The Citadel, "The Military College of South Carolina," is a unique public institution with the mission of educating principled leaders. Located in historic Charleston, South Carolina, this military academy has been consistently ranked the best college in the region by U.S. News & World Report in its annual survey of "America's Best Colleges." The Citadel was established in 1842, by an act of the South Carolina General Assembly. It started as an academy to train men as citizen-soldiers, to be leaders in civilian life and to serve the military in time of need. The cadets from the academy had played a vital role in the American Civil War, and all the conflicts in the nation since the Mexican War. This state-supported military college offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in the humanities, business, math, science, engineering, and education. It is number two in public colleges granting master's degrees in the South. The college offers courses through the Corps of Cadets, the nation's largest military college program outside the service academies, and the College of Graduate and Professional Studies. The College of Graduate and Professional Studies, located in the Lowcountry, offers nationally accredited undergraduate, graduate and masters degree programs. In addition, it also provides three undergraduate evening programs in business and engineering. The Daniel Library at The Citadel, holds more than 200,000 books and subscribes to more than 1,700 periodical titles. It is also a storehouse of U. S. Government documents and has a wide range of documents on a variety of topics. The Citadel Archives and Museum’s collections reflect the past and the present of The Citadel as an institution. Though it is designed to be self-guided, guided tours are also provided on request.