Identify at least three characteristics of the British colonies.

1. They were mostly populated by Europeas of British descent. Some of the hailed from Scotland, others from Ireland, and other from Northern England, but the vast majority were from the British Islands with a few coming from other European Countries like Germany, The Netherlands, and Sweden.

2. There was a high degree of religious diversity. Pilgrims were the majority in New England, Quakers founded the colony of Pennsylvania, where many German Mennonites and Amish settled, and Catholics were common in the colony of Maryland.

3. They enjoyed a high degree of autonomy. For the most part, the British Crown did not get involved with colonial affairs. The colonies enjoyed political, social, and economic autonomy in most aspects, something that would deeply influence the federal configuration of the U.S. Government.