History

Who discovered?
The "discovery of America" by Europeans, which changed the historical destinies of the continent and all
mankind, was made in October 1492 by Christopher Columbus at the head of a Spanish expedition.
Columbus, in particular, discovered the American Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico (the second expedition of
1493).
In 1498, Columbus discovered the continent of South America.
The flag
Today, the U.S. flag has thirteen horizontal stripes. The red stripes (upper and lower edge) alternate with
white ones. In the upper left corner there is a blue rectangle with 50 small, white, five-pointed stars
arranged in nine horizontal rows.

Hymn of the USA

Say, can you see
By the dawn's early light
What so proudly we hailed
At the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars
Through the perilous fight
O'er the ramparts we watched
Were so gallantly, yeah, streaming?
And the rockets' red glare
The bombs bursting in air
Gave proof through the night
That our flag was still there
O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave

Presidents:
1.1 George Washington, 1789-1797
1.2 John Adams, 1797-1801
1.3 Thomas Jefferson, 1801-1809
1.4 James Madison, 1809-1817
1.5 James Monroe, 1817-1825
1.6 John Quincy Adams, 1825-1829
1.7 Andrew Jackson, 1829-1837
1.8 Martin Van Buren, 1837-1841
1.9 William Henry Harrison, March 4—April 4, 1841
1.10 John Tyler, 1841-1845
1.11 James Knox Polk, 1845-1849
1.12 Zachary Taylor, 1849-1850
1.13 Millard Fillmore, 1850-1853
1.14 Franklin Pierce, 1853-1857
1.15 James Buchanan, 1857-1861
1.16 Abraham Lincoln, 1861-1865
1.17 Andrew Johnson, 1865-1869
1.18 Ulysses Grant, 1869-1877
1.19 Rutherford Burchard Hayes, 1877-1881
1.20 James Abram Garfield, March 4 — September 19, 1881
1.21 Chester Alan Arthur, 1881-1885
1.22 Grover Cleveland, 1885-1889 (I term)
1.23 Benjamin Harrison, 1889-1893
1.24 Grover Cleveland, 1893-1897 (second term)
1.25 William McKinley, 1897-1901
1.26 Theodore Roosevelt, 1901-1909
1.27 William Howard Taft, 1909-1913
1.28 Woodrow Wilson, 1913-1921
1.29 Warren Harding, 1921-1923
1.30 Calvin Coolidge, 1923-1929
1.31 Herbert Hoover, 1929-1933
1.32 Franklin Roosevelt, 1933-1945
1.33 Harry Truman, 1945-1953
1.34 Dwight David Eisenhower, 1953-1961
1.35 John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 1961-1963
1.36 Lyndon Johnson, 1963-1969
1.37 Richard Nixon, 1969-1974
1.38 Gerald Rudolph Ford, 1974-1977
1.39 Jimmy Carter, 1977-1981
1.40 Ronald Reagan, 1981-1989
1.41 George H.W. Bush, 1989-1993
1.42 Bill Clinton, 1993-2001
1.43 George W. Bush, 2001-2009
1.44 Barack Obama, 2009-2017
1.45 Donald Trump, 2017-2021
1.46 Joseph Biden, 2021 — present

White House:
For two hundred years, the White House has stood as a symbol of the Presidency, the United States
government, and the American people. Its history, and the history of the nation's capital, began when
President George Washington signed an Act of Congress in December of 1790 declaring that the federal
government would reside in a district "not exceeding ten miles square…on the river Potomac." President
Washington, together with city planner Pierre L'Enfant, chose the site for the new residence, which is now
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. As preparations began for the new federal city, a competition was held to find a
builder of the "President's House." Nine proposals were submitted, and Irish-born architect James Hoban
won a gold medal for his practical and handsome design.

Bill of rights:
The Bill of Rights is the first 10 Amendments to the Constitution. It spells out Americans’ rights in relation to
their government. It guarantees civil rights and liberties to the individual—like freedom of speech, press,
and religion. It sets rules for due process of law and reserves all powers not delegated to the Federal
Government to the people or the States. And it specifies that “the enumeration in the Constitution, of
certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.”
The First Amendment
The First Amendment provides several rights protections: to express ideas through speech and the press, to
assemble or gather with a group to protest or for other reasons, and to ask the government to fix problems.
It also protects the right to religious beliefs and practices. It prevents the government from creating or
favoring a religion.
The Second Amendment
The Second Amendment protects the right to keep and bear arms.
The Third Amendment
The Third Amendment prevents government from forcing homeowners to allow soldiers to use their
homes. Before the Revolutionary War, laws gave British soldiers the right to take over private homes.
The Fourth Amendment
The Fourth Amendment bars the government from unreasonable search and seizure of an individual or
their private property.
The Fifth Amendment
The Fifth Amendment provides several protections for people accused of crimes. It states that serious
criminal charges must be started by a grand jury. A person cannot be tried twice for the same offense
(double jeopardy) or have property taken away without just compensation. People have the right against
self-incrimination and cannot be imprisoned without due process of law (fair procedures and trials).
The Sixth Amendment
The Sixth Amendment provides additional protections to people accused of crimes, such as the right to a
speedy and public trial, trial by an impartial jury in criminal cases, and to be informed of criminal charges.
Witnesses must face the accused, and the accused is allowed his or her own witnesses and to be
represented by a lawyer.
The Seventh Amendment
The Seventh Amendment extends the right to a jury trial in Federal civil cases.
The Eighth Amendment
The Eighth Amendment bars excessive bail and fines and cruel and unusual punishment.
The Ninth Amendment
The Ninth Amendment states that listing specific rights in the Constitution does not mean that people do
not have other rights that have not been spelled out.
The Tenth Amendment
The Tenth Amendment says that the Federal Government only has those powers delegated in the
Constitution. If it isn’t listed, it belongs to the states or to the people.

Constitution:
The United States Constitution was constructed on September 17, 1787 after months of conflicting views,
heated debates and clashing ideas finally yielded to compromise and thoughtful reconsiderations. The
founders of the Constitution were delegates appointed by the state legislatures to represent each state's
welfare. They had first convened in the Philadelphia statehouse as a quorom of 55 emissaries on May 25,
1787. Of the thirteen original states, only independent-minded Rhode Island declined to participate. The
group's express original purpose was to revise the Articles of Confederation, our nation's first constitution
that was constructed in 1777 after the Revolutionary War with Great Britain.

The main authors of the Constitution were James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay. These three
men were all delegates to the Constitutional Convention, and they played a leading role in drafting the
document.

Declaration of Independence:
On July 1776, the U.S. Congress approved the Declaration of Independence. Its author, Thomas Jefferson,
wrote the Declaration as an explanation of why on July 2 Congress voted to declare independence from
Great Britain, more than a year after the outbreak of the American War of Independence, and as a
statement that the 13 American colonies were no longer part of the British Empire. The Congress issued the
Declaration of Independence in several forms. Initially, it was printed on large sheets and widely distributed
among the population.

List of amendments:
First Amendment (1791):
Protects freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly, and the right to petition the government.
Second Amendment (1791):
Protects the right of citizens to bear arms.
Third Amendment (1791):
Prohibits the forced quartering of soldiers in private homes.
Fourth Amendment (1791):
Protects against unreasonable searches and seizures, requiring warrants based on probable cause.
Fifth Amendment (1791):
Guarantees the right to a fair trial, protects against double jeopardy, and ensures the right to due process.
Sixth Amendment (1791):
Guarantees the right to a speedy and public trial, the right to an impartial jury, and the right to legal
counsel.
Seventh Amendment (1791):
Provides for the right to a trial by jury in certain civil cases.
Eighth Amendment (1791):
Prohibits cruel and unusual punishment and excessive bail or fines.
Ninth Amendment (1791):
Affirms that the enumeration of certain rights in the Constitution does not deny or disparage other rights
retained by the people.
Tenth Amendment (1791):
Limits the powers of the federal government to those delegated to it by the Constitution, reserving other
powers to the states or the people.
Eleventh Amendment (1795):
Limits lawsuits against states.
Twelfth Amendment (1804):
Alters the procedure for electing the president and vice president.
Thirteenth Amendment (1865):
Abolishes slavery and involuntary servitude.
Fourteenth Amendment (1868):
Addresses equal protection under the law and defines citizenship.
Fifteenth Amendment (1870):
Prohibits the denial of the right to vote based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
Sixteenth Amendment (1913):
Authorizes the federal government to collect income tax.
Seventeenth Amendment (1913):
Establishes the direct election of senators by the people of each state.
Eighteenth Amendment (1919):
Prohibited the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcoholic beverages.
Nineteenth Amendment (1920):
Grants women the right to vote.
Twentieth Amendment (1933):
Sets the terms of the president and Congress, and the timing of their terms.
Twenty-First Amendment (1933):
Repeals the Eighteenth Amendment, ending Prohibition.
Twenty-Second Amendment (1951):
Limits the president to two terms in office.
Twenty-Third Amendment (1961):
Grants residents of Washington, D.C., the right to vote in presidential elections.
Twenty-Fourth Amendment (1964):
Prohibits the denial of the right to vote based on the non-payment of poll taxes.
Twenty-Fifth Amendment (1967):
Establishes procedures for presidential succession and the removal of the president from office.
Twenty-Sixth Amendment (1971):
Lowers the voting age to 18.
Twenty-Seventh Amendment (1992):
Addresses congressional pay increases.

National symbols:
•Flag of the United States:
The stars and stripes design of the U.S. flag represents the original 13 colonies and the 50 states.
•The Bald Eagle:
The bald eagle is the national bird and symbol of the United States, representing freedom and strength.
•Great Seal of the United States:
The Great Seal is used to authenticate certain official documents and is featured on the reverse of the one-
dollar bill.
•National Anthem ("The Star-Spangled Banner"):
Written by Francis Scott Key, it became the national anthem in 1931.
•National Motto ("In God We Trust"):
Adopted as the official motto of the United States in 1956.
•National Flower (Rose):
While not officially declared, the rose is often considered the national flower.
•National Tree (Oak):
The oak tree is sometimes considered a national symbol, reflecting strength and endurance.
•Liberty Bell:
Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Liberty Bell symbolizes American independence.
•Statue of Liberty:
A gift from France, the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor is a symbol of freedom and democracy.
•National Monument (Washington Monument):
An iconic obelisk in Washington, D.C., dedicated to George Washington, the first President of the United
States.
•National Animal (Bison):
The American bison, also known as the buffalo, is a symbol of strength, endurance, and the American West.
•Uncle Sam:
Uncle Sam is a personification of the United States, often depicted as a tall, thin man in red, white, and blue
attire.
•The Pledge of Allegiance:
A pledge of loyalty to the flag and the republic for which it stands.
•The White House:
The official residence and workplace of the President of the United States.
•National March (Stars and Stripes Forever):
Composed by John Philip Sousa, it is often considered the national march of the United States.

Holidays:
1. New Year's Day (January 1):
 Celebrates the beginning of the Gregorian calendar year.
2. Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Third Monday in January):
 Honors the civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
3. Presidents' Day (Third Monday in February):
 Originally established to honor George Washington's birthday, it now also honors all U.S.
presidents.
4. Memorial Day (Last Monday in May):
 Honors the men and women who have died in military service to the United States.
5. Independence Day (July 4):
 Celebrates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 with fireworks,
parades, and patriotic events.
6. Labor Day (First Monday in September):
 Honors the contributions and achievements of American workers and the labor movement.
7. Columbus Day (Second Monday in October):
 Commemorates Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas.
8. Veterans Day (November 11):
 Honors military veterans who have served in the United States Armed Forces.
9. Thanksgiving Day (Fourth Thursday in November):
 A day for giving thanks for the blessings of the harvest and the preceding year, often
celebrated with a traditional meal.
10. Christmas Day (December 25):
 Celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ, often observed with gift-giving, decorations, and festive
meals.