MAP of The USA

FLAG

History of American Flag.

For more than 200 years, the American flag has been the symbol of our nation's strength and unity. It's been a source of pride and inspiration for millions of citizens. And the American Flag has been a prominent icon in our national history. Here are the highlights of its unique past. On January 1, 1776, the Continental Army was reorganized in accordance with a Congressional resolution which placed American forces under George Washington's control. On that New Year's Day the Continental Army was laying siege to Boston which had been taken over by the British Army. Washington ordered the Grand Union flag hoisted above his base at Prospect Hill. It had 13 alternate red and white stripes and the British Union Jack in the upper left-hand corner (the canton).

• In May of 1776, Betsy Ross reported that she sewed the first American flag.

• On June 14, 1777, in order to establish an official flag for the new nation, the Continental Congress passed the first Flag Act: "Resolved, That the flag of the United States be made of thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation."

Between 1777 and 1960, Congress passed several acts that changed the shape, design and arrangement of the flag and allowed for additional stars and stripes to be added to reflect the admission of each new state.

• Act of January 13, 1794 - provided for 15 stripes and 15 stars after May 1795.

Today the flag• Today the flag consists of thirteen horizontal

stripes, seven red alternating with 6 white. The stripes represent the original 13 colonies, the stars represent the 50 states of the Union. The colors of the flag are symbolic as well: Red symbolizes Hardiness and Valor, White symbolizes Purity and Innocence and Blue represents Vigilance/ vid, Perseverance and Justice.

United States of America

Motto:  In God We Trust  

Anthem:  "The Star-Spangled Banner"

Capital Washington, D.C.

Largest city New York City

National language English

GovernmentFederal presidential constitutional republic

President Barack Obama (D)

Legislature Congress

Upper House Senate

Lower House House of Representatives

Independencefrom the Kingdom of Great Britain 

Declared Government Federal presidential constitutional republic

President Barack Obama (D)

Legislature CongressRecognized Upper House Senate

Current constitution Lower House House of Representatives

Area

Total 9,826,675 km2  

Water (%) 6.76

Population

2011 estimate 312,946,000[2] (3rd)

Density 33.7/km2  87.4/sq mi

Currency United States dollar ($) (USD)

Brief introduction of the USA• The United States of America (also called the United

States, the U.S., the USA, America, and the States) is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its forty-eight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., the capital district, lie between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the south. The state of Alaska is in the northwest of the continent, with Canada to the east and Russia to the west, across the Bering Strait. The state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific. The country also possesses several territories in the Pacific and Caribbean.

• At 3.79 million square miles (9.83 million km2) and with over 312 million people, the United States is the third or fourth largest country by total area, and the third largest by both land area and population. It is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many countries. The U.S. economy is the world's largest national economy, with an estimated 2011 GDP of $15.1 trillion (22% of nominal global GDP and over 19% of global GDP at purchasing-power parity).

The bald eagle, national bird of the United States since 1782

White House, home and workplace of the U.S. president

The federal government is composed of three branches:

• Legislative: The bicameral Congress, made up of the Senate and the House of Representatives, makes federal law, declares war, approves treaties, has the power of the purse, and has the power of impeachment, by which it can remove sitting members of the government.

• Executive: The president is the commander-in-chief of the military, can veto legislative bills before they become law, and appoints the members of the Cabinet (subject to Senate approval) and other officers, who administer and enforce federal laws and policies.

• Judicial: The Supreme Court and lower federal courts, whose judges are appointed by the president with Senate approval, interpret laws and overturn those they find unconstitutional.

The west front of the United States Supreme Court Building

Barack Obama taking the presidential oath of office from

U.S. The winner of the 2008 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama, is the

44th U.S. president.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Barack_Obama_-_ITN.jpg