Thirteen British North American colonies declared independence in the United States Declaration of Independence.
The colonies stretched along the Atlantic coast from New Hampshire in the north to Georgia in the south. Their economies, populations, and political traditions differed greatly, but their representatives joined the revolutionary movement against British rule.
The Declaration's closing section identifies the colonies as free and independent states. They later became the original states of the United States, although the new nation initially operated under the Articles of Confederation rather than the Constitution.
The number thirteen also became a durable national symbol. The original flag adopted in 1777 had thirteen stars and thirteen stripes, representing the states. The stripes later remained at thirteen while additional states were represented by new stars.