A Presidential Inauguration is the closest Americans get to a coronation - an event filled with pageantry and ceremony when politics is put aside and the nation comes together to support its head of state.
As well as undertaking a constitutionally mandated function, inaugurations provide a chance for the incoming President to address the nation and outline a vision for the Presidency and the country. In 1801, Thomas Jefferson stated: "We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists," to try and bring together the bitter partisans of the two parties.
They also present an opportunity for dozens of parties in the nation's capital, which comes to a standstill for the celebrations.
Over history the event has swung between a heavy emphasis on rituals and ceremony and populist attempts make it more accessible.
The Details
The oath of office is traditionally administered on the steps of Congress on Capitol Hill by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. The current Chief Justice is William Renquist.
Around the President are family, friends and officials while in front of him is a large crowd braving the cold of Washington in January. In 1985 the ceremony was moved inside the Capitol because the temperature dropped to -19C.
The Inaugural Address
On the steps the President gives his inaugural address. Some of the most famous lines in American oratory have come out of these speeches. President Lincoln's two speeches - one with war looming and the other with it drawing to a close - are classics of their kind: the people looked to the speech for signals about what kind of war and what kind of peace the country was heading for.
Other memorable addresses include:
- Franklin Roosevelt's first inaugural speech in the midst of the depression in which he said:
"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself".
- John F Kennedy's address in 1961 signalled the passing of the torch to a new generation:
"Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country".
However, in recent years, few have remained long in the memory, partly perhaps the subsequent achievements seldom match the soaring rhetoric.
What happens on the day?
After the ceremony the President travels the 1.2 miles from Capitol Hill to the White House. In the evening he attends the inaugural balls - in 1996 Clinton dropped in at a record 14 official balls, 13 regional balls and a youth ball. George Washington attended the first inaugural ball in New York, while the first ball in Washington DC took place in 1809.
Inaugurations have not always taken place in Washington:
