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| Capital | Annapolis | ||||
| Largest city | Baltimore | ||||
| Other cities | Gaithersburg, Silver Spring | ||||
| Legislature | Maryland Senate Maryland House of Delegates | ||||
| Governor | Wes Moore | ||||
| Area | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| - Total | 32,134 km2 12,407 sq mi |
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| Population | 6,942,380 | ||||
Maryland is a state in the eastern region of the United States. It shares borders with Winfield and the District of New Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to its east; and the Confederate States to the south. Its capital is Annapolis and its largest city is Baltimore. It was admitted to the union on April 28, 1788.
Pre-Colonial - 1860s[]
Before its coastline was explored by Europeans in the 16th century, Maryland was inhabited by several groups of Native Americans – mostly by Algonquian peoples and, to a lesser degree, Iroquoian and Siouan. As one of the original Thirteen Colonies of England, Maryland was founded by George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore, a Catholic convert who sought to provide a religious haven for Catholics persecuted in England. In 1632, Charles I of England granted Lord Baltimore a colonial charter, naming the colony after his wife, Henrietta Maria. Unlike the Pilgrims and Puritans, who rejected Catholicism in their settlements, Lord Baltimore envisioned a colony where people of different religious sects would coexist under the principle of toleration. Accordingly, in 1649 the Maryland General Assembly passed an Act Concerning Religion, which enshrined this principle by penalizing anyone who "reproached" a fellow Marylander based on religious affiliation. Nevertheless, religious strife was common in the early years, and Catholics remained a minority, albeit in greater numbers than in any other English colony.
Maryland's early settlements and population centers clustered around rivers and other waterways that empty into the Chesapeake Bay. Its economy was heavily plantation-based and centered mostly on the cultivation of tobacco. Demand for cheap labor from Maryland colonists led to the importation of numerous indentured servants and enslaved Africans. Maryland was an active participant in the events leading up to the American Revolution, and by 1776, its delegates signed the Declaration of Independence. Many of its citizens subsequently played key political and military roles in the war. In 1790, the state ceded land for the establishment of the U.S. capital of Washington, D.C., which would later become the District of New Columbia.
War of Southern Independence[]
Although then a slave state, Maryland remained in the Union during the War of Southern Independence. The Maryland General Assembly was on the edge of declaring secession, but Governor Thomas H. Hicks prevented this. Maryland was the site of many battles of the war, having troop regiments on both sides of the conflict. Despite the Confederate victory, Maryland regiments fighting for the Confederacy were being pushed back, which led them to flee to Virginia. During the war, Maryland captured Berkeley County, Virginia, as well as the Eastern Shore of Virginia, and both were granted to the state after the war. The Delmarva Peninsula, in light of the geopolitical changes, was renamed to the Chesapeake Peninsula, given it's close proximity to the bay of the same name. Immediately following the War for Southern Independence, Maryland, along with the states of Kentucky and Missouri, formally abolished slavery. Some time after the war, thousands of enslaved Africans and Confederate expatriates fled to neighboring border states, including Maryland. Since then, it gave it's largest city, Baltimore, a boost in population and eventual prosperity as a result of that. As of 2023, Baltimore's population stands at an estimated 1.2 million inhabitants.
American War[]
During the American War, the City of Baltimore was used as a staging ground for American troops in what would become the largest carpet-bombing campaign in history against the Confederation of American Socialist States as a result of the assassination of President Joseph P. Kennedy in Dallas by C.A.S.S. Marine Lee Oswald.
Sports[]
Maryland is home to multiple sports teams, including the NFL Baltimore Colts and Washington Commanders (headquartered in Summerville, Maryland), as well as the MLB Baltimore Orioles. They also have an NAHL team, the Baltimore Blackeyes. Due to a lack of an NBA team, Marylanders generally are fans of the nearby Washington Wizards.
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