USA ~ 'Betsy Ross' Grunge Flag (1777 - 1795)

The USA, formally known as the United States of America, emerged from the original Thirteen Colonies established by the British between 1603 and 1733. Its disputes over increased independence and representation within the British Empire (‘no taxation without representation’) led to the formation of a Continental Congress and the Declaration of Independence in 1776. The new USA staged the world’s first successful independence war against a colonial empire. Throughout the nineteenth century, the USA embarked on a massive campaign of expansion, conquering ever more lands, displacing or liquidating native tribes and establishing new member states. By 1900 and despite a devastating civil war (1861 – 1865), the USA extended from the Atlantic to the Pacific, boasted the largest economy in the world and was confirmed as a military power in the Spanish-American War and First World War. It became a super power (along with the USSR) following the Second World War and, despite the resurging power of China and post-Soviet Russia, has retained much of its power and global influence at the dawn of the twenty-first century.

The original flag of the USA, known as ‘Betsy Ross’, was first flown in 1777. It consisted of thirteen horizontal stripes of alternating red and white, with a blue canton displaying a circle of thirteen stars to represent the country’s founding states. The design was similar to that of the British East India Company and was in use until 1795.

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