United States

The United States of America, also known more simply as the United States or the U.S. or US, was a political entity on the North American continent on Earth. Established in 1776 by a declaration of independence of thirteen states from the British Empire, it eventually grew, by 2271, to include 56 states. In 2271 it was absorbed into the larger nation of the United Republic of North America, which also included the North American countries of Canada and Mexico. The association, however, was a loose one, and going forward, many URNA citizens whom lived in the political remnants of America still considered themselves "American", first and foremost.

Formation
During the American Revolution, the Articles of Confederation was established as the governing document of the United States. Following the war, the weaknesses of a government structured on the Articles became apparent, and the Constitution of the United States of America was approved in 1787. The Constitution quickly became one of the most important documents in human history. Later governments - such as the United Federation of Planets - based their governing documents on the United States Constitution.

Civil Wars
In the mid 19th century, 11 southern states broke away from the Union for several years, and formed the Confederate States of America over disagreements over state rights to own humans as slaves. From 1861 to 1865 the two nations engaged in a conflict which would come to be known as the First American Civil War. The war ended in a northern victory, and the former Confederate states all eventually rejoined the Union. The war was a key event in the ending of slavery and oppression on Earth. The US became the most powerful nation-state on Earth after the Second World War. With the outbreak of World War III in the 21st century, the country came under attack by the Russian Federation and the People's Republic of China. Eventually, the New Confederacy was established in the south, which allied itself with the Eastern Coalition. The New Confederacy soon came under attack by the United States, which was allied with the World Republic Federation and the Greater United Nations. This started the Second American Civil War, a proxy war of World War III. With the United Nations' victory and the end of the war in 2077, the Second Civil War also came to an end.

The United States recovered from the war and rebuilt its economy by the end of the 21st century. By the dawn of the 22nd century, the US had reclaimed its former reputation as a world superpower. The US was reorganized and joined Canada and Mexico to form the United Republic of North America in 2271. Avery Johnson, a war hero of the Human-Covenant War, was from Chicago during the time of the URNA. In 2714, the URNA joined the United Americas, which was composed of all of the former nations of Central and South America as well.

United Republic of North America
Later on, as a subdivision of the United Americas, the URNA remained a distinct political entity into the 30th century. Many famous Federation citizens have been born in the URNA, from Jonathan Archer to Benjamin Sisko to Kathryn Janeway to James T. Kirk. Many of the principles that the United States government was built upon were later expanded to serve as the symbols and principles of United Earth and the Federation; the Statue of Liberty in New York City, for instance, came to be seen as a symbol of Federation patriotism by the 29th century. The American city of San Francisco is the seat of Starfleet Headquarters and the capital city of United Earth; it receives the most shuttle traffic in the entire Sol sector.

The President of the United Republic of North America was one of the officials who toured San Francisco in the aftermath of the Breen attack during the Dominion War in 2975.