U.S. Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney's campaign has announced that it will hold an election night rally in the City of Boston, where Romney's national campaign headquarters is based.

The following is a brief introduction to Boston, the capital of the state of Massachusetts and its largest city.

Founded in 1630 by Puritan colonists from England, Boston is one of the oldest cities in the United States. During the late 18th century, Boston was the location of several major events in the American Revolution, such as the 1773 dumping of crates of tea into Boston harbor as a protest against the British Tea Tax.

As a regional economic and cultural hub, Boston has a population of 617,594, according to 2011 census data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The City of Boston hosts over 12 million annual visitors from across the country and around the globe.

Boston is also the seat of many colleges and universities, making it an international center of higher education and a center for medicine. Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston University and Northeastern University are among the most famous ones here.

The Romney campaign has said that Romney will spend the election night with supporters at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center (BCEC), a 2.1 million square-foot facility.

Recent polls show that Romney is trailing behind President Barack Obama by a large margin in Massachusetts, where he served as the governor in 2003-2007. The Bay State was won by Obama over his Republican opponent John McCain in the 2008 presidential election.