[[Betsy Ross purportedly sewed the first
American flag with 13 stars and 13 stripes representing each of the 13 colonies.]]
The
Thirteen Colonies were 13
British colonies in
North America, separately chartered and governed, that signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and formally broke with the
Kingdom of Great Britain, leading to the
American Revolutionary War and the establishment of the
United States of America.
Other British North American possessions—the former French colony of
Quebec and the colonies of
Nova Scotia and
Prince Edward Island—remained loyal to the British Crown and much later were united as
Canada. The colonies of
East Florida and
West Florida also remained loyal during the American Revolution.
The Thirteen Colonies
Contemporaneous documents almost always listed the colonies in geographical order, roughly from north to south, as follows (the division into three regions is a later construct of historians):
- New England:
- * Province of New Hampshire, later New Hampshire and Vermont*
- * Province of Massachusetts Bay, later Massachusetts and Maine
- * Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, later Rhode Island and Providence Plantations
- * Connecticut Colony, later Connecticut
- Middle Colonies:
- * Province of New York, later New York and Vermont*
- * Province of New Jersey, later New Jersey
- * Province of Pennsylvania, later Pennsylvania
- * Delaware Colony (before 1776, the "Lower Counties on Delaware"), later Delaware
- Southern Colonies:
- * Province of Maryland, later Maryland
- * Colony and Dominion of Virginia, later Virginia, Kentucky and West Virginia
- * Province of North Carolina, later North Carolina and Tennessee
- * Province of South Carolina, later South Carolina
- * Province of Georgia, later Georgia
Vermont was an independent country from 1777 until it became the 14th state in 1791. Today it is considered part of
New England.
Other British colonies in North America and the Caribbean in 1776
Britain held several other colonies in North America and the Caribbean in 1776 which did not join the 13 in their
American Revolution against the Crown.
Future Canadian provinces
British claimed authority over both the red and pink areas on this map and
Spain ruled the orange west of the
Mississippi river. The red area is the area of the 13 colonies after the Proclamation of 1763. (Map produced by U.S. Dept. of Interior.)]]
Future American states
Future independent countries
Future British overseas territories
Other
See also
External links
da:13 oprindelige kolonier
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es:Trece Colonias
fr:Treize colonies britanniques en Amérique du Nord
Category:U.S. colonial history
Category:Former British colonies