Washington, D.C. is the capital of the United States. The city is located within the District of Columbia, a special administrative territory that does not belong to any U.S. state. Washington was founded in 1790 and named in honor of the first U.S. president, George Washington, highlighting his role in the founding and independence of the American nation.
Washington, D.C. is unique in that all three branches of the U.S. government are based here. The executive branch is represented by the President of the United States, who resides in the heart of the city at the White House, along with the presidential administration. The legislative branch is the United States Congress, which meets in the United States Capitol and consists of two chambers—the Senate and the House of Representatives. The judicial branch is represented by the Supreme Court of the United States. In addition, nearly all major federal agencies and executive departments are headquartered in Washington.
The city is located on the East Coast of the United States, not far from the Atlantic Ocean, on land originally designated by the states of Virginia and Maryland. Compared to many other major U.S. cities, Washington is relatively small in size. About 650,000 people live within the city limits, but the greater Washington metropolitan area is home to approximately 5 million residents.
Washington was purpose-built as a capital city. The original urban plan was designed by the renowned architect and city planner Pierre Charles L’Enfant, who laid out the city in a grid pattern overlaid with wide diagonal avenues, inspired by Baroque city design.
Today, Washington is one of the few major U.S. cities with strict height restrictions on buildings. As a result, there are no skyscrapers here, which gives the city a distinctive look compared to other North American cities. The tallest structure in Washington is the Washington Monument, reaching a height of 169 meters (555 feet).
Spring marks the peak tourist season in Washington, usually from late March to early April, depending on the weather. This period coincides with the famous National Cherry Blossom Festival, celebrating the blooming cherry trees. Washington consistently ranks among the top ten most visited cities in the United States, attracting millions of visitors from around the world each year.