This is a list of capital cities that were specially designed, planned, and built to be a national or regional capital.

Built Current national capitals

City Country Date Notes Abuja 1991 In 1976, Nigeria's military government made plans for a new capital city. In 1991, it was moved from Lagos to provide a capital that was independent of the three major ethnic groups, the Yoruba, Igbo, and Hausa-Fulani, in an area in the country's interior. A new capital granted relief to the congestion and overcrowding of Lagos. Ankara 1923 Having served as the capital of the ancient Celtic state (280–64 BC) and Roman province of Galatia (25 BC–7th century), on 23 April 1920, the Grand National Assembly of Turkey was established in Ankara. Ankara became the new Turkish capital on the establishment of the Republic on 29 October 1923, succeeding the former Turkish capital Constantinople, now known as Istanbul. Astana 1998 After Kazakhstan became independent following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the city's original name was restored in the modified form Akmola. On 6 July 1994, the Supreme Council of Kazakhstan adopted the decree "On the transfer of the capital of Kazakhstan". On 10 December 1997, the capital was moved to Akmola, which was then renamed Astana in 1998. On 10 June 1998, Astana was proclaimed the capital. On 16 July 1999, Astana was awarded the medal and title City of Peace by UNESCO. Baghdad 762 Victorious Abbasid rulers wanted their own capital to rule from. Choosing a site north of Ctesiphon, the capital of the defeated Sasanian Empire (and also just north of where ancient Babylon once stood), on 30 July 762 the caliph Al-Mansur commissioned the construction of the city. Belmopan 1970 In 1970, the capital of Belize was moved to Belmopan after 1961's Hurricane Hattie caused extensive damage to the former capital Belize City. Brasília 1960 Between 1763 and 1960, the capital of Brazil was the city of Rio de Janeiro. However, historical and internal developments in the country during the 1950s led to the revival of a project that had been envisioned for over 150 years. As a result, the new capital was built in a politically neutral and central location, aiming to avoid internal political tensions. Moreover, since national development had been largely concentrated along the coast, the decision also sought to reduce the vulnerability of governmental institutions to external attacks and to promote greater territorial integration (as was stated in the Brazilian constitution in 1891) and to eliminate the vulnerability to attacks by sea. In addition, ongoing demands were placing a heavy burden on Rio de Janeiro, further justifying the need for a new administrative center. Bridgetown 1628 Moved from James Town to Bridgetown in 1628, due to better topography for a better shipping harbor. Canberra1927The Australian federal constitution adopted in 1901 required a new capital to be situated within the state of New South Wales but at least from the country's two largest cities, Sydney and Melbourne. The city's neutrality also served to ease the rivalry between the two cities. The Australian Capital Territory was created in 1911 and Canberra was formally established in 1913; however it was not until 1927, with the relocation of federal parliament, that it was designated as the capital.Ciudad de la Paz2026In January 2026, Ciudad de la Paz replaced Malabo as Equatorial Guinea's capital city, having been under construction since 2017. Dodoma 1996 Moved from Dar es Salaam. Gaborone 1964 In 1964, it moved from Mahikeng, South Africa, when Botswana became an independent country.Islamabad 1960 In 1960, the capital was temporarily shifted from Karachi to Rawalpindi, the move being completed in 1966. Once it was ready, Islamabad became the capital. It was created to diversify development across the country, rather than for it to be centered in the south, along the Arabian Sea coast. Lima 1535 Moved in 1535. Cuzco had been the inland capital of the Inca Empire, but when the Spanish Empire conquered Peru, Lima was founded, on the Pacific Ocean. Lima was consciously founded with the main aim of streamlining the logistics of Peruvian exports, taking advantage of its coastal location to connect the Andean interior with overseas markets. It was founded by Francisco Pizarro to take advantage of being closer to the Isthmus of Panama and the Spanish Empire's colonies in North America and to be more distant from the war-torn highlands of Peru. Naypyidaw 2005 In 2005, it was moved from Yangon (Rangoon) to have the military government more centrally located, "so as to keep an eye on" rebel groups forming, and training for coups in the jungles and away from the political activities of Yangon. New Delhi 1912 In 1912, the capital was moved from Calcutta (now Kolkata) to New Delhi, a newly established administrative district within Delhi which had previously served as the capital of the Mughal Empire. Ngerulmud 2006 In 2006, the capital was moved from Koror City. Nouakchott 1958 In 1958, the capital was moved from Saint-Louis, Senegal by President Moktar Ould Daddah. Oslo (formerly Christiania) 1624 After a fire devastated medieval Oslo in 1624, King Christian IV ordered the city to be rebuilt further west, closer to the fortress, and renamed Christiania. Beginning in 1859, the former site of Oslo has been included in the city's borders. The city re-adopted the name Oslo in 1925. Palikir 1989 In 1989, moved from Kolonia. Pretoria 1860 Pretoria was founded in 1855 by Marthinus Pretorius, a leader of the Voortrekkers, who named it after his father Andries Pretorius. He chose a spot on the banks of the Apies rivier (Afrikaans for "Monkeys river") to be the new capital of the South African Republic (Dutch: Zuid Afrikaansche Republiek; ZAR). Putrajaya 2002 In February 2001, Putrajaya was designated as the administrative capital of Malaysia. The executive branch of government (Cabinet, federal ministries and agencies) and the seat of the judiciary were moved from Kuala Lumpur to Putrajaya. However, Kuala Lumpur remains the official capital and is still the seat of the head of state and legislative branch (Parliament of Malaysia). Seoul 1394 Joseon's first King, Taejo, planned the construction of the Hanyang city in October 1394, to replace Gaegyeong, old Goryeo's capital city. Government buildings were planned to be crowded along the street in front of the main palace Gyeongbokgung, to implement instructions from Confucian ideology. This traditional city center of Hanyang is part of modern Downtown Seoul. St. John's 1668 The city was laid out following the 1666 French invasion due to its strategic location on St. John's Harbour. The legislative council authorised the construction of a town in April 1668, and by September 1675, St. John's was one of six official towns on the island. Prior to this, Falmouth was the de facto capital. Valletta 1571 In 1571, as a result of the Great Siege of Malta six years earlier, the capital was moved from Birgu to Valletta. The new capital city was built on the Sciberras Peninsula between 1566 and 1571, and was named for the Grandmaster Jean Parisot de Valette. Washington, D.C. 1800 In 1800, the capital of the United States was moved here from its temporary capital in Philadelphia, after years of construction in the federal District of Columbia. The U.S. Constitution had authorized the federal government to set aside a federal district as a national capital. The move was part of the Compromise of 1790 between Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton allowing the U.S. Department of the Treasury to assume state governments' debts as a national debt in exchange for locating the capital in the South. Virginia and Maryland each ceded land for the capital. Wellington 1865In 1863, it was proposed that the capital be moved to a location on the shores of Cook Strait to better unify the country and provide greater accessibility for the South Island. An independent tribunal visited several potential sites and ultimately selected Wellington due to its central location, sheltered harbor, and defensible position. The land in the region was purchased from Iwi for this purpose. Yamoussoukro 1983 In 1983, moved from Abidjan.

Subnational City Administrative unit Parental country Date Notes Austin Texas 1839 The Republic of Texas (1839–1847) had five temporary capitals and one official capital, Houston, before its second president Mirabeau B. Lamar moved the capital to the new city of Austin. Indianapolis Indiana 1821 When Indiana became a state in 1816, the capital was in the southern town of Corydon, but in 1820 the Indiana General Assembly approved a move to a purpose-built city roughly at the state's center. Indianapolis was founded at the chosen site in 1821 and became the state capital in 1825. La Plata Buenos Aires Province 1882 La Plata was planned and developed to serve as the provincial capital after the city of Buenos Aires was federalized in 1880. It was officially founded by Governor Dardo Rocha on 19 November 1882.Lelystad1967Palmas1989 Zhongxing 1956 Zhongxing New Village became the capital of Taiwan Province of the Republic of China in 1956 after Taipei, which became the ROC's provisional capital from 1949, moved its Taiwan Provincial Government to that location; but continued to exist until 2018.

Historical