The Fall of New France

Characters, the political and military situations of each country,

and the aftermath

Pierre de Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil-Cavagnal

Governor Vaudreuil

O 61 years old in 1759O First Canadian-born man to hold this

positionO Passionate in his defense of QuebecO Disagreed with Montcalm about

everything – felt Montcalm is too passive

O Prefers the “Indian-style” guerrilla tactics

O Explain: What are Guerilla tactics?

Louis-Joseph, Le Marquis de Montcalm

Le Marquis de Montcalm

O 47 years old in 1759O French aristocrat – described as vain,

dogmatic (strict, unbending) and tactless

O Thought Vaudreuil was “too Canadian” and plotted to have him removed so he could take over his position.

O If he couldn’t be governor, he wanted to return to France as soon as possible

O Defeatist – didn’t see how Quebec could be saved. Planned to retreat to Louisiana and leave the settlers to the enemy.

O Preferred European tactics – he had used them to great victories at Fort Oswego and Fort William Henry (French Indian Wars)

O Describe a European-Style battle

Major-General James Wolfe

Major-General James Wolfe

O 32 years old in 1759O Came up through the ranks

(battlefield promotions), unlike his generals who purchased their commissions

O His generals disliked him greatly – he got command because of his leadership in the battle for Fort Louisburg. As a result, his generals described him as insignificant and full of his own importance

O Had a cruel streak – especially toward the French

O Why did he hate the French especially?

O In 1757, after being ordered to destroy the Acadian villages, he ordered, “all be burned”.

O As for Quebec he wrote, “If for some reason we come to the conclusion that we have very little chance of conquering Quebec, I propose to bombard the city, destroy the crops, houses and animals, expedite as many Canadians as possible to Europe and leave behind me nothing but hunger and desolation…”

Military Situation – New France

O Montcalm had 16,000 soldiers (regular and militia) at his disposal

O What is the difference between regular and militia soldiers?O 300 What is your profession?

O French supply ships had been blocked by the British

O A population of 70,000 Canadians to draw from

Military Situation - British

O 200 ships, 8,000 regular soldiers, 15,000 militia (from the Thirteen Colonies) and marines (sailors trained as soldiers).

O Could draw from a population of 1.5 million (Thirteen Colonies)

O Had already taken Fort Louisburg in 1758

Political Situation – New France

O The Bishop of New France (Mgr. de Pontraind) and Governor Vaudreuil wrote to King Louis XV to send troops to assist in the defense

O Madame Pompadour, the king’s mistress advised against sending any more troops

Political Situation – New France

O Montclam and Vaudreuil argued about everything, including how to defend the region

O Montcalm, a hero of the French Indian Wars wanted to fight a defensive war – avoid direct confrontation

O Vaudreuil was more aggressive – wanted to attack the English at every opportunity

Political Situation – British

O Were losing the Seven Years War in France

O Decided to take all of North America – hoped to distract the French into defending the colony, leaving fewer defenses in Europe

O Sent ¼ of their entire fleet to accomplish the task

Political Situation – British

O Wolfe was desperate for victoryO Suffered from some sort of lung

disease (needed treatment)O Wanted to retire, but his father had

left him no moneyO Needed a “reward” or a pension from

the king so as not to be a burden on anyone else

O Kings don’t reward failure

Summer, 1759O British ships sail up the St. Lawrence River

O Convoy stretches 150 miles down the riverO British kidnap 2 French-Canadian pilots

and force them to navigate the fleet down the river

O British establish a base of operations on Ile d’Orleans

O British take the south side of the river – Pointe LevisO Establish cannons across the river from

Quebec

St. Lawrence River

Montmorency River

St. Charles River

Ile d’Orleans

Beauport

Fort Quebec

Pointe Levis

O June 28 – French response to British invasion force – send “fire ships” at the fleet (unsuccessful)

O Describe the “Fire ships” tactic.

O July 13 – Siege begins – British begin bombarding Fort QuebecO 20,000 cannonballs hit the cityO Fort 80% destroyedO Most civilians leave the city – flee to an

abbey north of the cityO One French officer declared, “We do not

doubt that you will destroy the town, but we are determined that you shall never set foot within its walls.”

St. Lawrence River

Montmorency River

St. Charles River

Ile d’Orleans

Beauport

Fort Quebec

Pointe Levis

O Montcalm refused to send his army to engage the British, so Wolfe presses the matter – decides to make one grand attack

O July 31 – 4000 British soldiers attack Beauport and Montmorency Falls (same tactic that won him fame at Fort Louisbourg)

O Well-entrenched French crush the British attack (shooting fish in a barrel)

O Wolfe is humiliated by the defeat – decides to leave his mark by burning the countryside (23 villages and more than 1,400 farms burned), taking no prisonersO Why would Wolfe have been particularly

humiliated by this defeat?

O September – Wolfe needs to make one last, desperate attempt to engage in a final confrontation

O Winter will set in soon, the fleet needs to leave the river soon or it will be crushed in freezing ice

O If he fails now, he is too ill to return the following year, and unlikely to be appointed

O Fears loss of pension, reward

O Wolfe’s generals pressure him into planning one last attack near Beauport – plan to land 5,000 men 30 miles north of QuebecO Rain delays the launch and Wolfe changes his

mindO Sept. 13 – Wolfe slips his troops past the French

at Quebec, lands 4,441 just south of Quebec at Anse aux FoulonO Men scale the cliffs all night using a goat path; big

ships move toward Beauport as a diversionO Wolfe is trying to tempt Montcalm into a European-

style battle (Montcalm’s preferred method)O Wolfe has placed himself in a very bad position –

forest on one side, cliffs on the other, Bougainville’s army to the west and Montcalm’s army at Beauport to the east

St. Lawrence River

Montmorency River

St. Charles River

Ile d’Orleans

Beauport

Fort Quebec

Pointe Levis

Plains of Abraham

Anse aux Foulon

O Montcalm takes the bait and meets Wolfe with the garrison of Quebec (4,000), deciding not to wait for the 5,000 men at Beauport (one hour away) or 2,000 men under Bougainville (three hours away) – unsure if this is the main attack (seems unlikely as it is so reckless), or if it is a diversion for another attack on Beauport

O British army establishes a double line facing the fort (a triple line is usual, but Wolfe wants the psychological advantage – the French will be confronted with a line of red coats a mile wide)

O The Canadiens and Natives harass the British from the bushes with sniper fire – gives Montcalm time to mobilize

O British ordered to load two musket ballsO Why would they give this order?

O 10:00 AM – French advance, fire two relatively ineffective volleys before they were in good range (40+ feet) – uncoordinated, confused

O British return fire and advance for hand-to-hand combat

O French flee back toward Quebec

O Highlanders lead the way (“flying devils chasing us”)

O Canadiens and Natives cover the retreating French

O Both Montcalm and Wolfe mortally wounded during the battle : Wolfe dies a few moments after hearing that the British took Quebec, Montcalm dies a day later knowing he has lost the fort and the colony)

O Actual battle only lasts about 15 minutesO 1,300 soldiers died (a relatively even

number on both sides)

The Deaths of Generals

Spring, 1760O The French spend the winter in

Montreal, training for an attempt to retake Fort Quebec

O Both sides are freezing (no firewood, no fuel) and starving (the British burned all the crops the year before)

O Early spring – French attack the British at Fort Quebec. Same armies, same territory

O Battle lasts several hours, going back and forth (a windmill changes hands five times)

O British retreat to the fortressO French surround Quebec – they are

each hostage to the otherO The winner of the stalemate will be

determined by which country is first able to send supplies and reinforcements

O Roughly two weeks later a ship appears on the river – no flag – they want to see whose flag is flying over the fortress before they reveal themselves

O Upon seeing the British flag over the fort, the ship unfurls its flag – British

O French are forced to retreat to Montreal

O French burn their flags rather than be forced to surrender them to the British

O French surrender, British now control almost all of North America

O Major problem for the British – 65 – 80,000 French Catholics are now citizens of the Protestant British Empire

Reasons French Lost New France

O Geography – single access to the colony via the St. Lawrence River – vulnerable to blockade

O Economy of New France had been stilted – resulting in a small, dependent population

O Size of the colony, coupled with the low population meant that there were very few people to defend a vast territory

O Montcalm and Vaudreuil could not agree on anything – if they had worked together the outcome may have been different

O Government officials were greedy – made huge profits on necessary wartime supplies

O Montcalm made several tactical errorsO What were some of the errors he made?

O British navy was tough, experienced and skillful

O Even if the French had won this battle, the British were determined to take the colony – they would have come back with more soldiers, more battles would have occurred, more people would have died, and the British would have eventually won anyway