In 1732, George Washington was born in Virginia.
It was then one of 13 British colonies that covered the Atlantic American coast from Massachusetts to Georgia. Most people were farmers. Few people lived in cities. In 1763, Washington was 31 years old. Britain had just fought the French for control of North America, all the way west to the Mississippi River. Britain won that war. But 20 years later, in the American Revolution, the British were defeated by their 13 colonies. Washington was part of both wars. Afterward, he served the new nation as it began to unite the former colonies and form a government. He died in 1799. By that time, the United States was an independent nation. It had created its own Constitution, a framework for government that has lasted for over 200 years.
