The Historic Triangle, on the thin peninsula that stretches east of Richmond between the James and York Rivers, holds by far the richest concentration of colonial-era sites in the USA.

Jamestown, founded in 1607, was Virginia's first settlement; Williamsburg is an animated and theatrical resurrection of the colonial capital; and it was at Yorktown that the American Independence from the English crown was finally secured. All three sites are within an hour by car or train from Washington DC.