1.
Benjamin Henry Latrobe
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Benjamin Henry Boneval Latrobe was a British subject and neoclassical architect. It is the first Roman Catholic Cathedral constructed in the United States, Latrobe also designed the largest structure in America at the time, the Merchants Exchange in Baltimore. Latrobe emigrated to the U. S. in 1796, initially settling in Virginia where he worked on the Virginia State Penitentiary in Richmond, Latrobe then moved to Philadelphia where he established his practice. Latrobe spent the years of his life in New Orleans, Louisiana working on a waterworks project. Latrobe has been called the Father of American Architecture and he was also the uncle of Charles La Trobe, who was the first Lieutenant-Governor of Victoria in Australia. Latrobe was born on May 1,1764, at the Fulneck Moravian Settlement, near Pudsey in the city of Leeds, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, England. His parents were the Reverend Benjamin Latrobe, a leader of the Moravian Church who was of Huguenot ancestry, Antes was born in the American colony of Pennsylvania, but was sent to England by her father, a wealthy landowner, to attend a Moravian school at Fulneck. Latrobes father, who was responsible for all Moravian schools and establishments in Britain, had a circle of friends in the higher ranks of society. He stressed the importance of education, scholarship, and the value of exchange, while Latrobes mother instilled in her son a curiosity. From a young age, Benjamin Henry Latrobe enjoyed drawing landscapes and he was a brother of Moravian leader and musical composer Christian Ignatius Latrobe. In 1776, at the age of 12, Latrobe was sent away to a Moravian School at Niesky in Upper Lusatia, near the border of the German principalities of Saxony and Prussia, where his brother was studying. At age 18, he spent several months traveling around Germany, Latrobe may also have served briefly in the Austrian Imperial Army, and suffered some injuries or illness. After recovering, he embarked on a continental Grand Tour, visiting eastern Saxony, Paris, Italy, and other places. Through his education and travels, Latrobe mastered German, French, ancient and modern Greek, and Latin, had advanced ability in Italian and Spanish, Latrobe was elected a member of the American Antiquarian Society in 1815. His son, Benjamin Henry Latrobe, II, also worked as a civil engineer, in 1827, he joined the newly organized Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and designed the longest, most challenging bridge on its initial route, the curving Thomas Viaduct. Another son, John Hazelhurst Boneval Latrobe, was a civic leader, lawyer, author, historian, artist, inventor, intellectual. Latrobe Park in south Baltimore is named for the family, as is Latrobe Park, New Orleans, Latrobe returned to England in 1784, and was apprenticed to John Smeaton, an engineer known for designing Eddystone Lighthouse. Then in 1787 or 1788, he worked in the office of neoclassical architect S. P. Cockerell for a brief time, in 1790, Latrobe was appointed Surveyor of the Public Offices in London, and established his own private practice in 1791
2.
Thomas Ustick Walter
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Thomas Ustick Walter was an American architect, the dean of American architecture between the 1820 death of Benjamin Latrobe and the emergence of H. H. Richardson in the 1870s. He was the fourth Architect of the Capitol and responsible for adding the north and south wings, Walter was one of the founders and second president of the American Institute of Architects. Born in 1804 in Philadelphia, Walter was the son of mason and bricklayer Joseph S. Walter, Walter received early training in a variety of fields including masonry, mathematics, physical science, and the fine arts. At 15, Walter entered the office of William Strickland, studying architecture and mechanical drawing, Walter was commissioned by Spruce Street Baptist Church to design its new building at 418 Spruce Street. The 1829 building is home to the Society Hill Synagogue. Walters first major commission was Moyamensing Prison, the Philadelphia County Prison, designed as a humane model in its time, the prison was built between 1832 and 1835. Walter also designed the First Presbyterian Church of West Chester, which opened its doors in January 1834, in March 1834, the Walter-designed Wills Eye Hospital opened on the southwest corner of 18th and Race Streets in Philadelphia. He first came to recognition for his design of Girard College for Orphans in Philadelphia. Walter also designed mansions, banks, churches, the hotel at Brandywine Springs, in 1836, he designed the Bank of Chester County at West Chester, Pennsylvania, a decade later, he designed the 1846 Chester County Courthouse in Greek Revival style. In Lexington, Virginia, he designed the Lexington Presbyterian Church in 1843, the same year he designed the Chapel of the Cross in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. In Norfolk, Virginia, he designed the Norfolk Academy in 1840, the Tabb Street Presbyterian Church was erected at Petersburg, Virginia in 1843. It has also suggested that Walter designed the Second Empire-styled Quarters B and Quarters D at Admirals Row in Brooklyn. Georges Hall, residence of Matthew Newkirk, president of the Philadelphia, Walter also designed the Garrett-Dunn House in Philadelphias Mt. Airy neighborhood, which was destroyed by fire after being struck by lightning on August 2,2009. Among his smaller designs was the 1839 Newkirk Viaduct Monument, commissioned by the PW&B to mark the completion of the first rail line south from Philadelphia, the most famous of Walters constructions is the dome of the U. S. Capitol. By 1850, the expansion of the United States had caused a space shortage in the Capitol. Walter was selected to design extensions for the Capitol and his plan more than doubled the size of the existing building and added the familiar cast-iron dome. There were at least six draftsmen in Walters office, headed by Walters chief assistant, August Schoenborn and it appears that he was responsible for some of the fundamental ideas in the Capitol structure. These included the curved ribs and an ingenious arrangement used to cantilever the base of the columns
3.
Boston
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Boston is the capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. Boston is also the seat of Suffolk County, although the county government was disbanded on July 1,1999. The city proper covers 48 square miles with a population of 667,137 in 2015, making it the largest city in New England. Alternately, as a Combined Statistical Area, this wider commuting region is home to some 8.1 million people, One of the oldest cities in the United States, Boston was founded on the Shawmut Peninsula in 1630 by Puritan settlers from England. It was the scene of several key events of the American Revolution, such as the Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, the Battle of Bunker Hill, and the Siege of Boston. Upon U. S. independence from Great Britain, it continued to be an important port and manufacturing hub as well as a center for education, through land reclamation and municipal annexation, Boston has expanded beyond the original peninsula. Its rich history attracts many tourists, with Faneuil Hall alone drawing over 20 million visitors per year, Bostons many firsts include the United States first public school, Boston Latin School, first subway system, the Tremont Street Subway, and first public park, Boston Common. Bostons economic base also includes finance, professional and business services, biotechnology, information technology, the city has one of the highest costs of living in the United States as it has undergone gentrification, though it remains high on world livability rankings. Bostons early European settlers had first called the area Trimountaine but later renamed it Boston after Boston, Lincolnshire, England, the renaming on September 7,1630 was by Puritan colonists from England who had moved over from Charlestown earlier that year in quest of fresh water. Their settlement was limited to the Shawmut Peninsula, at that time surrounded by the Massachusetts Bay and Charles River. The peninsula is thought to have been inhabited as early as 5000 BC, in 1629, the Massachusetts Bay Colonys first governor John Winthrop led the signing of the Cambridge Agreement, a key founding document of the city. Puritan ethics and their focus on education influenced its early history, over the next 130 years, the city participated in four French and Indian Wars, until the British defeated the French and their Indian allies in North America. Boston was the largest town in British America until Philadelphia grew larger in the mid-18th century, Bostons harbor activity was significantly curtailed by the Embargo Act of 1807 and the War of 1812. Foreign trade returned after these hostilities, but Bostons merchants had found alternatives for their investments in the interim. Manufacturing became an important component of the economy, and the citys industrial manufacturing overtook international trade in economic importance by the mid-19th century. Boston remained one of the nations largest manufacturing centers until the early 20th century, a network of small rivers bordering the city and connecting it to the surrounding region facilitated shipment of goods and led to a proliferation of mills and factories. Later, a network of railroads furthered the regions industry. Boston was a port of the Atlantic triangular slave trade in the New England colonies
4.
Massachusetts Bay Colony
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Territory claimed but never administered by the colonial government extended as far west as the Pacific Ocean. The earlier Dutch colony of New Netherlands disputed many of these claims, arguing that they held rights to lands beyond Rhode Island up to the side of Cape Cod. The Massachusetts Bay Colony began in 1628 and was the second attempt at colonization. The colony was successful, with about 20,000 people migrating to New England in the 1630s, the population was strongly Puritan, and its governance was dominated by a small group of leaders who were strongly influenced by Puritan religious leaders. Its governors were elected, and the electorate were limited to freemen who had been examined for their religious views, as a consequence, the colonial leadership exhibited intolerance to other religious views, including Anglican, Quaker, and Baptist theologies. The colonists initially had decent relationships with the local Indian populations and these led first to the Pequot War and then to King Philips War, after which most of the Indians in southern New England made peace treaties with the colonists. The colony was successful, engaging in trade with England. A shortage of currency in the colony prompted it to establish a mint in 1652. Political differences with England after the English Restoration led to the revocation of the charter in 1684. King James II established the Dominion of New England in 1686 to bring all of the New England colonies under firmer crown control, Sir William Phips arrived in 1692 bearing the charter and formally took charge of the new province. The political and economic dominance of New England by the state of Massachusetts was made possible in part by the early dominance in these spheres by the Massachusetts Bay colonists. The total Indian population in 1620 has been estimated to be 7,000 with the population of New England at 15–18,000, the land-use patterns of the natives included plots cleared for agricultural purposes, and woodland territories for the hunting of game. Land divisions between the tribes were well understood, during the early 17th century, several European explorers charted the area, including Samuel de Champlain and John Smith. Plans began in 1606 for the first permanent British settlements on the east coast of North America, on April 10,1606, King James I of England granted a charter forming two joint-stock companies. Under this charter, the first Colony and the second Colony were to be ruled by a Council composed of 13 individuals in each colony, the charter provided for an additional council of 13 persons to have overarching responsibility for the combined enterprise. No name was given to either the company or council governing the respective colonies, the first Colony ranged from the 34th- to 41st-degree latitude north, the second Colony ranged from the 38th- to 45th-degree latitude. The London Company proceeded to establish Jamestown, the Plymouth Company under the guidance of Sir Ferdinando Gorges covered the more northern area, including present-day New England, and established the Sagadahoc Colony in 1607 in present-day Maine. The experience proved exceptionally difficult for the 120 settlers, however, Gorges noted that there was no more speech of settling plantations in those parts for a number of years
5.
Massachusetts State House
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The building houses the Massachusetts General Court and the offices of the Governor of Massachusetts. The building, designed by noted architect Charles Bulfinch, was completed in 1798 and it is considered a masterpiece of Federal architecture and among Bulfinchs finest works, and was designated a National Historic Landmark for its architectural significance. The building is situated on 6.7 acres of land on top of Beacon Hill in Boston and it was built on land once owned by John Hancock, Massachusettss first elected governor. Before the current State House was completed in 1798, Massachusettss government house was the Old State House on Court Street, for the buildings design, architect Charles Bulfinch made use of two existing buildings in London, William Chamberss Somerset House, and James Wyatts Pantheon. A major expansion of the building was completed in 1895. The architect for the annex was Bostonian Charles Brigham, in 1917, the east and west wings, designed by architects Sturgis, Bryant, Chapman & Andrews, were completed. In July 2016, Governor Charlie Baker proposed to the legislature to sell 300 square feet of permanent easement on the west side of the State House lawn to a neighboring condominium. The land in question was once owned by John Hancock. The original wood dome, which leaked, was covered with copper in 1802 by Paul Reveres Revere Copper Company, Revere was the first American to roll copper successfully into sheets in a commercially viable manner. The dome was first painted gray and then light yellow before being gilded with gold leaf in 1874. During World War II, the dome was painted once again, in 1997, at a cost of more than $300,000, the dome was re-gilded, in 23k gold. In front of the building is a statue of General Joseph Hooker. Other statues in front of the building include Daniel Webster, educator Horace Mann, the statues of Anne Hutchinson and Mary Dyer are located on the lawns below the east and west wings. The original red-brick Bulfinch building contains the Governors offices with the Massachusetts Senate occupying the former House of Representatives Chamber under the dome, the Massachusetts House of Representatives occupies a chamber on the west side of the Brigham addition. Hanging over this chamber is the Sacred Cod, which was given to the House of Representatives in 1784 by a Boston merchant, the Sacred Cod symbolizes the importance of the fishing industry to the early Massachusetts economy. The second floor under the dome is decorated by murals painted by artist Edward Brodney, Brodney won a competition to paint the first mural in a contest sponsored by the Works Progress Administration in 1936. It is entitled Columbia Knighting Her World War Disabled, Brodney could not afford to pay models, and friends and family posed. The model for Columbia was Brodneys sister Norma Brodney Cohen, in 1938, he painted a second mural under the dome called World War Mothers
6.
First Harrison Gray Otis House
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The First Harrison Gray Otis House is a historic house museum and National Historic Landmark at 141 Cambridge Street in the West End of Boston, Massachusetts. The house, built in 1795-96, was the first of three designed by Charles Bulfinch and built for Massachusetts politician Harrison Gray Otis. It is notable as one of the earliest three-story brick houses came to represent the Federal style of architecture. The house is now the headquarters of Historic New England, a preservation organization. The house is the simplest of the three designed by Bulfinch for Otis, the design is said to be inspired by a William Bingham house that Bulfinch saw in 1789 in Philadelphia, which was in turned derived from a house in London. The house is three stories tall, five wide, with elegant string courses. Todays graceful entrance was added after 1801, above it is a fine Palladian window, and above that a lunette. The third floor is very short, ceilings are just over 6 feet tall, the floor plan follows a typical central hall plan, with two rooms on either side of the central hallway. The kitchen was in an ell, the house was purchased in 1916 by the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities for use as its headquarters. It was originally located about 40 feet forward of its present location, the original cellar was lost during this move. The house is now connected to a group of row houses on Lynde Street, the house underwent a careful restoration in 1960, overseen by Abbott Lowell Cummings. It is open year-round for tours, list of National Historic Landmarks in Boston National Register of Historic Places listings in northern Boston, Massachusetts Historic New England, Otis House Museum,1796
7.
Old State House (Connecticut)
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The Old State House in Hartford, Connecticut is generally believed to have been designed by noted American architect Charles Bulfinch as his first public building. The State House is currently managed by the Office of Legislative Management of the Connecticut General Assembly, the exterior building and the Senate have been restored to its original Federal style, the Representatives chamber is Victorian, and the halls and courtroom are Colonial Revival. The Hartford State House is, in appearance, very similar to the Town Hall of Liverpool, England, built in the mid-18th century, however, all materials came from the United States. Its first story is 20 feet high and constructed from Portland, the second and third stories are brick patterned in Flemish bond. The State House has been modified somewhat since it was first built, an original stone spiral staircase behind the northern arch, designed by Asher Benjamin, led to the second and third floors, it no longer exists. In 1814, the Hartford Convention was held there, in 1839, the start of the Amistad trial was held there. The building had been in danger of closing in 2008 due to financial constraints, State and Hartford officials have recently signed a 99-year lease placing Connecticuts Old State House under new management. The lease puts the city-owned historic building under the control of the state Office of Legislative Management and it was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1960. Exhibits focus on the history of Hartford and important events in Connecticut history, visitors can also tour the original legislative rooms. The Museum of Natural and Other Curiosities is located on the floor of the Old State House. The museum features a recreation of Joseph Stewards original 1798 collection of natural history displays, over the years, several eyewitnesses have claimed to experience paranormal activity inside the building. In 2009, the Old State House was investigated by the investigators of TAPS on episode 524 of the Sci Fi Channel program Ghost Hunters, the episode aired on December 9,2009. Following the investigation, TAPS announced that they captured audio of strange sounds inside the building, before giving a final verdict of haunted or not, the team plans to head back to the Old State House for a more in depth investigation. So until then, this remains open
8.
Faneuil Hall
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Faneuil Hall, located near the waterfront and todays Government Center, in Boston, Massachusetts, has been a marketplace and a meeting hall since 1743. It was the site of speeches by Samuel Adams, James Otis. Now it is part of Boston National Historical Park and a stop on the Freedom Trail. It is sometimes referred to as the Cradle of Liberty, in 2008, Faneuil Hall was rated number 4 in Americas 25 Most Visited Tourist Sites by Forbes Traveler. There was an opposition to market houses, and although a vote of thanks was passed unanimously. Funded in part by profits from trading, the building was begun in Dock Square in September of the same year. It was built by artist John Smibert in 1740–1742 in the style of an English country market, with a ground floor serving as the market house. According to Sean Hennessey, a National Park Service spokesman, some of Bostons early slave auctions were located near Faneuil Hall, in 1761 the hall was destroyed by fire, nothing but the brick walls remaining. It was rebuilt by the town in 1762, in 1775, during the British occupation of Boston, it was used for a theatre. In 1806, the hall was expanded by Charles Bulfinch, doubling its height and width. Four new bays were added, to seven in all, the open arcades were enclosed. Bulfinch applied Doric brick pilasters to the two floors, with Ionic pilasters on the third floor. This renovation added galleries around the hall and increased its height. Neighboring Quincy Market was constructed in 1824-26, Faneuil Hall was entirely rebuilt of noncombustible materials in 1898–1899. On October 9,1960 the building was designated a National Historic Landmark, the ground floor and basement were altered in 1979. The Hall was restored again in 1992 and in 1994 designated as a Boston Landmark by the Boston Landmarks Commission. It was designed by Benjamin Thompson and Associates and managed by Ashkenazy Acquisition Corp. its success in the late 1970s led to the emergence of similar marketplaces in other U. S. cities, chappelle was a Boston legislator from 1883-1886. On the front page of The New York Age newspaper on Saturday, on November 7,1979, Faneuil Hall was the site of Sen. Edward M. Kennedys speech declaring his candidacy for president
9.
University Hall (Harvard University)
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University Hall is a white granite building designed by the great early American architect Charles Bulfinch and built by the noted early engineer Loammi Baldwin, Jr. It is located in Harvard Yard on the campus of Harvard University in Cambridge and it was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1970 for its architectural significance. The hall was designed by Bulfinch, class of 1781, and it consists of a partial basement story, plus three full stories raised above ground as well as an additional story set within the roofline. The long east and west facades are similar, and symmetrically arranged with two entrances per facade, each flanked by pilasters, smaller north and south facades present rows of windows. Total construction cost was $65,000 of which $53,000 was paid by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, University Halls first floor contained the College Commons until 1849. The building also contained a library and philosophical apparatus, as well as a chapel within the second, a massive portico with stone pillars was added to the western facade soon after completion, but removed in 1842. In 1849 the first floor was partitioned into classrooms, in 1867 the chapel was partitioned as well, in 1896 the chapel was restored and used for meetings of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. In 1924 Daniel Chester Frenchs bronze statue of John Harvard was moved to the western façade from its location near Memorial Hall. In 1969, Harvard students took over the hall and occupied it for 18 hours in protest of Harvards stance on the Vietnam War, the demonstration ended only when Massachusetts state police arrived to remove the students from the building. List of National Historic Landmarks in Massachusetts National Register of Historic Places listings in Cambridge, Massachusetts
10.
United States Capitol
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The United States Capitol, often called the Capitol Building or Capitol Hill, is the home of the United States Congress, and the seat of the legislative branch of the U. S. federal government. It sits atop Capitol Hill at the end of the National Mall in Washington. Though not at the center of the Federal District, the Capitol forms the origin point for the Districts street-numbering system. The original building was completed in 1800 and was subsequently expanded, like the principal buildings of the executive and judicial branches, the Capitol is built in a distinctive neoclassical style and has a white exterior. Both its east and west elevations are referred to as fronts, though only the east front was intended for the reception of visitors. In 2014, scaffolding was erected around the dome for a project scheduled to be completed by early 2017. All exterior scaffolding was removed by the end of summer 2016, prior to establishing the nations capital in Washington, D. C. the United States Congress and its predecessors had met in Philadelphia, New York City, and a number of other locations. In September 1774, the First Continental Congress brought together delegates from the colonies in Philadelphia, followed by the Second Continental Congress, Congress requested that John Dickinson, the Governor of Pennsylvania, call up the militia to defend Congress from attacks by the protesters. In what became known as the Pennsylvania Mutiny of 1783, Dickinson sympathized with the protesters and refused to remove them from Philadelphia. As a result, Congress was forced to flee to Princeton, New Jersey, on June 21,1783, and met in Annapolis, Maryland, the United States Congress was established upon ratification of the United States Constitution and formally began on March 4,1789. New York City remained home to Congress until July 1790, when the Residence Act was passed to pave the way for a permanent capital. As part of the legislation, Philadelphia was chosen as a capital for ten years, until the nations capital in Washington. Pierre Charles LEnfant was given the task of creating the city plan for the new capital city, in reviewing LEnfants plan, Thomas Jefferson insisted the legislative building be called the Capitol rather than Congress House. The word Capitol comes from Latin and is associated with the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus on Capitoline Hill, the connection between the two is not, however, crystal clear. In spring 1792, United States Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson proposed a competition to solicit designs for the Capitol and the Presidents House. The prize for the competition was $500 and a lot in the Federal City, the most promising of the submissions was by Stephen Hallet, a trained French architect. However, Hallets designs were overly fancy, with too much French influence, a late entry by amateur architect William Thornton was submitted on January 31,1793, to much praise for its Grandeur, Simplicity, and Beauty by Washington, along with praise from Thomas Jefferson. Thornton was inspired by the east front of the Louvre, as well as the Paris Pantheon for the portion of the design
11.
Maine State House
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The Maine State House in Augusta, Maine is the state capitol of the State of Maine. The building was completed in 1832, one year after Augusta became the capital of Maine, built using Maine granite, the State House was based on the design of the Massachusetts State House. Governor Paul LePage and the Maine Legislature convene at the State House, when Maine separated from Massachusetts and became a state in 1820, a number of cities and towns sought the honor of becoming the state capital. The principal aspirants were Portland, Brunswick, Hallowell, Waterville, Belfast, Wiscasset, the first capital of Maine was Portland, but it moved to Augusta because of its more central location. The Legislature passed and Governor Enoch Lincoln signed the bill establishing Augusta as the capital in 1832, the building was designed by the renowned architect Charles Bulfinch of Boston, and in its original form resembles his Massachusetts State House. Construction was of granite from Hallowell quarries and took three years to complete, the Maine Legislature held its first session in the new state Capitol on January 4,1832. The interior of the Capitol was remodeled in 1852 and again in 1860 to provide room for state departments. In 1890–1891, a large wing was added to the rear of the building to accommodate the State Library. Major remodeling of the Capitol during 1909–1910 established the present-day appearance of the building and it was enlarged according to designs by G. Henri Desmond, necessitating the demolition of almost all the old buildings save the front and rear walls. While the noble Bulfinch front was preserved, the length of the building was doubled to 300 feet by extending the north and south wings, a dome rising to a height of 185 feet was built to replace the original cupola. A gilt copper statue of Minerva, the female figure of Wisdom, by William Clark Noble of Gardiner. The House of Representatives occupies the third and fourth floors of the north wing, the governors office is located in renovated space on the second floor at the rear of the central portion of the Capitol along with the Hall of Flags and the law library. The governors office overlooks the massive, granite State Office Building located to the west of the State House, a recently renovated tunnel connects the State House and the State Office Building. The tunnel houses several Maine wildlife scenes, a side tunnel leads to a cold war fallout shelter, large enough to house the Maine senate, house and various other officials and aides. Construction of the shelter started on May 5,1983, under the pretense of renovation, completed September 3,1985, at the south side of the Capitol grounds, the Maine State Library, Maine State Museum and Maine State Archives are housed in a modern building. Throughout the building are portraits of governors and other men and women who have served Maine throughout its history as a province and a state. To the north, across from the State House, is the Executive Mansion, more known as The Blaine House. The State House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, for its importance in the history of the state and it is the only known work of Charles Bulfinch for which a complete set of architectural drawings has survived
12.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
13.
Architect
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An architect is someone who plans, designs, and reviews the construction of buildings. Etymologically, architect derives from the Latin architectus, which derives from the Greek, practical, technical, and academic requirements for becoming an architect vary by jurisdiction. The terms architect and architecture are used in the disciplines of landscape architecture, naval architecture. In most jurisdictions, the professional and commercial uses of the terms architect, throughout ancient and medieval history, most architectural design and construction was carried out by artisans—such as stone masons and carpenters, rising to the role of master builder. Until modern times, there was no distinction between architect and engineer. In Europe, the architect and engineer were primarily geographical variations that referred to the same person. It is suggested that various developments in technology and mathematics allowed the development of the gentleman architect. Paper was not used in Europe for drawing until the 15th century, pencils were used more often for drawing by 1600. The availability of both allowed pre-construction drawings to be made by professionals, until the 18th-century, buildings continued to be designed and set out by craftsmen with the exception of high-status projects. In most developed countries, only qualified people with appropriate license, certification, or registration with a relevant body, such licensure usually requires an accredited university degree, successful completion of exams, and a training period. To practice architecture implies the ability to independently of supervision. In many places, independent, non-licensed individuals may perform design services outside the professional restrictions, such design houses, in the architectural profession, technical and environmental knowledge, design and construction management, and an understanding of business are as important as design. However, design is the force throughout the project and beyond. An architect accepts a commission from a client, the commission might involve preparing feasibility reports, building audits, the design of a building or of several buildings, structures, and the spaces among them. The architect participates in developing the requirements the client wants in the building, throughout the project, the architect co-ordinates a design team. Structural, mechanical, and electrical engineers and other specialists, are hired by the client or the architect, the architect hired by a client is responsible for creating a design concept that meets the requirements of that client and provides a facility suitable to the required use. In that, the architect must meet with and question the client to ascertain all the requirements, often the full brief is not entirely clear at the beginning, entailing a degree of risk in the design undertaking. The architect may make proposals to the client which may rework the terms of the brief
14.
Architecture
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Architecture is both the process and the product of planning, designing, and constructing buildings and other physical structures. Architectural works, in the form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural symbols. Historical civilizations are often identified with their surviving architectural achievements, Architecture can mean, A general term to describe buildings and other physical structures. The art and science of designing buildings and nonbuilding structures, the style of design and method of construction of buildings and other physical structures. A unifying or coherent form or structure Knowledge of art, science, technology, the design activity of the architect, from the macro-level to the micro-level. The practice of the architect, where architecture means offering or rendering services in connection with the design and construction of buildings. The earliest surviving work on the subject of architecture is De architectura. According to Vitruvius, a building should satisfy the three principles of firmitas, utilitas, venustas, commonly known by the original translation – firmness, commodity. An equivalent in modern English would be, Durability – a building should stand up robustly, utility – it should be suitable for the purposes for which it is used. Beauty – it should be aesthetically pleasing, according to Vitruvius, the architect should strive to fulfill each of these three attributes as well as possible. Leon Battista Alberti, who elaborates on the ideas of Vitruvius in his treatise, De Re Aedificatoria, saw beauty primarily as a matter of proportion, for Alberti, the rules of proportion were those that governed the idealised human figure, the Golden mean. The most important aspect of beauty was, therefore, an inherent part of an object, rather than something applied superficially, Gothic architecture, Pugin believed, was the only true Christian form of architecture. The 19th-century English art critic, John Ruskin, in his Seven Lamps of Architecture, Architecture was the art which so disposes and adorns the edifices raised by men. That the sight of them contributes to his health, power. For Ruskin, the aesthetic was of overriding significance and his work goes on to state that a building is not truly a work of architecture unless it is in some way adorned. For Ruskin, a well-constructed, well-proportioned, functional building needed string courses or rustication, but suddenly you touch my heart, you do me good. I am happy and I say, This is beautiful, le Corbusiers contemporary Ludwig Mies van der Rohe said Architecture starts when you carefully put two bricks together. The notable 19th-century architect of skyscrapers, Louis Sullivan, promoted an overriding precept to architectural design, function came to be seen as encompassing all criteria of the use, perception and enjoyment of a building, not only practical but also aesthetic, psychological and cultural
15.
Washington, D.C.
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Washington, D. C. formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D. C. is the capital of the United States. The signing of the Residence Act on July 16,1790, Constitution provided for a federal district under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Congress and the District is therefore not a part of any state. The states of Maryland and Virginia each donated land to form the federal district, named in honor of President George Washington, the City of Washington was founded in 1791 to serve as the new national capital. In 1846, Congress returned the land ceded by Virginia, in 1871. Washington had an population of 681,170 as of July 2016. Commuters from the surrounding Maryland and Virginia suburbs raise the population to more than one million during the workweek. The Washington metropolitan area, of which the District is a part, has a population of over 6 million, the centers of all three branches of the federal government of the United States are in the District, including the Congress, President, and Supreme Court. Washington is home to national monuments and museums, which are primarily situated on or around the National Mall. The city hosts 176 foreign embassies as well as the headquarters of international organizations, trade unions, non-profit organizations, lobbying groups. A locally elected mayor and a 13‑member council have governed the District since 1973, However, the Congress maintains supreme authority over the city and may overturn local laws. D. C. residents elect a non-voting, at-large congressional delegate to the House of Representatives, the District receives three electoral votes in presidential elections as permitted by the Twenty-third Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified in 1961. Various tribes of the Algonquian-speaking Piscataway people inhabited the lands around the Potomac River when Europeans first visited the area in the early 17th century, One group known as the Nacotchtank maintained settlements around the Anacostia River within the present-day District of Columbia. Conflicts with European colonists and neighboring tribes forced the relocation of the Piscataway people, some of whom established a new settlement in 1699 near Point of Rocks, Maryland. 43, published January 23,1788, James Madison argued that the new government would need authority over a national capital to provide for its own maintenance. Five years earlier, a band of unpaid soldiers besieged Congress while its members were meeting in Philadelphia, known as the Pennsylvania Mutiny of 1783, the event emphasized the need for the national government not to rely on any state for its own security. However, the Constitution does not specify a location for the capital, on July 9,1790, Congress passed the Residence Act, which approved the creation of a national capital on the Potomac River. The exact location was to be selected by President George Washington, formed from land donated by the states of Maryland and Virginia, the initial shape of the federal district was a square measuring 10 miles on each side, totaling 100 square miles. Two pre-existing settlements were included in the territory, the port of Georgetown, Maryland, founded in 1751, many of the stones are still standing
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United States Capitol rotunda
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The United States Capitol rotunda is the central rotunda of the United States Capitol in Washington, D. C. Located below the Capitol dome, it is the tallest part of the Capitol and has described as its symbolic. The rotunda is surrounded by corridors connecting the House of Representatives, to the south of the rotunda is the semi-circular National Statuary Hall, which until 1857 was the House of Representatives chamber. To the northeast of the rotunda is the Old Senate Chamber, used by the Senate until 1859 and by the Supreme Court of the United States until 1935. The rotunda is 96 feet in diameter and rises 48 feet to the top of its walls and 180 feet 3 inches to the canopy of the dome, the dome is surmounted by the American Statue of Freedom. It is also used for ceremonial events authorized by concurrent resolution, the doctor and architect William Thornton was the winner of the contest to design the Capitol in 1793. Thornton had first conceived the idea of a central rotunda, however, due to lack of funds or resources, oft-interrupted construction, and the British attack on Washington during the War of 1812, work on the rotunda did not begin until 1818. The rotunda was designed in the style and was intended to evoke the design of the Pantheon. The sandstone rotunda walls rise 48 feet above the floor, everything above this—the Capitol dome–was designed in 1854 by Thomas U, Walter, the fourth Architect of the Capitol. Walter had also designed the Capitols north and south extensions, in 1862, Walter asked painter Constantino Brumidi to design a picture 65 feet in diameter, painted in fresco, on the concave canopy over the eye of the New Dome of the U. S. Capitol. At this time, Brumidi may have added a watercolor canopy design over Walters tentative 1859 sketch, the dome was being finished in the middle of the American Civil War and was constructed from fireproof cast iron. During the Civil War, the rotunda was used as a hospital for Union soldiers. The dome was completed in 1866. Originally the crypt had an open ceiling into the rotunda, visitors can still see the holes in the stone circle that marked the rim of the open space in the rotunda floor. In January 2013, the Architect of the Capitol announced a four-year, $10 million project to repair and conserve the Capitol Domes exterior, the dome and rotunda, which were last conserved in 1960, are showing significant signs of rust and disrepair. There is a danger that decorative ironwork could fall from the rotunda to the space below, without immediate repair, safety netting will be installed. Eight niches in the rotunda hold large, framed historical paintings, all are oil-on-canvas and measure 12 by 18 feet. Four of these are scenes from the American Revolution, painted by John Trumbull and these are Declaration of Independence, Surrender of General Burgoyne, Surrender of Lord Cornwallis, and General George Washington Resigning his Commission
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United States Capitol dome
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The United States Capitol dome is the dome situated above the United States Capitol which reaches upwards to 288 feet in height and 96 feet in diameter. The dome was designed by Thomas U, Walter, the fourth Architect of the Capitol, and constructed between 1855 and 1866 at a cost of $1,047,291. The dome is not stone, but cast iron painted to appear to be made of the same stone as the main capitol building. It is actually two domes, one inside the other, and the weight is 14.1 million pounds. The iron for the dome was cast by the foundry of Janes, Fowler, Kirtland & Company, owned by Adrian Janes in the Bronx, New York. The origin of the first dome began with the Capitol design contest sponsored by Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, at the behest of President George Washington, the winner of the contest, Doctor William Thornton, called for a dome in his original design for the building. Most vividly, Thornton drew upon the Roman Pantheon for inspiration with the Neoclassical dome, in 1822, Bulfinch requested funds for the construction of the center of the building, and President Monroe signed off on an appropriation of $120,000. Set at the crown of the dome was an oculus 24 feet wide. Bulfinch completed the project in 1823, for more than two decades, the green copper dome of the Capitol greeted visitors to the nations capitol, until the 1850s. Due to the growth of the United States and the expansion and addition of new states, under the guidance of the fourth Architect of the Capitol, Thomas U. Walter, extensions were built onto the north and south wings of the building, in the process, the new, longer building made the original Bulfinch dome appear aesthetically displeasing. Congress, after lobbying by Walter and Montgomery C, meigs, passed legislation to build a bigger dome in 1855. The current cast iron dome of the United States Capitol is the dome to sit above the building. Plans began in May 1854 to build a new cast-iron dome for the United States Capitol, sold on the aesthetics of a new dome, as well as the utility of a fire-proof one. Influenced by the domes of Europe, Walter paid particular attention to the Pantheon of Paris, St Pauls Cathedral in London. The upper part of the drum was enriched with decorated pilasters upholding a bracketed attic, crowning the composition was a statue standing on a slender, columned tholus. Walter drafted a seven-foot drawing of the design and displayed it in his office. A year later, on March 3,1855, President Franklin Pierce signed off on the appropriation of $100,000 to build the dome
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Architecture of the United States
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The architecture of the United States demonstrates a broad variety of architectural styles and built forms over the countrys history of over four centuries of independence and former British rule. Architecture in the United States is as diverse as its multicultural society and has shaped by many internal and external factors. As a whole it represents a rich eclectic and innovative tradition, the oldest surviving nonimported structures on the territory that is now known as the United States were made by the Ancient Pueblo People of the four corners region. The Tiwa speaking people have inhabited Taos Pueblo continuously for over 1000 years, the related Chacoan civilization built extensive public architecture in northwestern New Mexico from CE700 –1250 until drought forced them to relocate. Other Native American architecture is known from traditional structures, such as houses, wigwams, tipis. Images by Theodor de Bry of local Algonquian villages Pomeiooc and Secoton in what later became coastal North Carolina survive from the late 16th century. Artist and cartographer John White stayed at the short-lived Roanoke Colony for 13 months and recorded over 70 watercolor images of people, plants. The remote location of the Hawaiian Islands from North America gave ancient Hawaii a substantial period of precolonial architecture, early structures reflect Polynesian heritage and the refined culture of Hawaii. Post-contact late-19th-century Hawaiian architecture shows various influences such as the Victorian, Georgian. When the Europeans settled in North America, they brought their architectural traditions, the oldest buildings in America have examples of that. Construction was dependent upon the available resources, wood and brick are the most common elements of English buildings in New England, the Mid-Atlantic, and coastal South. The colonizers appropriated the territories and sites for new forts, dwellings, missions, churches, Spanish colonial architecture was built in Florida and the Southeastern United States from 1559 to 1821. The conch style is represented in Pensacola, Florida, adorning houses with balconies of wrought iron, as appears in the mostly Spanish-built French Quarter of New Orleans, fires in 1788 and 1794 destroyed the original French structures in New Orleans. Many of the present buildings date to late-18th-century rebuilding efforts. The two earliest continuously occupied European settlements in the United States are St. Augustine, Florida founded in 1565 and Santa Fe, the Castillo de San Marcos fort 1672–1695 is St. Augustines oldest surviving structure. It and the California missions are the vestiges of 17th-century Spanish colonial architecture in the present day United States. Spanish exploration of the North American deserts, the present day Southwestern United States, the conquistador Francisco Vásquez de Coronado crossed this region in search of the mythical cities of gold. Instead they found the ancient culture and architecture of the Pueblo people, the Pueblo people built dwellings of adobe, a sun-dried clay brick, with exposed wooden ceiling beams
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Boston Latin School
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The Boston Latin School is a public exam school in Boston, Massachusetts. Established on April 23,1635, it is the oldest school as well as the first public school in the United States and its curriculum follows that of the 18th century Latin-school movement, which holds the classics to be the basis of an educated mind. Four years of Latin are mandatory for all pupils who enter the School in the 7th grade, in 2007, the School was named one of the top twenty high schools in the United States by U. S. News & World Report magazine. It is a part of Boston Public Schools, the School was named a 2011 Blue Ribbon School of Excellence, the U. S. Department of Educations highest award. As of 2016, the School is listed under the medal list. Puritan leaders themselves were accustomed to the highest educational standards, with most of their ministers having graduated from Oxford or Cambridge University in England, in early years they were not funded by tax dollars, but rather by donations and land rentals. A school established in nearby Dedham thus became the first tax supported public school years later. English was not the dominant language of the world at time. Therefore, the learning of Latin was also a priority, as it was with grammar schools in England, seventeenth-century schoolboys throughout Europe, Catholic or Protestant, learned Latin, and which explains the Latin in Boston Latin. The ability to read at least Cicero and Virgil was a requirement of all colonial colleges, Boston Latin prepared many students for admission to Harvard, with a total of seven years being devoted to the classics, and providing almost one seventh of Harvard members during just one period. However, most graduates of Boston Latin did not go on to college since business and professions did not require collegiate training, which more basic learning provided for. The Schools first class was in single figures, but it now has 2,400 pupils drawn from all parts of the City of Boston and it has produced four Harvard presidents, four Massachusetts governors, and five signers of the United States Declaration of Independence. Benjamin Franklin and Louis Farrakhan are among its well-known dropouts, the School originally began as the South Grammar School, and was specifically modeled after the Boston Grammar School in Lincolnshire, England, from where many of Bostons original settlers derived. Current students assert with pride that Harvard College, founded a year later in 1636, was created for Boston Latins first graduates to attend, more than 99% of Boston Latins approximately 400 annual graduates are accepted by at least one four-year college. The Latin School admitted only students and hired only male teachers from its founding in 1635. The Schools first female student was not until the 19th century, with Helen Magill White as the schools first female graduate, however, soon after Whites graduation in 1877, the Girls Latin School, was founded. For nearly a century, all qualified female students would attend that all-girls institution and it was not until 1972 that Boston Latin would admit its first co-educational class. Female teachers predated female students at Boston Latin, in 1967 the school appointed Marie Frisardi Cleary and Juanita Ponte as the first two women in its academic faculty
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Harvard University
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Although never formally affiliated with any denomination, the early College primarily trained Congregationalist and Unitarian clergy. Its curriculum and student body were gradually secularized during the 18th century, james Bryant Conant led the university through the Great Depression and World War II and began to reform the curriculum and liberalize admissions after the war. The undergraduate college became coeducational after its 1977 merger with Radcliffe College, Harvards $34.5 billion financial endowment is the largest of any academic institution. Harvard is a large, highly residential research university, the nominal cost of attendance is high, but the Universitys large endowment allows it to offer generous financial aid packages. Harvards alumni include eight U. S. presidents, several heads of state,62 living billionaires,359 Rhodes Scholars. To date, some 130 Nobel laureates,18 Fields Medalists, Harvard was formed in 1636 by vote of the Great and General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. In 1638, it obtained British North Americas first known printing press, in 1639 it was named Harvard College after deceased clergyman John Harvard an alumnus of the University of Cambridge who had left the school £779 and his scholars library of some 400 volumes. The charter creating the Harvard Corporation was granted in 1650 and it offered a classic curriculum on the English university model—many leaders in the colony had attended the University of Cambridge—but conformed to the tenets of Puritanism. It was never affiliated with any denomination, but many of its earliest graduates went on to become clergymen in Congregational. The leading Boston divine Increase Mather served as president from 1685 to 1701, in 1708, John Leverett became the first president who was not also a clergyman, which marked a turning of the college toward intellectual independence from Puritanism. When the Hollis Professor of Divinity David Tappan died in 1803 and the president of Harvard Joseph Willard died a year later, in 1804, in 1846, the natural history lectures of Louis Agassiz were acclaimed both in New York and on the campus at Harvard College. Agassizs approach was distinctly idealist and posited Americans participation in the Divine Nature, agassizs perspective on science combined observation with intuition and the assumption that a person can grasp the divine plan in all phenomena. When it came to explaining life-forms, Agassiz resorted to matters of shape based on an archetype for his evidence. Charles W. Eliot, president 1869–1909, eliminated the position of Christianity from the curriculum while opening it to student self-direction. While Eliot was the most crucial figure in the secularization of American higher education, he was motivated not by a desire to secularize education, during the 20th century, Harvards international reputation grew as a burgeoning endowment and prominent professors expanded the universitys scope. Rapid enrollment growth continued as new schools were begun and the undergraduate College expanded. Radcliffe College, established in 1879 as sister school of Harvard College, Harvard became a founding member of the Association of American Universities in 1900. In the early 20th century, the student body was predominately old-stock, high-status Protestants, especially Episcopalians, Congregationalists, by the 1970s it was much more diversified
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Grand Tour
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The custom flourished from about 1660, until the advent of large-scale rail transport in the 1840s, and was associated with a standard itinerary. It served as a rite of passage. With nearly unlimited funds, aristocratic connections and months to roam, they commissioned paintings, perfected their language skills, in addition, it provided the only opportunity to view specific works of art, and possibly the only chance to hear certain music. A Grand Tour could last from months to several years. It was commonly undertaken in the company of a Cicerone, a guide or tutor. The legacy of the Grand Tour lives on to the day and is still evident in works of travel. In essence, the Grand Tour was neither a scholars pilgrimage nor a one, though a pleasurable stay in Venice. Catholic Grand Tourists followed the routes as Protestant Whigs. Pompeo Batoni made a career of painting English milordi posed with graceful ease among Roman antiquities, many continued on to Naples, where they viewed Herculaneum and Pompeii, but few ventured far into southern Italy or Malta, and fewer still to Greece, still under Turkish rule. Rome for many centuries had been the goal of pilgrims, especially during Jubilee when they visited the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome. This is partly because he asked Inigo Jones, not yet established as an architect but already known as a traveller and masque designer. Larger numbers of tourists began their tours after the Peace of Münster in 1648, lasselss introduction listed four areas in which travel furnished an accomplished, consummate Traveller, the intellectual, the social, the ethical, and the political. The idea of travelling for the sake of curiosity and learning was an idea in the 17th century. Thus, one could use up the environment, taking from it all it offers, travel, therefore, was necessary for one to develop the mind and expand knowledge of the world. Consciously adapted for intellectual self-improvement, Gibbon was revisiting the Continent on a larger and more liberal plan, the typical 18th-century sentiment was that of the studious observer travelling through foreign lands reporting his findings on human nature for those unfortunate enough to have stayed home. Recounting ones observations to society at large to increase its welfare was considered an obligation, the Grand Tour offered a liberal education, and the opportunity to acquire things otherwise unavailable at home, lending an air of accomplishment and prestige to the traveller. The trappings of the Grand Tour, especially portraits of the traveller painted in iconic continental settings, became the obligatory emblems of worldliness, gravitas, the less well-off could return with an album of Piranesi etchings. The perhaps in Gibbons opening remark cast a shadow over his resounding statement
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Europe
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Europe is a continent that comprises the westernmost part of Eurasia. Europe is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, yet the non-oceanic borders of Europe—a concept dating back to classical antiquity—are arbitrary. Europe covers about 10,180,000 square kilometres, or 2% of the Earths surface, politically, Europe is divided into about fifty sovereign states of which the Russian Federation is the largest and most populous, spanning 39% of the continent and comprising 15% of its population. Europe had a population of about 740 million as of 2015. Further from the sea, seasonal differences are more noticeable than close to the coast, Europe, in particular ancient Greece, was the birthplace of Western civilization. The fall of the Western Roman Empire, during the period, marked the end of ancient history. Renaissance humanism, exploration, art, and science led to the modern era, from the Age of Discovery onwards, Europe played a predominant role in global affairs. Between the 16th and 20th centuries, European powers controlled at times the Americas, most of Africa, Oceania. The Industrial Revolution, which began in Great Britain at the end of the 18th century, gave rise to economic, cultural, and social change in Western Europe. During the Cold War, Europe was divided along the Iron Curtain between NATO in the west and the Warsaw Pact in the east, until the revolutions of 1989 and fall of the Berlin Wall. In 1955, the Council of Europe was formed following a speech by Sir Winston Churchill and it includes all states except for Belarus, Kazakhstan and Vatican City. Further European integration by some states led to the formation of the European Union, the EU originated in Western Europe but has been expanding eastward since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. The European Anthem is Ode to Joy and states celebrate peace, in classical Greek mythology, Europa is the name of either a Phoenician princess or of a queen of Crete. The name contains the elements εὐρύς, wide, broad and ὤψ eye, broad has been an epithet of Earth herself in the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European religion and the poetry devoted to it. For the second part also the divine attributes of grey-eyed Athena or ox-eyed Hera. The same naming motive according to cartographic convention appears in Greek Ανατολή, Martin Litchfield West stated that phonologically, the match between Europas name and any form of the Semitic word is very poor. Next to these there is also a Proto-Indo-European root *h1regʷos, meaning darkness. Most major world languages use words derived from Eurṓpē or Europa to refer to the continent, in some Turkic languages the originally Persian name Frangistan is used casually in referring to much of Europe, besides official names such as Avrupa or Evropa
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Italy
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Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, Italy covers an area of 301,338 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate and Mediterranean climate. Due to its shape, it is referred to in Italy as lo Stivale. With 61 million inhabitants, it is the fourth most populous EU member state, the Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom, which eventually became a republic that conquered and assimilated other nearby civilisations. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the distribution of civilian law, republican governments, Christianity. The Renaissance began in Italy and spread to the rest of Europe, bringing a renewed interest in humanism, science, exploration, Italian culture flourished at this time, producing famous scholars, artists and polymaths such as Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. The weakened sovereigns soon fell victim to conquest by European powers such as France, Spain and Austria. Despite being one of the victors in World War I, Italy entered a period of economic crisis and social turmoil. The subsequent participation in World War II on the Axis side ended in defeat, economic destruction. Today, Italy has the third largest economy in the Eurozone and it has a very high level of human development and is ranked sixth in the world for life expectancy. The country plays a prominent role in regional and global economic, military, cultural and diplomatic affairs, as a reflection of its cultural wealth, Italy is home to 51 World Heritage Sites, the most in the world, and is the fifth most visited country. The assumptions on the etymology of the name Italia are very numerous, according to one of the more common explanations, the term Italia, from Latin, Italia, was borrowed through Greek from the Oscan Víteliú, meaning land of young cattle. The bull was a symbol of the southern Italic tribes and was often depicted goring the Roman wolf as a defiant symbol of free Italy during the Social War. Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus states this account together with the legend that Italy was named after Italus, mentioned also by Aristotle and Thucydides. The name Italia originally applied only to a part of what is now Southern Italy – according to Antiochus of Syracuse, but by his time Oenotria and Italy had become synonymous, and the name also applied to most of Lucania as well. The Greeks gradually came to apply the name Italia to a larger region, excavations throughout Italy revealed a Neanderthal presence dating back to the Palaeolithic period, some 200,000 years ago, modern Humans arrived about 40,000 years ago. Other ancient Italian peoples of undetermined language families but of possible origins include the Rhaetian people and Cammuni. Also the Phoenicians established colonies on the coasts of Sardinia and Sicily, the Roman legacy has deeply influenced the Western civilisation, shaping most of the modern world
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