The French and Indian War

“The War for North America”

North America – 1750

French vs. English French

Canada, Mississippi River ValleyHere for: Fur Trade Overall good relationship with Indians

• Essential for fur tradePopulation of New France in 1750: 55,009

• Trading posts • Few cities • Capital city, Quebec, had

8,000 people

English Atlantic Coast Here for: Land, ColonizationOverall shaky relationship with Natives

• Not necessary for obtaining land

Population of English Colonies in 1750: 1.5 million

• 3 cities over 10,000 Philadelphia Boston New York

Bad Blood

The French and English rivalry for North America had lasted over 80 years

King Williams War (1689-1697)

Queen Anne’s War (1702-1713)

King George’s War (1739-1748)

Both saw North America as essential to their empire

French and Indian War Colonial part of the “Seven Years War”

Would become Global conflict

Fighting lasted from 1754-1763 Bloodiest American war in the 1700’s

It took more lives than the Revolutionary War

Its affects would lead to the American Revolution

Causes of Conflict Both the English and French wanted control of the Ohio River Valley, and both felt that it was rightfully theirs

British wanted more land to expand their colonies westward

• Believed their land claims stretched from sea to sea

French wanted control of Ohio River for transportation, trade & to prevent British encroachment

• French had claimed the Mississippi River Valley, including Ohio River

The Forks of the Ohio In 1752, some Virginians make a treaty with the Mingo chief “Half-King” for the rights to build a fort at the forks of the Ohio

Present-day PittsburgBegan building one year later

The following year the French push the British off that land

The Half King saw this as an insult

The French build Fort Duquesne at the Forks in 1754

Meanwhile in Albany…England knew that a war might be inevitable and suggested the colonies form an alliance with the Iroquois and unite for their own protection In June 1754 delegates from most of the northern colonies and representatives from the Six Iroquois Nations met in Albany, New York Pennsylvania delegate Benjamin Franklin drafted the Albany Plan of Union

Attempt to Unite Colonies and ally with Iroquois• Modeled after the Iroquois League • Under this plan each colonial legislature would elect

delegates to an American continental assembly presided over by a royal governor

• Franklin anticipated many of the problems that would beset the government created after independence, such as finance, dealing with the Indian tribes, control of trade, and defense.

Albany Plan of UnionThe plan failed to achieve either of its goals

An alliance was rejected by the Iroquois

The plan of Union was rejected by England, Colonies• British officials realized that, if adopted, the plan could create a

very powerful government that His Majesty's Government might not be able to control

• The plan was rejected by the Crown and by the legislatures in several of the colonies

In 1754, George Washington, 22, was sent to the Ohio Country to take Fort Duquesne and drive out the French

hoped to convince native people that England was the stronger force, so that they would ally with the British

He joined forces with the Half King and his warriors Stumbled upon a small encampment of French soldiers

Washington attackedAfter forcing surrender, the Half King tomahawked the French Commander

• This breach of military conduct would enrage the French

Washington quickly built Fort Necessity nearby Washington in his Virginia Militia uniform

George Washington

Battle of Great Meadows (Fort Necessity)

July 3, 1754 A combined force of 600 French soldiers and 100 native allies overwhelmed Fort Necessity, marking the start of the French and Indian War

French had allied with the Algonquin and Huron tribes

Fort Necessity was built hastily and poorly planned

In a valley Too near the surrounding forest

After a full day of battle in the rain, and 100 casualties, Washington agreed to the French terms of surrender

permitted Washington and his men to return to Virginia safely they would not build another fort west of the Appalachian Mts. for at least a yearPlaced blame on Washington for the tomahawking of the French commander

This was the first and only surrender of George Washington’s military career

Battle of the Monongahela In July 1755 British general Edward Braddock (aided by Washington) and other colonial militia again tried to take Fort Duquesne

Marched 1500 soldiers, cannon, etc. 110 miles from Maryland through Pennsylvania

British were ambushed by 900 French and Indian warriors a few miles south of the fort

Utilized Indian tactics, where as the British fought in the European style Huge defeat for the British (over 800 killed compared to 30 French/Indian)

Braddock killed George Washington would prove heroic

he had two horses shot out from under him, and four bullets pierced his coat—yet, he sustained no injuries and showed coolness under fire.

After news of debacle reached London, Britain would formally declare war on France in 1756

Battle of the Monongahela

The Shooting of General Braddock at Fort Duquesneby Edwin Deming

by Edwin Deming

The Ragin’ Cajuns The lone British Victory was at the Battle of Fort Beauséjour in June 1755 where British troops took control of Nova Scotia

Mostly New England militia

Fearing that the French residents would overpower them, the British forced them from their homes

First modern deportation of an entire peopleMade their way to Louisiana, becoming known as Cajuns The word Cajun come from “Acadian”

French Dominance For the first three years of the war, the outnumbered French dominated the battlefield defeating the British at

Fort OswegoFort William HenryFort Ticonderoga.

French DominanceBattle of Fort William Henry

Perhaps the most notorious battle of the war was the French victory at Fort William Henry in 1757 (New York)French laid siege to the Fort

Siege – the surrounding of a location, not letting anyone in or out

British general Daniel Webb surrendered under the terms that the 3,000 soldiers and civilians be allowed to leave the fort peacefullyAfter the British withdrawal, French-aligned Native Americans attacked and killed 300+ British men, women, childrenThe events of the battle were depicted in the 1826 novel The Last of the Mohicans by James Fennimore Cooper

The tide turned for the British in 1758, as they began to make peace with important Indian allies like the Iroquois Under the new direction of Prime Minister Lord William Pitt, Britain began working more closely with colonial forces and adapting their war strategies to fit the territory and landscape of the American frontier.

Promised that Britain would reimburse colonial expenses

The French were also slowly abandoned by many of their Indian allies War aims begin to change

More of a battle for North America than simply the Ohio Country

The tide turns…

Britain takes control of the St. Lawrence River

July 1758, 14,000 British forces surrounded and captured the French fort in Louisbourg

in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the mouth of the French supply line

The British, under general Wolfe, moved up the St. Lawrence to QuebecSeptember 1759, A British scout discovered a hidden path that led up the cliffs to a lightly defended part of the French Capital City During the night, thousands of troops slipped up the path and past the French guards to the Plains of Abraham, a wide open space outside the city of Quebec. French troops under general Montcalm awakened the next morning to find line after line of British troops waiting for them.The battle raged for less than an hour and finally ended with the French surrender. Both Wolfe and Montcalm died soon after from injuries sustained in the battle.

French General Montcalm enters

Quebec mortally-wounded

Montreal One year later, on September 6, 1760 Britain would descend on Montreal After only a 3 day siege, the 2,000+ French soldiers would surrender the city to the British (17,000 British and 700 Iroquois)Exhausted by years of battle, outnumbered and outgunned by the British, the French collapsed, climaxing with the defeats of Quebec and Montreal.By September 1760, the British controlled all major French cities in North America; the war between the two countries was effectively over.

Treaty of Paris 1763

The Treaty of Paris officially ended the French and Indian War. The British gained control over the area west of the 13 British Colonies all the way to the Mississippi RiverThe French agreed to give up any colonies in North America, including all of Canada. Since Spain had helped the French (1762), the Spanish were also forced to give up Florida

the Spanish still held their territory west of the Mississippi River and in Central and South America.

North America 1763:

Lasting effects

The results of the war effectively ended French influence in North America. England gained massive amounts of land and vastly strengthened its hold on the continent. It hurt relationships between the English and Native AmericansThe effects of the War played a major role in the worsening relationship between England and its colonies that eventually led into the Revolutionary War

The costs of the war would lead to Britain's taxation of the colonies Some colonial soldiers would harbor bitterness towards the British army

• Mockery • Discipline

The Aftermath…

After the treaty of Paris, Britain replaced France as the major European power in the Ohio country

Unlike the French, the British wanted to build settlements on the land, bringing many new colonists to the region

This caused new problems with the Native Americans in the area

Pontiac’s RebellionChief Pontiac of the Ottawa tribe united the Huron, Miami, Delaware, and Shawnee tribes against the expanding British

In May 1763 Pontiac and his forces began the attack on Fort Detroit

Pontiac’s allies destroyed or captured 9 forts in the Great Lakes area in one month’s time

The End of Pontiac’s Rebellion

After attacking Fort Detroit for nearly 6 months and without much success, Pontiac’s forces grew tired and returned to their villages

More native warriors began leaving Pontiac as the British were more and more successful at resisting attacks. (i.e. Fort Pitt)

Pontiac finally surrendered and made peace with the English in 1766

Chief Pontiac Fort Detroit, mid 1700’s

Proclamation of 1763With battles erupting in the Ohio Country between British and Pontiac’s natives, King George III issued the Proclamation of 1763

This banned colonists from settling west of the Appalachians Ordered colonists to remove themselves from existing western settlements

Proclamation of 1763

Upset colonists Felt that they had just fought a war for this land, and they should be able to settle it Felt that King George had no business meddling in Colonial Affairs

Settlers continued to move west, angering native groupsThis proclamation proved difficult to enforceThe colonists’ disregard for the proclamation displayed their continued dissatisfaction with British control.

Moving WestDaniel Boone discovered the Cumberland Gap in 1769

A path through the Appalachians Just north of the junction of the present day states of KY, TN, and VA

Boone and others would continue to move west and lead other settlers into the Ohio Country

Daniel Boone Escorting Settlers through the Cumberland Gap (George Caleb Bingham, 1852)