system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: Somewhat Thanksgiving themed question: Why didn't the American colonists decide to colonize Canada, and how did Britain come to rule over it?
gpt
...I think you have it backward.

The English, French and Spanish colonized North America. The 13 colonies rebelled and gained independence to become the United States. England conquered France's territories in what is now Canada before that.

What is now Canada stayed part of the British Empire. The US did try to invade in the War of 1812, but they didn't win. IIRC there were also some skirmishes in the War of Independence as well. Canada eventually grew more and more independent from the Empire (a long and complicated story in and of itself). There were other attempts as well, such as the Fenian Raids, but none were successful.