The Commonwealth of Virginia ( ) is an American state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. The state is named after Queen Elizabeth I of England, who was known as the 'Virgin Queen' because she never married. The state is also known as the "Old Dominion" and sometimes "Mother of Presidents", because it is the birthplace of eight U.S. presidents. The state is geographically shaped by the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Chesapeake Bay. The capital of the commonwealth is Richmond, Virginia Beach is the most populous city, and Fairfax County is the most populous political subdivision.

The roots of modern Virginia trace back to the founding of the Virginia Colony in 1607 by the Virginia Company of London as the first permanent New World English colony. Slavery played significant roles in Virginia's early economy and politics. Virginia became one of the thirteen colonies in the American Revolution and subsequently joined the Confederacy in the American Civil War. Although traditionally conservative and historically part of the South, modern Virginia is a politically competitive state for both major national parties.

Virginia has an economy with several sectors, including agricultural production, military bases in Hampton Roads, and federal agencies, such as The Pentagon, in Northern Virginia. The Historic Triangle includes the popular heritage tourism destinations of Jamestown, Yorktown and the living museum of Colonial Williamsburg. The growth of the technology sector has made computer chips the state's leading export, with the industry based on the strength of Virginia's public schools and universities. Areas where the state has lagged behind include health care and environmental protection.

Geography

Geology and terrain

The Chesapeake Bay separates most of the contiguous portion of the Commonwealth from the two-county peninsula of Virginia's Eastern Shore. Many of Virginia's rivers flow into the Chesapeake Bay, including the Potomac, Rappahannock, James, and York. Geographically and geologically, Virginia is divided into five regions from east to west: Tidewater, Piedmont, Blue Ridge Mountains, Ridge and Valley, and Appalachian Plateau.

The Tidewater is a coastal plain between the Atlantic coast and the fall line. It includes the Eastern Shore and major estuaries which enter the Chesapeake Bay. The Piedmont are a series of sedimentary and igneous rock-based foothills east of the mountains which were formed in the Mesozoic. The region includes the Southwest Mountains. The Blue Ridge are a physiographic province of the chain of Appalachian Mountains. The mountains are the highest points in the state, including Mount Rogers at . The Ridge and Valley region is west of the mountains, and includes the Great Appalachian Valley. The region is carbonate rock based, and includes Massanutten Mountain. The Appalachian Plateau is a region in the south-west corner of Virginia, below the Allegheny Plateau. In this region rivers flow northwest, with a dendritic drainage system, into the Ohio River basin.