Annapolis Royal, town (1991 pop. 633), W N.S., Canada, on the Annapolis River. Founded as Port Royal by the sieur de Monts in 1605, the settlement was destroyed (1613) by English colonists under Samuel Argall but was rebuilt by the French. The fort changed hands between the French and the English five times from 1605 to 1710, when it capitulated to a force of New Englanders under Francis Nicholson. The name was then changed in honor of Queen Anne. Annapolis Royal was the capital of Nova Scotia from 1713 to 1749. Fort Anne Historic National Park includes the ruins of the fort. The officers' quarters (built 1797-98) have been restored as a museum.

Annapolis Convention, 1786, interstate convention called by Virginia to discuss a uniform regulation of commerce. It met at Annapolis, Md. With only 5 of the 13 states—Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Virginia—represented, there could be no full-scale discussion of the commercial problems the nation faced as a result of the weak central government under the Articles of Confederation. The main achievement of the convention was the decision to summon a new meeting for the express purpose of considering changes in the Articles of Confederation to make the union more powerful. An address was drawn up by Alexander Hamilton and was sent to all the states, asking them to send delegates to Philadelphia in May, 1787. The move was extraconstitutional, but Congress passed a resolution urging attendance. The call from Annapolis was heeded and delegates from 12 states met. From that Federal Constitutional Convention was to emerge the Constitution of the United States.

Annapolis, city (1990 pop. 33,187), state capital and seat of Anne Arundel co., central Md., on the south bank of the Severn River. Annapolis is a port of entry on Chesapeake Bay and the business and shipping center for the fruit and vegetable farmers of E Maryland. Local industries include the packaging of seafood and the manufacture of small boats, plastics, and aerospace parts. Tourists, some of whom sail on the Chesapeake, are also important to the economy; the city hosts the annual national sailboat show.

Annapolis was settled in 1649 by Puritans fleeing Virginia. Hostility between the Puritans and the Roman Catholic governors of Maryland resulted in the battle of the Severn River in 1655, in which the Puritans successfully revolted, only to lose control after the Restoration in England. The settlement, originally called Providence, was later known as Anne Arundel Town, after the wife of the 2d Lord Baltimore. In 1694 it became the provincial capital of Maryland and was renamed Annapolis for Princess (later Queen) Anne of England. In 1783-84, Annapolis served as the capital of the United States when the Congress met there. The city was the site of the Annapolis Convention (1786), which led to the Federal Constitutional Convention.

Still standing is the statehouse where George Washington resigned as commander in chief of the Continental Army in 1783 and where the treaty that ended the Revolutionary War was ratified in 1784 (see Paris, Treaty of). Other notable landmarks are the Old Treasury (c.1695), the oldest original building in Maryland; the library (1737); St. John's College; and St. Anne's Church (1858-59) and graveyard, where the former royal governor of Annapolis Sir Robert Eden (an ancestor of Anthony Eden) is buried. Much 18th-century architecture is preserved in the city. Annapolis is the site of the United States Naval Academy, founded in 1845.

Annapolis, river, c.75 mi (120 km) long, rising in W Nova Scotia, Canada, and flowing SW past Annapolis Royal to Annapolis Basin, an arm of the Bay of Fundy. The entrance to the basin, bordered by cliffs 500 ft (152 m) high, is known as Digby Gut. It is the site of a prototype tidal power station. The Annapolis lowlands, an important agricultural area, was the site of Nova Scotia's first successful farming colony.

(September 1786) Meeting in Annapolis, Md., U.S., that caused the convening of the Constitutional Convention. Delegates from five states gathered to discuss problems in maritime commerce but found they could not solve them without making changes to the Articles of Confederation. They issued a call to all states to meet in Philadelphia in 1787 to resolve the difficulties.

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City (pop., 2000: 35,838), capital of Maryland, U.S. It lies along the Severn River on Chesapeake Bay. Settled in 1649 as Providence by Virginia Puritans, it was later known as Town Land at Proctor's and Ann Arundel Town. It became the colonial capital in 1694 and was later renamed to honour Princess (later Queen) Anne. Its economy is tied to government services, and it is home to the U.S. Naval Academy.

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