MARYLAND AT A GLANCE
CAPITAL
![[photo, State House (from Francis St.), Annapolis, Maryland]](/msa/mdmanual/25ind/images/statehouse/1198-1-06332c.jpg)
ANNAPOLIS
Annapolis is the State capital of Maryland. Centered on Maryland's Western Shore, Annapolis lies 25 miles south of Baltimore and 30 miles east of Washington, DC.From the founding of Maryland in 1634, however, St. Mary's City was the first seat of Maryland's colonial government, not Annapolis. (In southern Maryland, Historic St. Mary's City can be visited today in St. Mary's County.) As the population of Maryland grew, however, St. Mary's City, near the southernmost tip of St. Mary's County, proved too distant for most of the colony's inhabitants. Consequently, in 1694, the General Assembly designated Anne Arundel Town, midway up Chesapeake Bay, as the new capital and, in February 1694/5, the government moved its records and its operations there.
State House (from Francis St.), Annapolis, Maryland, February 2014. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
![[photo, City Dock, Annapolis, Maryland]](/msa/mdmanual/37mun/annapolis/images/1198-1-3217.jpg)
In the name of Queen Anne, Royal Governor John Seymour granted to the City of Annapolis a municipal charter on November 22, 1708.
City Dock, Annapolis, Maryland, September 2008. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
![[photo, McDowell Hall, St. John's College, Annapolis, Maryland]](/msa/mdmanual/01glance/images/1198-1-1080.jpg)
Toward the end of the Revolutionary War, the City also served as capital to the newly forming American nation when the Continental Congress met in Annapolis from November 26, 1783 to August 19, 1784. Here too, on January 14, 1784, the Treaty of Paris, ending the Revolutionary War, was ratified by Congress.
McDowell Hall, St. John's College, Annapolis, Maryland, April 2005. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
![[photo, Naval Academy grounds, Annapolis, Maryland]](/msa/mdmanual/37mun/annapolis/images/i004554b.jpg)
In modern times, Annapolis continues to host important meetings. On November 27, 2007, the Middle East Peace Conference was held at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis. Moreover, from June 17 to June 18, 2008, the U.S. Naval Academy again hosted an international conference, the U.S. - China Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED) IV.
U.S. Naval Academy grounds, Annapolis, Maryland, May 2000. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
![[photo, Sailboats, Back Creek, Annapolis, Maryland]](/msa/mdmanual/37mun/annapolis/images/1198-1-3352.jpg)
Known as "America's Sailing Capital", Annapolis hosts its Spring Sailboat Show each April and the U.S. Sailboat Show in October.
Sailboats, Back Creek, Annapolis, Maryland, October 2008. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
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