Thirteen colonies declared independence from Britain in 1776 and became the founding states of the United States.
The colonies occupied Britain’s Atlantic mainland possessions in North America, stretching from New Hampshire in the north to Georgia in the south. Their economies, geography, and political institutions differed considerably, but they shared growing opposition to imperial taxation and control.
The Declaration of Independence, adopted on July 4, 1776, named the colonies as “united States” rather than describing a single established nation in the modern sense. After the Revolutionary War, the Articles of Confederation treated the thirteen states as a confederation. The Constitution later created a stronger federal system.
The thirteen original states were Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Virginia, New York, North Carolina, and Rhode Island. Their order in some historical lists reflects ratification of the Articles rather than geographic position.