Britannica Student Encyclopedia - 2010

founded Valletta in the 1560s. It became

the capital of Malta in 1570.

Great Britain took control of Malta in

the early 1800s. The British used Valletta

as a base for their Navy. During

WorldWar II (1939–45) the city was

bombed many times. Malta became an

independent country in 1964. Valletta

remained its capital.

..More to explore

Malta

Valley

A valley is a long depression, or ditch,

in Earth’s surface. It usually lies

between ranges of hills or mountains.

Most valleys are formed by rivers that

erode, or wear down, soil and rocks.

This process takes thousands or

millions of years.

River Valleys

Like other landforms, river valleys are

always changing. Rivers continually

wear away the land through which they

flow, gradually making the valleys

deeper. At the same time, other forces

loosen material on the valley walls.

These forces include rain, frost, and

wind. The eroded material from the

valley walls falls into the river and is

carried away.

Valleys are usually narrow when they are

first formed. Over time, however, most

valleys become wider as the walls are

worn away. One valley might grow

wider than another because the river

flows through a softer type of rock that

erodes more easily. The force of the river’s

flow also affects how a valley

changes over the years.

A passenger ship rests in the harbor of Valletta,

Malta.

52 Valletta BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA

 

Canyons are very narrow, deep river

valleys cut through hard rock. They have

steep sides that run almost straight up

and down. Canyons can be several thousand

feet deep. Smaller valleys of this

kind are called gorges. Some canyons are

remarkable landforms. The Grand Canyon,

in the U.S. state of Arizona, is 0.1

to 18 miles (0.2 to 29 kilometers) wide

and more than a mile (1.6 kilometers)

deep in some places. It was carved by the

Colorado River.

Glacial and Rift Valleys

Not all valleys are formed by rivers.

Some valleys are formed by huge, slowly

moving bodies of ice called glaciers.

Thousands of years ago glaciers covered

large parts of Earth’s surface. As the

glaciers moved along, they scraped the

land and carried away giant boulders

and huge amounts of soil. They left valleys

behind.

Other valleys are formed by movements

of the huge plates, or pieces of land,

that make up Earth’s surface. These are

called rift valleys. Rift valleys are

formed when the edge of one plate

slides downward under the edge of

another plate.

#More to explore

Erosion • Glacier • River

Van Buren,

Martin

Martin Van Buren was the eighth president

of the United States. He helped to

found the Democratic Party.

Early Life

Martin Van Buren was born on December

5, 1782, in Kinderhook, New York.

He was the son of Abraham Van Buren,

a farmer and tavern keeper, and Maria

Hoes Van Alen. Both of his parents had

Dutch roots.

After studying with a village lawyer, Van

Buren started a law practice in 1803. In

1807 he married Hannah Hoes. They

had four sons. Van Buren’s wife died in

1819. He never remarried.

A river flows through the valley that it

carved out over thousands of years.

A wide valley lies between mountains in

Nepal.

BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Van Buren, Martin 53

 

Political Career

Van Buren was a successful lawyer, but

politics became his main interest. From

1812 to 1820 Van Buren served in the

New York Senate. He also served as state

attorney general. In 1821 he entered the

U.S. Senate.

Van Buren was a member of the

Democratic-Republican Party, started by

President Thomas Jefferson. In the mid-

1820s that party split up. Van Buren

and followers of Andrew Jackson formed

a new political party—the Democratic

Party.

In 1828 Van Buren won election as governor

of New York. After three months

he resigned to become secretary of state

under President Jackson.

After Jackson was reelected in 1832, Van

Buren became vice president. In 1836

the Democrats chose Van Buren to run

for president. Van Buren defeated his

opponents in the Whig Party.

Presidency

Soon after Van Buren took office, a

financial crisis struck the nation. Many

banks and businesses failed. The president

offered no help. He asked Congress

to set up a treasury to protect the government’s

money.

December 5, July 24,

1782 1821 1832 1836 1839 1840 1862

Van Buren is

born in

Kinderhook,

New York.

Van Buren

enters the U.S.

Senate.

Van Buren is

elected vice

president under

Andrew

Jackson.

Van Buren is

elected

president.

Van Buren

stops a dispute

over Maine’s

border.

Van Buren

loses reelection

to William

Henry

Harrison.

Van Buren dies

in Kinderhook.

T I M E L I N E

Martin Van Buren was the eighth president

of the United States.

54 Van Buren, Martin BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA

 

Van Buren lost more popularity over a

long and costly war with the Seminole

people in Florida. He also faced widespread

anger over his failure to annex, or

take over, the Republic of Texas. However,

in 1839 Van Buren successfully

stopped a dispute between Maine and

New Brunswick, Canada, over Maine’s

northeastern border.

Later Years

William Henry Harrison defeated Van

Buren in the presidential election of

1840. In 1848 Van Buren ran for president

as a member of the Free Soil Party,

but he received few votes.