Joe Biden has been inaugurated as the 46th president of the United States. Donald Trump did not attend the event, and in doing so became the first outgoing president to avoid the occasion in 150 years.
In his speech, the 78-year-old heralded a new dawn.
"My fellow Americans, this is America's day. This is democracy's day. A day of history and hope, of renewal and resolve," he said as former presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton watched on.
There was one notable absentee from proceedings — Donald Trump was not present to witness the event in an extraordinary break with tradition. He is the first president to skip his successor's inauguration since Andrew Johnson in 1869.
Biden was quick to reference the violent events of two weeks ago at the Capitol when angry Trump supporters stormed the meeting place of the United States Congress, resulting in the deaths of five people.
"On this hallowed ground," Biden continued, "where just a few days ago violence sought to shake the Capitol's very foundation, we come together as one nation, under God, indivisible, to carry out the peaceful transfer of power as we have for centuries."
Harris: 'We shoot for the moon'
Just minutes before Biden took center stage, Vice President Kamala Harris took the oath of office to become the first woman to hold the post. She is also the first Black person and first person of South Asian descent to be vice president.
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As part of the celebrations later in the evening at an event called "Celebrating America," Harris said it was an "honor to stand on the shoulders of those who came before, to speak tonight, as your vice president."
Harris was speaking in front of the reflecting pool, where on Tuesday she and Biden stood to remember the 400,000 people who have died from the coronavirus in the United States.
From Bush to Biden: How Angela Merkel interacted with US presidents
During her 16-year-long chancellorship, Angela Merkel saw three US presidents come and go. Following the tense Trump years, there were more harmonious scenes with Joe Biden.
Image: Guido Bergmann/Bundesregierung/REUTERS
Who will blink first?
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US President Donald Trump were at odds on Iran, trade, NATO and many other issues. But their differences seemed to run deeper — and even be personal: Trump is said to have called Merkel "stupid." During talks at a NATO summit in late 2019, the pair seemed to be staring each other down.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Kappeler
Who's the boss now?
The picture raised eyebrows around the world: Merkel and Trump at the G7 summit in Canada in June 2018. Is Merkel in control here, standing above Trump, as the true leader of the free world? Or is he the boss — the only one sitting? The image was released by the German government, captioned as a "spontaneous meeting between two working sessions."
Image: Reuters/Bundesregierung/J. Denzel
The handshake that wasn't
President Trump appeared standoffish when he hosted Chancellor Merkel at the White House in March 2017. While in the Oval Office, the US president refused to extend a hand to the chancellor in front of media, a stiff image that defined their first encounter.
Image: Reuters/J. Ernst
Look me in the eye
Merkel's bond with Barack Obama stood in sharp contrast to her relationship with Trump. The chancellor and Obama seemed to have become friends over the course of his two terms as US president. This picture was taken in November 2016, when Obama came to Berlin for a farewell visit — just a few days after Donald Trump was elected as his successor.
Image: Reuters/F. Bensch
All smiles
Merkel received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States' highest civilian award, at the White House in June 2011. Obama praised her commitment to European unity. Observers also saw the award as proof of good German-American relations.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
A time to make friends
At the G7 summit in the Bavarian Alps in 2015, Merkel and Obama got along well. The chancellor was able to count on US support on many topics, such as in the fight against climate change. This ended abruptly when Trump became president in 2016.
Image: Reuters/M. Kappeler
Do you feel the same?
Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush, made enthusiastic remarks about Merkel's love of freedom right after their first meeting. At the G8 summit in St. Petersburg in July 2006, he gave her an impromptu neck massage that took the chancellor by surprise. Still, it didn't seem to have put a strain on their relationship.
Image: AFP/Getty Images/A. Nemenov
Pork chop politics
In July 2006, Bush enjoyed putting a piece of grilled wild boar on Merkel's plate. Merkel had welcomed him to her constituency on the coast of the northeastern German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The barbecue was the highlight of the visit to Merkel's political home base.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/BPA/G. Bergmann
This land is my land
In 2007 Merkel visited Bush at his ranch in Texas. Bush personally chauffeured Merkel and her husband, Joachim Sauer, in his American-made pickup truck. Merkel and Bush agreed to work together to find a diplomatic solution to the rising tensions over Iran's nuclear program.
Image: Matthew Cavanaugh/dpa/picture-alliance
Trans-Atlantic love
At the funeral service for former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl in July 2017, former President Bill Clinton delivered a funny and emotional eulogy. "I loved him," he said. When he sat down again, he reached for Merkel's hand.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/M. Murat
That's a good one!
November 2009: Merkel has just delivered a speech before the US Congress in Washington, DC. While the applause went on, then-Vice President Joe Biden entertained the chancellor, making her laugh. Hopes are high for the German-American friendship now Biden has been elected president.
Image: Reynolds/dpa/picture alliance
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"In many ways, this moment embodies our character as a nation," she said. "It demonstrates who we are, even in dark times.
"We not only dream, we do. We not only see what has been, we see what can be. We shoot for the moon, and then we plant our flag on it. We are bold, fearless and ambitious. We are undaunted in our belief that we shall overcome, that we will rise up. This is American aspiration."
Earlier, it was 22-year-old poet Amanda Gorman who captured the mixed emotions of the past four years with a poem in which she referred to herself as a "skinny Black girl, descended from slaves and raised by a single mother (who) can dream of becoming president only to find herself reciting for one."
World leaders were quick to congratulate the new president, though there were slightly more cautionary welcomes from Iran and Russia.
The day-long event ended with fireworks lighting the Washington sky, and Joe Biden, along with his family, waving from the balcony of the White House to herald a new beginning, both at home and abroad.
