The United States and Norway have a very long tradition of positive relations. The American Revolution of 1776 had a profound impact on Norway, and the democratic ideals of the United States Constitution served as a model for the authors of Norway's own Constitution of 1814. The close relationship between the two nations was reinforced by massive Norwegian emigration to the U.S. during the period 1825–1940, when more than 850,000 Norwegians made new homes in the United States and helped build the nation.