The Causes of the French and Indian War

The End of the French Threat1. relations between England & the colonies had been

positive until the 1760s2. England & France were the two main rivals for

leadership in Europe 3. competition between the two nations emerged for

control of the seas & for the territory of India and North America

4. the problem in North America had several underlying causesa. overlapping territorial claimsb. competition over the Ohio valley: fur trade

5. a series of conflicts arose during the late 1600s due to French & Indian raiding if English frontier settlements, & England’s attempt to seize Canada

6. the final conflict would start in North America and spread which became known as the Seven Years War

The French & Indian War1. the immediate cause of war was a dispute over land west of the

Appalachian Mountainsa. France claimed the Ohio Valley as New Franceb. England considered it part of Virginia

2. colonists were expanding to settle in that region which angered France

3. In 1753, the French started to build forts from Lake Erie south to the Ohio River

4. Virginia Governor Robert Dinwiddie sent a mission led by George Washington , a 21 year old, a letter warning France they had invaded English territory and they must leave

5. France rejected the demand

6. the next year Fort Duquesne was built by the French at a point where the three major rivers met; Allegheny, Monongahela, & Ohio; a strategic site in the Ohio Valley and the gateway to the West

7. Washington was sent again with a militia where the colonials defeated a small group of French soldiers; they then built an outpost naming it Fort Necessity

8. France returned with reinforcements driving out the Virginians which was the official start of the war

The Albany Plan of Union

1. England encouraged members of the colonies to organize against the French

2. representatives from seven colonies met at Albany, NY in 17543. the Albany Congress had two main purposes

a. gain control of Iroquois Confederacyb. unite the colonies for the purpose of defensec. Benjamin Franklin of Pa. proposed the Albany Plan of Union

(1) a “grand council” for a congress representing all of the colonies(2) the grand council would have the power to maintain an army(3) levy taxes(4) a council for westward expansion

4. Britain rejected Franklin’s plan feeling it would make the colonies too strong

5. however this event led the colonies to start thinking about a union

Early Years of the French & Indian War

1. after winning at Fort Duquesne, England sent Edward Braddock to lead a combined British and colonial forces

2. unfamiliar with wilderness warfare, Braddock led his troops into a trap where he was mortally wounded & his troops were routed

3. George Washington who was part of the force, led the survivors back to safety

4. France had continued success in taking key British posts at Fort Oswego on Lake Ontario & Fort William Henry on Lake George

5. Britain was defeated when it made an offensive Ticonderoga in upstate New York & Louisbourg in Nova Scotia

The Tide Turns1. Once William Pitt became

Prime Minister of England in 1757, things dramatically changed in the war

2. Pitt sent more soldiers & supplies with able officers

3. he was also successful in getting greater support from the colonies

4. success came again at the second battles of Louisbourg & Fort Duquesne in 1758

5. victories at Fort Niagara, Ticonderoga, & Crown Point in New York came

The Conquest of Canada

1. France’s most fortified spot was Quebec on a high cliff overlooking the St. Lawrence River

2. with 9000 troops sailing under the command of James Wolfe, a four month siege began

3. at the dead of night, he would lead his troops up the cliff which the French believed was not possible

4. a battle ensued on the Plains of Abraham where Wolfe & the French commander Marquis de Montcalm were killed

5. Britain would capture the city which was the decisive battle of the war

6. later Montreal would fall & France’s power in North America was broken

The Peace Treaty1. with the war being fought in

other parts of the world such as in India, the peace treaty was not signed until 1763 at the Treaty of Paris

2. France relinquished Canada & all of the land east of Mississippi River except New Orleans

3. New Orleans & the area west of the Mississippi went to Spain, an ally of France

4. Spain gave England Florida in exchange for Cuba which England took during the war

5. two small islands in the St. Lawrence would remain Spain’s & France retained several islands in the Caribbean ( Haiti, Martinique, Guadeloupe, St. Lucia)