of Miami. The focus of banking and commercial institutions, the presence of first-class beaches, regularly held conferences, festivals and other events attract business people, show business stars and a huge number of ordinary vacationers to this metropolis of 2.5 million. The most glamorous area of ​​the city, or rather, its suburbs, is Miami Beach, where many celebrities rest on the beaches and nightclubs.

Talking about Florida, you can not ignore the famous beaches. For example, Panama City Beach, Daytona Beach and West Palm Beach - they are considered the best here. The first of them has gained a good reputation due to the developed entertainment infrastructure for all tastes and ages (pools, sailing, water skiing, etc.), the second has gained fame as a place where motorsport competitions are regularly held (for example, The Great American Race ). But the third one is recognizable by the snow-white sand, which attracts lovers to soak up the sun.

Sights of Chicago

Let's finish our correspondence acquaintance with the cities and sights of the United States with a small virtual tour of Chicago - the second most important financial center of the United States after New York, as well as the economic, industrial and cultural capital of the Midwest and the largest transport hub throughout North America.

For a long time, this unique and inimitable city was associated with revolutionary events (suffice it to recall the dispersal of the May Day demonstration in 1886) and organized crime, led by the famous gangster Al Capone and other armed bandits. Modern Chicago, the small homeland of Walt Disney, a favorite of children and adults, opens up to its guests from a completely different side - a wealth of amazing sights. Among them are one of the tallest buildings in the United States - the John Hancock Center, the 110-story Sears Tower and its observation deck with an exclusive glass balcony, the world's largest Shedd Aquarium, the Museum of Fine Arts. And also - a huge number of park areas and drawbridges.

National parks

There are huge national parks and nature reserves all over the country, inviting those who want to wander through the swamps of the Florida Everglades or climb the White Mountains in New Hampshire, the Great Smoky Mountains in North Carolina and Tennessee or the Rocky Mountains in Colorado.

The vast parks of the West with geysers, waterfalls and evergreen forests of the Yellowstone River, Wyoming; the rainbow canyons of Zion National Park, Utah; huge sequoias in northern California; the striking rock formations of Yosemite Valley and, of course, the Grand Canyon of Arizona are wildlife preserves where you can enjoy the natural beauty that holds the soul of the industrial giant that is the United States. Even deserts - the petrified forest southeast of the Grand Canyon or the Death Valley of California's Mojave Desert - allow you to take a break from civilization with benefit.

The high season is from mid-July to mid-August, when most of the well-known parks are full of visitors, so you need to book a campsite in advance.

What to see in the USA

All USA attractions

US travel itineraries

If you are visiting the United States for the first time, you might want to spend a couple of weeks in New York, Miami, San Francisco, or one of the wonderful national parks.

When traveling around the country, Greyhound buses will take you anywhere. Trains are less convenient, with the exception of railroads running along the east, south and west coasts. Airplanes are best for long distances. Shuttle flights operate regularly between New York and Washington or Boston. But if possible, try to travel by bus or by car: this is the best way to experience the immensity of the country and the romance of American roads.

From New York, it is most convenient for history buffs to visit the Mid-Atlantic region (the cities of Washington and Philadelphia), and for those who would like to combine historical curiosity with relaxation, also New England (Boston and the resorts of Massachusetts and Connecticut). Well, for those who are attracted only by boundless beaches or the amusement theme park of the Walt Disney Corporation and other similar parks, Florida and the Gulf Coast in the south are suitable.

In addition, a two-week vacation in the United States can be devoted to New York, combined with study trips either across the country to California, or to one of the wonders of nature like the Grand Canyon or Yellowstone. New York, especially in summer, will bring a lot of impressions, but pretty exhausting, so for the rest of the trip you will have to calm down a bit, in accordance with your well-being.

For a month-long trip, you could take the New York-Boston-W. America, and then visit such wonderful cities like New Orleans or Chicago. The trip ends with a rest on one of the Florida coasts, after which you fly home. If you want to visit many places in America in four weeks, do not try to start with California, which can be so exciting that you forget about your desire to get to know the rest of the country.

The choice of travel routes in the United States is huge, but we must remember that Americans love to combine entertainment with relaxation. And if you want to enjoy your vacation, follow their example by visiting cities, parks or resorts. Even a city like Chicago has sandy beaches around the lake; New Orleans has its own old woman; in New York - Long Island, in Boston - Cape Cod, and near Los Angeles - beaches.

Art

The USA is home to seven world-famous symphony orchestras and opera houses located in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Washington DC and Boston. Innovative canvases and sculptures from Manhattan and California constantly represent the leading trends in the world of art.

Museums in New York, Washington DC and Chicago are among the best in the world. American architecture seeks and finds new solutions, enriching the brilliant tradition that comes from Frank Lloyd Wright, Frank Gehry and Daniel Libeskind, chief architect of the new World Trade Center project in New York.

American architecture is often magnificent, sometimes simply stunning, but it has never suffered from timidity in its desire to overcome the difficulties in arranging the business and residential spaces of today's overcrowded cities.

National cuisine

The United States is called a country of migrants, which is completely true. This fact is also reflected in national cuisine America, in which the culinary traditions of many countries and peoples, primarily the British, Spaniards, Italians, Chinese and Germans, met and intertwined for centuries. Here, as in Italy, one of the most popular dishes is pizza, the recipe of which has undergone many changes. The well-known hamburger comes from Germany, but in America, its main component was not a meat steak, but an ordinary cutlet.

In the daily diet of Americans there are many Mexican dishes using traditional neighboring country beef, processed cheese, beans and spices. To name just a few: Mole sauce made from cocoa and peanuts, usually served with finely chopped chicken; Tamales corn dough pies, meat or vegetables are added to them; deep-fried pork - Carnitas. The indigenous people, the Indians, had a great influence on the cuisine of the United States. With their light hand, the recipes of many dishes, including those of European origin, began to be enriched with legumes, corn and pumpkin.

One of the features of traditional US cuisine is semi-finished products. The most common method of preparation is frying. a large number oils. For this reason, the usual food of Americans is saturated with calories, and it cannot be called very useful for the body. No wonder Americans are considered the fattest nation in the world: more than 35% of the population suffers from obesity. For the holidays, a roasted bird with vegetables usually dominates the table, whether it be a turkey, a goose, a duck, or an ordinary chicken. For dessert, both children and adults love pies with various fillings. Americans cannot imagine picnics without barbecues. As for local restaurants, the dishes here are somewhat pompous. These are, as a rule, meat steaks of varying degrees of roasting, as well as lobsters and lobsters.

Hotels and accommodation in the USA

In such a big and developed country, like the USA, there can be no problems with finding a suitable hotel: among the great variety of proposals, you will definitely find the best option. Using the Booking.com service, you can book a hotel with a discount of up to 60%. However, there are two conditions that, if not met, can create certain difficulties. First: upon check-in, the guest must pay a cash deposit - this is a prerequisite. Its amount varies depending on the "star" of the hotel, but it should not be less than $100. Second: if you are under 21 years old, the deposit will not help - they will refuse to move in, this is the requirement of the law. The deposit is usually not paid in cash, the required amount is simply “frozen” on the cards and then, when the guest moves out (provided that he did not make additional expenses during the stay), the money is “unfrozen”. Note to Russian tourists: domestic banks carry out these operations as withdrawals and refunds. If you use a debit card, a refund is made in 3-4 weeks, if you use a credit card - almost instantly. Cash deposit is also accepted, but few hotels practice this.

Tourists often ask: are breakfasts in US hotels included in the cost of living, as is done in many other countries? Answer: usually not. This is not accepted even in hotels in resort areas. However, this problem is easily solved, because there are many restaurants and cafes near the hotels themselves and in the vicinity, where every vacationer can choose dishes for every taste and budget.

By the way, in hotels in American resorts - both beach and ski resorts - the so-called resort tax is also charged, which is paid immediately upon check-in. The same rule applies in Las Vegas. Its amount averages $ 25 per night and includes the cost of a number of additional services: parking, swimming pool, gym, Wi-Fi, etc. For an additional fee, many hotels, even five-star ones, allow dogs to stay. But local hotels (with rare exceptions) do not favor cats. A four-legged friend is unlikely to overwhelm you, given that hotel apartments are very spacious. The size of a standard room starts from 30 m² and above. It is smaller due to the lack of space only in New York - 20-25 m².

Public transport

The transport system of American cities, especially large ones, is branched out and carries an enormous load every day. The metro is popular among travelers and locals. The oldest subway is New York, opened in 1868, younger ones are in Washington, Atlanta and San Jose (Puerto Rico). There are buses in almost every city in the United States, but trolleybuses are in only five: San Francisco, Dayton, Boston, Seattle and Philadelphia.

In some US metropolitan areas, the good old trams are being revived, they are called light rail. High-speed tram lines have recently acquired New York, Seattle, Phoenix and Norfolk. The New York Line serves Kennedy Airport. She has a peculiarity: she does not run along the streets, but along special isolated overpasses. In another 40 cities, the design and construction of modern tram systems is only underway. Also in some cities there is a ferry service that simplifies the movement through the waterways.

Car driving

Traffic in the US is right-hand drive. Road intersections are marked with a stop sign (no non-stop traffic) or a give way/main road sign indicating who has the right of way. Each state has its own speed limit and depends on the type of road you are driving on. Limits range from 120 km/h on selected freeways to 24 km/h near schools. Such restrictions are almost always indicated and their observance is mandatory, as in the case of the stop sign.

The United States of America is connected by a network of excellent federal highways. Odd numbers indicate highways running north–south, and even numbers indicate east–west highways.

In the event of a breakdown on the freeway, you need to pull over to the right side of the road, turn on the hazard warning lights, tie a piece of white cloth to the door handle or radio antenna, raise the hood and either ask for help on a cell phone or wait for help while sitting in the car.

Automobile Association of America (American Automobile Association - AAA). AAA (1000 AAA Drive, Heathrow, Florida 32746-56-03, tel: 1-800-AAA-HELP (222-43-57); www.aaa.com) provides travelers with US travel information and short-term insurance. In addition, the AAA helps its members and foreigners who are members of recognized motorists unions with breakdowns and other difficulties.

There are many gas stations in the country and it is not difficult to find them. Many stations may be closed in the evenings and on weekends. At night, in some places they require payment without change or a credit card. There is no tip for a full tank, although the cost per gallon is often higher.

Car rental

Most car rental companies in the US provide cars at a fixed price with unlimited mileage. If you are going to drive more than 112 km, this solution is probably the most profitable. The fee is different everywhere, so choose the best way. In addition, some companies rent old, used, but fully functional cars. They are cheaper and especially suitable for outlying trips. When traveling in the summer, make sure you have air conditioning. In addition, you can choose the option when the car is taken in one place and left in another.

In order not to make a huge deposit, grab one of the credit cards recognized in the world; some companies even refuse to take cash as a deposit. Tourists from non-English speaking countries need to have their driver's license translated or have an international driver's license.

To search and book cars in the USA, we recommend using the service that will show you the best prices immediately for all US rental companies.

Time

Forty-eight states that form a single whole are divided from east to west into four time zones: Eastern (Eastern) -5 hours relative to GMT, Central (Central) -6 hours, Mountain (Montain) -7 hours and Pacific (Pacific) -8 hours. Much of Alaska is -9 hours GMT, and Hawaii is -10 hours. During daylight saving time, with the exception of Alaska and parts of Arizona, clocks are set forward one hour on the second Sunday in March and one hour ago on the first Sunday in November.

Opening hours

Offices and businesses in the United States of America are generally open from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm (6:00 pm). Banks are open Mon-Fri from 9.00 to 14.00, although many are open until 16.00, and some branches are open on Saturday until 12.00. Most museums are usually open daily 10.00-17.30; small museums and art galleries have their own opening hours and are mostly closed one day a week, often on Mondays. Shops in American cities tend to open at 9:00 and close at 17:30, while malls and arcades are open longer, often until 21:00. The malls inside the huge Las Vegas casinos are usually open until midnight.

Crime and security

The crime rate in many large American cities is falling. Violent crimes still occur along with the usual petty theft and non-violent crimes. Follow a few simple rules, and then nothing will overshadow your vacation. Store valuables, cash and travelers checks (letters of credit) in the hotel safe. Take with you only what is necessary in everyday life. Keep your bag closed and keep your wallet in the inside pockets of your clothes, not in your back pocket. Never leave your belongings unattended, either at the airport, in the store, on the beach, or in plain sight in the car. As elsewhere, once in the crowd, beware of pickpockets.

When you are in an unfamiliar place, look around. Stay in busy areas after dark. If you have a car, close the windows and doors so that no one enters the car at the traffic lights. Also, don't drive around with the windows wide open and with your wallet or valuables in the seat next to you.

City police monitor crime and traffic violations in their localities, while highway patrols ensure road safety and track those who drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

American police officers are mostly friendly and honest. Feel free to contact them for help or advice. In case of emergency, call 911.

Health and medical care

There is no free medical care in the US, so visiting a doctor can be expensive pleasure, and a stay in the hospital can even ruin. Payment for medical services occurs immediately, so a vacation medical insurance is quite reasonable. For insurance coverage, contact a major international company or your travel agent.

Of the drugs, it is better to take with you those drugs that you take regularly. Keep in mind that many over-the-counter medicines in the US require a prescription. If you need to buy such drugs there, get a prescription from your doctor.

Tips

Typically, a service charge is not included in the bill, so a waiter or bartender is entitled to a tip of about 15% (even more in New York or expensive establishments). Ticketers in cinemas and theaters are not tipped, but doormen, cloakroom attendants, etc. should be thanked with a coin of at least 25 cents.

Five things not to do in the USA

• You can't argue or offer a bribe to a police officer. An evening behind bars is hardly included in your travel plan, so if you disagree with law enforcement officers, either put up with it or go to court.
• You can not call African Americans "Negroes", Asians "narrow-eyed", Ukrainians "Russians". The consequences of a showdown will not always be to your face.
• It is impossible to violate the inviolability of private property, even if the door is wide open. Curiosity may not be understood, but they will have time to use weapons.
• You can not drink drinks of any strength in public places. Even a can of beer in a paper bag will not always save you from a fine.
• Finally, watching tanned bodies, slender legs, silicone breasts, do not try to speak out about what you see out loud. A slap in the face will seem like a reward to you, but compared to possible legal costs due to a misunderstood compliment, in relation to men as well. Use the services of the appropriate clubs, where the public comes specifically for flirting.

American Games

Tired of the wonders of the real world, you can immerse yourself in the fictional worlds of the Universal Studios film company and Disneyland or the sinful spell of Las Vegas and other resort places that beckon all over the country. But it is customary to tickle the nerves here in moderation to avoid unnecessary tension - purely family entertainment is everywhere (with the exception, of course, of Las Vegas - the vicious city knows almost no prohibitions). Children play an important role in life, and Americans have long understood that we all become children at times, perhaps more often than we admit it to ourselves.

Americans love to play. Their own adaptations of European sports are baseball, which, according to one American Encyclopedia, "undoubtedly descended" from English cricket and rounders, and what they call football, to a foreigner's eye, resembles a contest that might well have been invented for Roman gladiators, - Real performances. In addition to spectator sports on the coasts of Florida, California and the Hawaiian Islands, all sorts of notions like surfing, roller skating, parascending and sandboating are springing up, and everyone is armed with soft “flying saucers” frisbees.

National character

Perhaps the most exciting event of your trip to America will be meeting with different people who populate the United States: the deadpan New Englanders, the offhand New Yorkers, the gruffly good-natured Texans, the serious farmers of the Midwest, and you soon begin to realize that, in their dissimilarity, they do not fit into any general definition.

Wherever you meet Americans, you see for yourself that they do not emerge as a monotonous people, similar in appearance, language and disposition. Martin Luther King was right when he compared America to a melting pot. He said that it resembles a bowl of vegetable soup, where you can feel the taste of carrots, potatoes, onions and peas at the same time.

One thing is for sure: every time you visit the United States, you will find that the composition of the dish is constantly changing.

Table of measures and weights

The United States of America remained the only country that opposes the introduction of the metric system. Milk and fruit juice are sold in quarter-gallon and half-gallon containers, but wine and spirits today come in liter bottles. Food items are usually weighed in kilograms and grams, as well as pounds and ounces.

English and American measures of volume are somewhat different:
1 US gallon = 0.833 imperial gallons = 3.8 liters and 1 US quart = 0.833 imperial quarts = 0.9 liters.

Customs regulations and visa

As a rule, the US Embassy and Consulates issue multiple-entry B visas (B, B-1, B1/B2) valid for one year to Russian citizens. In rare cases, a single-entry visa valid for three months is issued. At the interview, you can ask for a visa for two years.

The validity of the visa (one, two years) allows entry into the country during this period. The length of stay in the United States is determined at the border crossing by the immigration officer on a case-by-case basis, depending on the circumstances. When passing through border control, an entry stamp is stamped in the passport and a "migration form" 1-94 is attached, which contains the number of days allowed to stay in the United States. Entry into the United States can be made even on the last day of the visa.

Due to tighter security measures, prepare to be fingerprinted and photographed upon arrival in the US. Everyone fills out a customs declaration. Information about changes in the rules of the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection can be found on the website: www.cbp.gov.

Foreign citizens can import tax-free and duty-free items intended for gifts with a total value of up to $ 100. This benefit is valid if the gifts are in luggage, if you stay for 72 hours or more and have not used this benefit in the previous six months. This benefit also applies to cigarettes (up to 100 pieces), but the import of Cuban cigars is prohibited.

In addition, plants and foodstuffs are under strict supervision; foreign citizens cannot import fruits, vegetables and meat.

Citizens arriving and departing must report amounts of money, checks, etc. in excess of the total of $10,000.

Electricity

The voltage in the US power grid is 110 V, and the frequency is 60 Hz. Sockets accept plugs with two or three flat pins. Foreign citizens will need a 240 V / 110 V voltage converter and an adapter plug for an electric shaver and other household appliances, if they do not provide for switching the supply voltage.

Communication and Internet

The most famous mobile operators in the United States are Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile. But only the last two practice prepaid communication services. They also offer tourists two convenient tariff plans - for a day and for a month. The first one is usually used by those who came to America for a short time, a day of using a SIM card will cost 2-3 dollars. Let's not forget that the US uses the GSM 850/1900 cellular standard, while Russia uses GSM 900/1800. The problem is solvable if your gadget supports both frequencies.

As for the World Wide Web, you can use wireless access, but Wi-Fi is not free everywhere. Russian tourists actively use mobile Internet in roaming. So, the domestic operator Beeline offers a package of 40 MB for 200 rubles. In MTS, you will have to pay 300 rubles for 30 MB. Megafon for the same amount of traffic set the cost of 829 rubles. Many travelers, including Russians, are users of the international roaming operator GlobalSIM (GlobalSIM), which offers, among other things, special tariff plans for mobile Internet. It operates in 200 countries, providing free incoming calls in 147 of them. Calls - both within the US and abroad - are inexpensive, 39 cents per minute.

How to get there

The United States is located on the other side of the ocean from Russia, so the best way to get to America is by air. Aeroflot and Delta make three joint flights from Sheremetyevo to New York, the flight lasts 10 hours and 40 minutes. Flights Moscow - Los Angeles are carried out 6 times a week, travel time is 13 hours.

Singapore Airlines flies from Domodedovo to Houston 5 to 6 times a week, you will spend 12 hours and 15 minutes in the air. Flights from Russia to various US cities are also offered by many European carriers, for example, Lufthansa, Air France, Finnair, KLM, British Airways, Czech Airlines, Iberia, Alitalia, LOT, Austrian, etc. These flights, they are often the cheapest, are carried out with transfers at European airports.

Airfare low price calendar

in contact with Facebook twitter