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And I said that it wasn't good enough. And you're entitled to that opinion. Fortunately though you are not the leading authority on that issue - the United States government is and the United States government officially recognizes St. Eustasius as its first diplomatic exchange and has formally states so in multiple State Department documents and at least two presidential proclamations (FDR and Bush Sr.) in the last century.

Ofcourse it does, because it was!

That doesn't mean that the diplomatic recognition of St. Eustasis meant anything to the rest of the world, which is what getting recognized as a nation is all about.

We honor St. Eustasius for being the first to recognize us, but that had nothing to do with worldwide recognition.

Neither could be considered a recoginized nation for the first three years of existance. Then I'll ask you again - when do you date the beginning of American nationhood to if not July 4, 1776?

That is when we recognize our nationhood, but had we not survived (like the Confederacy didn't) there would be no date to celebrate.

When is the Confederacy date of independence anyway?

That doesn't mean that the diplomatic recognition of St. Eustasis meant anything to the rest of the world, which is what getting recognized as a nation is all about.

Barbara Tuchman says otherwise and notes that St. Eustasius was a pivotal event of the revolution. It sent shockwaves through Europe and also provoked several British acts of retaliation against the Dutch and against the island.

Whatever the case may be, establishing nationhood is by no means a clear cut concept of diplomatic recognition. That is why I asked you what date you give for the U.S. if not July 4th and also presumably why you have yet to give a straight answer to that question.

When is the Confederacy date of independence anyway?

There is no one day as the states seceded individually on different days over a period of several months. Some of the ex CSA states do mark their Confederate History holidays on or about their dates of secession.

St. Eustasius was a Dutch possession. As I recall, Gov. de Graaf got recalled for his breach of protocol. De Graaf's gesture is remembered as the first salute to the American flag, but sadly, de Graaf was in no position to offer "diplomatic recognition" as his island was not in itself sovereign.

"That is when we recognize our nationhood, but had we not survived (like the Confederacy didn't) there would be no date to celebrate."

Good point.