Thirteen colonies declared independence in the United States Declaration of Independence in 1776.
The colonies occupied the eastern portion of North America under British rule: New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. Their economies, populations, and political institutions differed considerably, but disputes with Parliament and the Crown drew them into common resistance.
The declaration described the colonies collectively as free and independent states. The phrase “United States of America” referred to their new political identity, although the states remained loosely connected under the Articles of Confederation until the Constitution created a stronger federal system.
The thirteen-star arrangement later used on the United States flag represented these original states. Vermont and Kentucky joined the Union after independence, becoming the fourteenth and fifteenth states in 1791 and 1792. Thus, thirteen refers to the founding group, not the number of states today.