Brief introduction to American history English version

The American people are brave and love freedom. They originally came from all over the world and were formed by the long-term existence and integration of many different cultures, races and religions. Gradually, they began to be proud of being Americans.

/kloc-Before the 7th century, only Indians and Eskimos lived in Yuan Ye in North America, but after more than 100 years of immigration, it has become the new home of people from all over Europe, and the 13 colony, which was mainly established by the British, declared its independence from Britain. After several consultations and reforms, the federal United States officially stepped onto the world stage on the eve of the French Revolution. Early America welcomed foreign immigrants, which made her grow rapidly. The population of the United States was only 3 million in 1776, and now it has exceeded 200 million. In the process of rapid population growth, we are constantly exploring new living space, and the direction has always been from east to west. Pioneers not only engaged in agriculture and animal husbandry, but also looked for minerals and other resources. In the 20th century,

Before the colonial period (1607)

More than 20,000 years ago, a group of vagrants from Asia came to Central and South America via North America. These people are the ancestors of Indians. When Columbus discovered the New World, there were about 20 million Indians living in America, of whom about 1 10,000 lived in what is now Canada and the north-central United States, and most of the rest lived in what is now Mexico and the southern United States. About 6.5438 million years ago, another group of Asians moved to northern North America, which became the Eskimos. The first white people to come to America may be vikings. They are a group of adventurous fishermen. Some people think that they visited the east coast of North America 65,438+0,000 years ago. During the colonial period (65,438+0607 ~ 65,438+0753), Jamestown was founded in Schabik Beach, which was the first permanent colony established by Britain in North America. In the following 150 years, many colonists came in and settled in the coastal areas. Most of them came from Britain, but some came from France, Germany, the Netherlands, Ireland and other countries. In the middle of 2008+08 century, 13 British colony gradually formed. They have their own government and parliament under the supreme sovereignty of Britain. Due to the differences in climate and geographical environment, the economic forms, political systems and concepts of these 13 colonies are different.

Independent movement (1754 ~ 1783)

/kloc-in the middle of the 0/8th century, there was a rift between Britain and the American colonies. The expansion of the colonies made them consciously persecuted in Britain, and they had the idea of independence. 19438+0774, 12 state representatives gathered in Philadelphia to hold the so-called first continental conference, hoping to find a reasonable way to cooperate with Britain. But the king of England insisted that the colony must unconditionally submit to the king of England and accept punishment. 1968+0775, the war was ignited in Massachusetts, and the second continental congress was held in May, which strengthened the determination of war and independence, issued a famous declaration of independence, and put forward sufficient reasons for fighting this war, which was also the key factor to win the final victory. At 1968 +078 1.

Form a new government (1784 ~ 18 19)

The success of the revolution gave the American people an opportunity to express their political views in the form of legislation. 1787, a federal conference was held in Philadelphia, and Washington was promoted to chairman. They adopted the principle that the power of the central government is general, but it must be carefully defined and explained. At the same time, they also accepted the fact that the national government must have the power to collect taxes, mint money, adjust commerce, declare war and conclude treaties. In addition, in order to prevent the central government from being too powerful, Montesquieu's theory of balance of power is adopted, that is, three departments of equal cooperation and mutual checks and balances are set up within the government, that is, the legislative, administrative and judicial powers are reconciled and balanced with each other, and no right occupies a controlling position.

Westward expansion (1820 ~ 1849)

/kloc-At the beginning of the 9th century, thousands of people crossed the Appalachian Mountains and moved westward. Some pioneers moved to the border of the United States and even went deep into the territory of Mexico and Oregon between Alaska and California. Pioneers bravely and diligently sought a better life in the west.

North-South conflict (1850 ~ 1869)

The causes of civil war are not only economic, political and military issues, but also ideological conflicts. The civil war exposed America's weakness and tested its existence. After this test, the United States embarked on the road of a centralized and modern country. There is a dispute between the north and the south on the issue of slavery. The main policy of the south in national politics is to protect and expand the system of "cotton and slaves". On the other hand, the northern States are mainly manufacturing, commercial and financial centers, and there is no need to rely on slaves for these productions. This kind of economic and political conflict has a long history. In the early 1960s, 65,438+065,438+0 southern states seceded from the federation and another government was established. However, the northern states indicated that they were willing to pay any price for reunification. When the civil war broke out, Americans fought face to face for four years. South China has been severely damaged, leaving deep scars.40100.00000000105 1968+0865, the north was defeated. This victory not only shows that the United States is reunified, but also shows that slavery is no longer practiced in all parts of the country.

Industrialization and reform (1870 ~ 19 16)

/kloc-at the beginning of the 0/9th century, the United States began to industrialize, but after the civil war, it entered a mature stage. It took less than 50 years from the civil war to the first world war, and it changed from an agricultural country to an urbanized country. Machines have replaced manual work, and products have increased greatly. The national railway network has improved the circulation of goods. Many new inventions were put on the market to meet the needs of the public. The banking industry provides loans. It promoted the development of industry and commerce. So the nearly 30 years from 1890 to 19 17 is called the so-called "progress period". 19 14 World War broke out, and in 19 17, the United States was finally involved in the whirlpool of war.

The new position of the world (19 17 ~ 1929)

During the postwar period of 10, American society and culture can be said to be lifeless and emotionless, belonging to the merchant class of 10. According to the statistics of 1929, the proportion of people living in cities and hometown is 56%: 44%. At this time, all the features of modern life, such as cars, telephones, radios and washing machines, have become daily life.

Depression and World War II (1930 ~ 1959)

The economic panic not only affected the United States, but also affected all countries in the world. The economic panic made millions of workers unemployed, a large number of farmers were forced to give up cultivated land, factories and shops closed, banks closed down ... It was a depression. 1932, Roosevelt was elected president, and he advocated that the government should take action to end the economic panic. Although the new government solved many difficulties, the American economy didn't wake up until World War II. After World War II, the relationship between the United States and the Soviet Union deteriorated day by day, and preparations were stepped up in military, political, economic and propaganda aspects, just like in wartime. This state is called "Cold War".

Starting from 1960

Since 1960, American history has been a continuation of postwar development in many ways. Economically, it is still expanding except for the cyclical recession. The population migrating from cities to suburbs continues to increase, and the population living in suburbs exceeds the population living in cities 1970. 1960, the black issue has become the most important issue in the United States.

In the mid-1960s, many Americans began to be dissatisfied with the government's foreign policy. In addition, due to the development of industry and the concentration of population, the pollution of ecological environment was widely concerned in the late 1960s. In the early 1970s, the economic depression caused by the energy crisis was the worst since the Great Panic.

In the mid-1970s, the economy once recovered, but in the late 1970s, inflation reappeared. 1976, the nation celebrated the bicentennial of the founding of the United States. On April 198 12, the United States successfully launched the space shuttle Columbia, bringing mankind into another new era in space.