American short story

American short story:

the United States of America was formed out of a blaze of revolution in the 18th

century within 200 years the nation reached the height of its power emerging

triumphant and robust following two world wars that devastated many other

great nations however the history of this region stretches back further and

is deeper the most believe this is the history the United States of America

before the formation of the United States the history of the continent

claims diverse and intriguing evolution the documented voyages and

later death of Christopher Columbus paved the way for further Spanish and

Portuguese expeditions which were to reveal the existence of South America

with more accurate data and instruments at their disposal references by

mapmakers stated this was a new world our stories were told this new world

many people were intrigued and wanted to see for themselves therefore the United

States was to become a nation of immigrants filled with unwavering

optimism and determination to succeed however before the settlement by

Europeans and prior to explorers chartering in the coast lines the

continent was inhabited by various Native communities it is theorized the

first people came by other India a land bridge that connected Russia on Alaska

during the Ice Age as the world temperature increased the glaciers

melted raising the sea levels and thereby closing the land bridge over

time these first hunter-gatherers migrated throughout the continent and

while the ancestors of all Native Americans a variety of people societies

of languages and cultures subsequently developed most of which have been wiped

out today the land climate and nature were significant influences in the lives

and beliefs that those who occupied it one of the earliest societies was a

Mississippi culture where archaeology is established that they built raised

cities and ceremonial burial mounds with urban settlements sustained by a

commendable trading network in the southwest the pueblos were known to

construct complex multi-story villages built out

of stone to the northeast five and later six nations banded together to form the

Iroquois Confederacy they developed a centralized democratic government which

comprised of representatives it is argued that this Confederacy was formed

shortly before European contact by the peacemaker

however the actual date is hearsay as no records exist perhaps the earliest

noteworthy Explorer was Leif Ericson a Norse explorer who during the 11th

century was blown off-course enroute to Greenland this natural storm led his

discovery of the island today now known as Newfoundland but the Norse name is

land Vineland a settlement was constructed on the northern tip of the

island but the settlement proved not to be viable and quickly faded during the

5th century Europe was enjoying a safe lamp acid reaching to India and even as

far as China these trade routes along the Silk Road enabled sources of

valuable goods such as silks and spices to be traded with the fall of

Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire however the land route to Asia became

more difficult Christopher Columbus was sponsored by Isabella of Castile and

made his voyage with three ships the Nina the Pinta and the Santa Maria

arguably it was the voyages and expeditions of Christopher Columbus that

were a significant factor in the evolution of American history guided by

the maps of toscanelli Columbus reached the Bahamas in 1492 he would undertake

three more voyages and as a reward for a success he was appointed governor of

Hispaniola however even for this time in history Columbus committed multiple

cruel and vile acts upon the natives killing the thousands to the point where

he was later brought back to Europe and imprisoned the most significant factor

in the demise of the natives at the time however was disease the natives had no

immunity to the foreign diseases and it is estimated that 90% of the population

were wiped out over the following centuries numerous European powers

embarked on colonization efforts where they sought to exploit both the land

resources and opportunities the continent offered the Spanish focused

their efforts at colonizing the Caribbean Florida and its conquest of

the Aztec and Inca empires of South America as news of this newfound

continent reached to Europe during the early 17th century French immigrants

were attracted to the fur trade and the wealth it could bring they also had a

desire to convert the natives to Catholicism and traveled further down

the same odds River laying the foundations for new France the Dutch

followed suit establishing several forts towns and trading posts along the Hudson

River which provided a network of trade New Netherland which the colony was

known by produced immense wealth for the Dutch other foreign nations began to

envy the riches flowing out the Hudson River Valley the English settlers colony

in Jamestown Virginia in 1607 which became a key exporters of tobacco with

tobacco plantations and colonies expanding the need for labor became

urgent indentured servants received paid passage to the Americas along with food

clothing and accommodation their contract was to work on plantations

until their completion of service with the European arrival the Iroquois

Confederacy became increasingly involved with the fur trade Dutch colonists and

later English craved the lucrative beaver furs an Iroquois in exchange for

firearms the Iroquois Confederacy depleted beaver populations in their

homeland and mobilized against other tribes in the Great Lakes region who are

allied with the French all this to gain access to new hunting and trapping

grounds the competitive nature of the fur trade led to decades of hostility

and bloodshed between Native American tribes and their struggled to maintain

and compete for relations with the colonies

in retaliation the French invaded Iroquois villages and surrounding lands

meanwhile the Dutch lost New Netherland to the English during the second

anglo-dutch war and New Amsterdam was renamed to New York

the beaver wars as it was called ended with the great peace in 1701 in which

the Iroquois Confederacy the British and the French agreed to stop their campaign

against tribes in the Ohio country and allowed the evicted tribes to return to

their homeland by the mid 17th century European ships are sailing to Africa

laid him with goods which were to be traded for slaves these slaves were

transported in harsh conditions on crowded ships bound for the Americas

where they were forced to work on plantations this resulted in more

productivity for plantation owners further trade ships embarked to Europe

we're hungry market awaited highly priced merchandise by the mid 18th

century France had laid claim to a vast amount of territory whilst the English

territory had evolved into 13 colonies the English colonies were much smaller

in land area compared to New France however they had a larger population in

1754 the french-indian war broke out between Britain and France over disputed

lands in the Ohio River Valley France began the construction of forts in the

region Britain sent troops to stop the construction and conflict escalated into

the Seven Years War a colonial war spread over several

continents the conflict ended in British victory and so large amounts of French

territory in the new world reassigned to Britain

however following the Seven Years War the Crowl amassed huge debts in order to

crawl back monies the British government imposed heavy taxes on the colonies the

first taxation was the sugar an followed by the Stamp Act where papers magazines

and other documents needed to be produced in Britain and have a stamp tax

on them the colonists seriously disliked these taxes voting protest and

boycotting of British goods they believed that there should be no

taxation without representation in Parliament the British were forced to

revoke the Stamp Act due to the negative consequences for British businesses

instead they introduced new taxes on glass tea LED oil which resulted in more

protests as these products were essential to the colonies the crown

initially sent 1000 troops to Boston to assert control on March 5th 1770

conflict escalated when the protesters started throwing stones and snowballs at

the guards of the Custom House in the skirmish shots were fired killing five

protesters becoming known as the Boston Massacre in 1773 disgusted by further

taxation American patriots known as the Sons of Liberty disguised themselves as

Native American Indians they boarded a British ship and began throwing tea cargo

into the harbour the British crown driven with anger sent four thousand more

troops to Boston concluding with direct British rule the British controlled

Boston but the Americans controlled the countryside and began arming and

training militias known as the Minutemen in 1774 the First Continental Congress

met at Philadelphia 56 delegates from 12 colonies arrived to discuss the

reduction of taxes and a response to the Intolerable Acts when Massachusetts had

been stripped to self-government by the British Parliament they sent a message

to Britain and they responded with more regulations and increased army presence

Massachusetts was declared in a state of rebellion British commander Lieutenant

General Thomas Gage was ordered to disarm the rebels and arrest the leaders

in the countryside the night of the 18th of April 1775

commoner Paul Revere rode ahead of British forces to warn leaders the

British were coming American may less you met the British forces at Lexington

retreated back to Concord and with more troops arriving they overwhelmed the

British who retreated back to Boston where the city came under siege at the

Second Continental Congress the militias were reorganized to form the Continental

Army they appointed General George Washington as leader right I need a

break I need a cup of tea yeah British

reinforcements arrived led by General William Howe the Battle of Bunker Hill

saw victory for the British for the price to pay was a substantial loss of

life and Boston remained under siege General George Washington arrived in

Boston the following month and continued to seeds through autumn and winter in

March 1776 artillery arrived General George Washington ordered them to

overlook the city forcing the British to evacuate

Thomas Jefferson drafted up the official Declaration of Independence and the

final text was approved on July 4 1776 a year later they fashion the Articles of

Confederation which served as its first constitution meanwhile the rebels were

waging a full-scale war for their independence France and Spain began to

support our efforts by sending supplies and weapons Washington had moved his

army to New York and as expected the British arrived with 130 warships and

25,000 troops the war continued with victories and

defeats of both sides the American victory at Saratoga would prove to be a

turning point for the American Revolution as it prompted France and

later Spain and to war openly on the side of the Americans with French

assistance the Continental Army forced the British to surrender at Yorktown the

Treaty of Paris was signed in 1783 this recognized the Independence of the

United States and ceased all land up to the Mississippi River the US

Constitution was drafted in 1787 and ratified in 1788 launching the United

States system of government and fundamental laws it was followed by the

Bill of Rights namely the first 10 amendments to the US Constitution

guaranteeing basic rights for citizens the United States of America was now an

independent country with George Washington appointed as the first

president in 1789 having supported the Americans France amassed substantial

debt which was a major catalyst of the French Revolution following the

revolution the United States refused to honor the day owed to France as they

believed it arose from a previous regime France was annoyed that the United

States was trading with Britain when war continued to rage between them the u.s.

strengthened its Navy as France continued to attack and raid US merchant

ships leading to the quasi-war the undeclared war in 1803 President Thomas

Jefferson purchased French Louisiana from Napoleon at a bargain price of

fifteen million dollars doubling the size of the United States Napoleon had

won back this territory from Spain in 1800 but war with Britain was inevitable

rather than witnessed the territory fall into British hands he sold the territory

to fund his military campaigns following the deal President Thomas Jefferson

commissioned an expedition to explore the newly purchased land the mission was

led by a group of US Army volunteers under the command of Captain Lewis and

his close friend 2nd lieutenant Clarke they studied the animal

life the region's geography established diplomatic relations and trade of many

indigenous nations and reported back with maps sketches and journals the war

of 1812 between Britain and the United States didn't see any significant

territorial changes however the British Canadians were successful in burning

down the white house during the 1830s President Andrew Jackson signed the

Indian remover which enforced the extradition of many Native American

tribes in the southern states to relocate to reservations whilst enroute

many natives contracted diseases and starvation killed thousands becoming

known as the Trail of Tears the u.s. continued to grow and expand under the

idea of manifest destiny a belief that the United States was destined to expand

across to the Pacific Mexico gained independence from Spain in 1821 with a

sparsely populated Northern Territory the Mexican government welcomes settlers

in the United States to further develop the region unlike the mainly Catholic

Mexican population many of the new settlers were Protestant pro-slavery and

patriotic to the United States it wasn't long before Texas burst into rebellion

and won independence from Mexico Texas tried to join the United States on two

occasions however Texas was rejected because of disagreements regarding the

addition of another slave state and the potential of course in conflict with the

Mexican government change occurred with the election of James K Polk who was a

stone believer on the idea of manifest destiny the u.s. annexed Texas in 1845

without the authority from Mexico troops were assigned to the border of Mexico

and a diplomat was sent to negotiate but their forces attacked and war broke out

the mexican-american war saw us victory and resulted in the further expansion of

the United States a border dispute with Britain in the north was also settled

with a 49th parallel forming the border between the u.s. and

Canada with the acquisition of California the news of gold in the area

spread like wildfire 300,000 people flocked to California from both the

United States and overseas the influx of gold reinvigorated the economy and the

sudden population increase allowed California to grow rapidly to statehood

there were disagreements about whether these newly acquired territories and

later states should be free states or slave states the northern states were

more industrialized while the southern states relied heavily on slave labor

tensions and incongruity worsened when the kansas-nebraska Act allowed people

in the territories of Kansas to decide for themselves whether or not to allow

slavery leading to internal conflict when Abraham Lincoln won the US election

many in the South feared he would outlaw slavery when in reality

Abraham was neutral on the idea South Carolina ceded from the Union and other

southern states soon followed the bombardment of Fort Sumter near

Charleston by the Confederate States Army was the official beginning of the

American Civil War the north was more industrialized and a large economy and a

greater manpower however the South commanded by General Robert Ely had more

capable generals and higher morale this was a fully industrialized wall with

railways telegrams and armored ironclads repeater rifles both sites or victories

and defeats encouraging abraham lincoln to put forward his emancipation

proclamation an executive order that gave freedom to over 3 million slaves in

the Confederate States the Union was unable to defeat general robert e lee

and his confederate forces generally made a push into the north unless met by

Union General George Meade at the Battle of Gettysburg

this would be a turning point and the bloodiest battle of the war lasting

three days with huge losses on both sides the Confederate states and their

army were weakened after the loss of planter it was clear that Confederate

states were defeated on April 9 1865 General Lee surrendered to General Grant

Lincoln oversaw the 13th amendment which abolished slavery throughout the states

but within days of victory Lincoln was assassinated while attending a theater

in Washington DC the following decades was a time for the nation to heal the

wounds of war after new states to enter the Union the US government desired the

region known as the Black Hills an area where gold had been discovered

subsequently resulting in settlers encroaching on Native American lands the

Great Sioux war of 1876 saw two years of war and negotiation between Native

Americans and the United States meanwhile the Spanish Empire had come a

long way from what it used to be in 1898 the battleship USS Maine was sent to

Cuba to protect American interests as the island was in the midst of a

revolution against Spain the USS Maine sank in Havana Harbor many speculated it

was an accident however the United States blamed the mainland Spain on war

was declared upon American victory Spain surrendered Puerto Rico Guam and the

Philippines Cuba gained independence but remained under the United States sphere

of influence in addition President Theodore Roosevelt enacted his big stick

policy and American oversight of other Latin American countries

this included the u.s. backing of Panama separation from the Republic of Colombia

in 1904 they overtook the construction of the Panama Canal which connected the

two oceans and was hugely beneficial to the u.s. in 1914 after the outbreak in

Europe with the first world war the US remain neutral having the protection of

two oceans they remain a close trading partner with Britain however trade was

disrupted and Germany enforced the naval blockade

in 1915 the USS Lusitania was sunk by a German u-boat but it wasn't until 1917

after an interception of a German telegram to Mexico requesting them to

invade the u.s. that the United States declared war the first u.s. infantry

troops arrived on the European continent in June 1917 in October the first

American soldiers enter combat the United States brought freshly trained

troops and helped the Allies win victory but if the cost of over a hundred

thousand soldiers who perished in the fighting the decade following the end of

the first world war so expensive cultural changes and technological

advances known as the Roaring Twenties there was an economic upturn notable

entertainment gave rise to the popularity of jazz music those new dance

styles and the motion picture industry of Hollywood flourished there was a mass

production of Ford Model T cars radios in wide use and the decade also gave

rise to the birth of women's rights and the rule of mobsters and prohibition The

Wall Street Crash and the collapse of the stock market instigated the Great

Depression of the 1930s but within a decade the u.s. was once again dragged

into another world war in the Pacific Japanese Empire was increasing in 1941

they launched an attack on the Hawaiian a base Pearl Harbor President Franklin D

Roosevelt was forced to bring the u.s. into the war throughout World War two

the u.s. aided their allies in the Pacific North Africa and Europe which

saw the loss of hundreds of thousands of troops during the war refugees from

Germany had warned of a German atomic bomb project in response the Americans

quickly commenced research and construction of their own atomic weapon

the Manhattan Project was instigated following the German defeat in Europe

President Harry Truman ordered the release of their atomic bomb on Japan

the atomic weapons were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki which devastated

the region's over a hundred thousand civilians World

War two ended with Japanese surrender after another catastrophic war change

was inevitable Germany was divided between France Britain and the US in the

West and the Communist Soviet Union who took the East the capital of Berlin was

also divided the United States devised the Marshall Plan to support Western

Europe economically spending billions to rebuild and aid to recover it their

allies over the next few decades two military alliances were formed NATO and

the Warsaw Pact different ideologies between these alliances would set the

scene for the Cold War a period of tension between the u.s. and the Soviet

Union these two new superpowers would compete for control and dominance or up

the world engaging in espionage proxy wars and interventions this rivalry

fostered the space race with both nations vying to land the first man on

the moon the Soviet Union launched the world's

first satellite in 1957 which prompted the foundation of NASA a year later

after numerous missions it was Apollo 11 that successfully landed the first

humans on the moon astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin subsequently

took their place in history throughout the 1950s and 60s there was a struggle

for social justice and for African Americans to gain equality and the right

to vote Martin Luther King jr. directed the civil rights movement by a

nonviolent approach protesting against segregation his 1963 speech I have a

dream became the iconic words that brought about change

perhaps the modern history the United States is synonymous with a date 9/11 a

date engraved in the lives of a nation that witnessed the merciless attacks at

the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan a nation unprepared by a

ruthless attack retaliated against a new style of warfare

these attacks not only changed the American nation they were to change the

world instead of dividing a nation the world joined in compassion and

cooperation in the fight against a new threat today the United States a leading

world power the largest military in the world with a

strong naval force technology that protects beyond their borders

multi-billion dollar companies that drive an immense economy with a

fortunate GDP it continues to support science and exploration success however

is not without issues but this is for the nation t