With clarity and vigor, Gregory H. Nobles shows how American leaders, beginning with Washington and Jefferson, pursued a policy of national expansion and development that enabled the United States to become the dominant power on the North American continent. Within this broad framework he also explores the settlers' diverse and complex interactions with Indians as enemies, allies, and trading partners. The result is a sensitive and perceptive account of the patterns of contact and conquest on America's frontiers over the course of four centuries.