To find out what the United States was during its first eleven years of existence, we need to refer to historical knowledge or resources. The United States declared its independence from Great Britain on July 4, 1776. However, the country was not officially recognized as a sovereign nation until it ratified the Constitution on June 21, 1788. Therefore, during its first eleven years, from 1776 to 1787, the United States was not yet a fully formed nation. It functioned under the Articles of Confederation, which established a loose alliance among the thirteen original states. In this period, the country was known as the Confederation or Confederation of the United States.
