Denver is the capital and largest city of the state of Colorado, in the United States of America.

Located in the north central part of the state, Denver is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of the Rocky Mountain region and the home of numerous federal government agencies and offices.

Denver is known as the Mile High City, a nickname it was given because a spot on the state capitol steps is at an elevation of 5,280 ft (1,609 m), exactly one mile above sea level.

Denver is on the Western edge of the Great Plains near the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. The range’s snowcapped peaks rise abruptly from low foothills and provide a spectacular backdrop to the city.

In the city is the confluence of the South Platte River and Cherry Creek.

Denver’s location on the plains gives it a climate quite different from that found in the Rocky Mountains a short distance to the West. The city’s dry, sunny climate is favored by tourists.

Denver was founded in 1858 at the beginning of a regional gold rush and named after James W. Denver, territorial governor of Kansas, of which the region was still a part.

The city and county of Denver share the same boundaries and cover a land area of 397.0 sq km (153.3 sq mi).