Micronesia

The Federated States of Micronesia are an island country in the western Pacific, spread across most of the Caroline Islands. Palikir on Pohnpei is the capital, Weno in Chuuk Lagoon is the largest town, and the four states are, from west to east, Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae.

The country takes in some 607 islands, mostly small atolls around a few main volcanic islands, and its waters stretch almost 2,700 km (1,700 mi) from west to east. The ancestors of the Micronesians arrived more than 4,000 years ago, and over time a culture centered on Yap took shape. On the eastern edge of Pohnpei, the Saudeleur dynasty ruled from Nan Madol, a city of small artificial islands linked by canals and often called the Venice of the Pacific, from about AD 500 until its system collapsed around 1500.

Portuguese and then Spanish ships reached the Carolines in the 16th century, and Spain claimed them as part of the Spanish East Indies, founding a town in 1887 at what is now Kolonia on Pohnpei. Pope Leo XIII settled a dispute between Spain and Germany in 1885 in Spain's favor, but after losing the Spanish–American War Spain sold the islands to Germany in 1899. Japan seized them in World War I and ruled them under a League of Nations mandate.

After the war the islands became part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands under United States administration. They adopted a constitution on 10 May 1979 and became independent on 3 November 1986 under a Compact of Free Association with the United States. The country joined the United Nations, and Nan Madol is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.