The Thirteen Original Colonies

Before the United States was formed, it was a group of colonies – areas under the control of another country.  In this case, the country in charge was England.  The 13 original colonies were established in the 17th and 18th centuries by European settlers looking for religious freedom, economic opportunities, and political liberty.  They left Europe and created colonies, but they were under British rule, governed by King George III and his officials in England. 

A map of the 13 original colonies can be seen below, with the colonies in color and the rest of the modern-day U.S. in light blue:

Of course, even before European settlers came to the 13 colonies, it is important to recognize that Native Americans, or indigenous people, had lived there for thousands of years.  Due to the incorrect belief that the land they had arrived at was India, not American, these people were originally called, and are still often referred to as, “Indians.”  Many Native Americans died once European settlers arrived, due to diseases that Europeans brought with them, conflict over land, and forcible displacement.  Additional land in the modern day United States, outside of the 13 colonies, was originally also both Native American territory and Spanish territory.