THE LAND THAT BECAME THE UNITED STATES WAS first inhabited by millions of indigenous people from many nations, each of which had independent and sometimes interdependent governments and economies. Starting in 1565, the territory was invaded by many European countries for a variety of reasons: to expand trade, to impose Christianity, to avoid religious persecution, to seize land and resources for the benefit of the parent nation, and to prevent colonization by European rivals. The thirteen colonies that became the original United States were under British control when Americans declared their independence.
These original colonies, established between 1606 and 1732, were Virginia, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maryland, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Delaware, North Carolina, South Carolina, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Georgia.