Transcript U2D1- The French and Indian War

The French and Indian
War
France Builds a Colony
 French society took a turn towards unity with the passage of the
Edict of Nantes in 1598, which effectively ended religious wars
between the Huguenots and Catholics (France’s main religion)
 King Louis XIV had a vested interest in colonial expansion
Though Samuel de Champlain had established a French
colony in Quebec, French peasants had little incentive to
move.
The Huguenots were barred from the colony, following the
repeal of the Edict in 1685.
The French colony was very sparsely populated because of these
factors.
 The major economic resource found in the French territory was
the beaver and French fur-trappers (known as coureurs de bois)
recruited Native Americans to fulfill demand.
Stopping the Neighbors
 Bordered by both English and Spanish colonies, France
defended its territory from invasion.
To keep the English from pushing into the Ohio Valley,
Antoine Cadillac established the city of Detroit.
Robert de La Salle blocked the Spanish push from the
Gulf of Mexico by travelling down the Mississippi and
declaring the land around him as ‘Louisiana’- after King
Louis XIV.
In 1718, the city of New Orleans was established at
the mouth of the Mississippi River, blocking the
Spanish from accessing a pivotal trade port.
Stopping the Neighbors
 However, conflict between the European countries was
unavoidable.
Queen Anne’s War pitted British colonists against the coureurs de
bois.
The colonists, utilizing primitive guerilla warfare techniques
against the French fur traders.
 When peace terms were signed, Britain was the winner, gaining
trade rights in Spanish America, and seizing portions of French
Louisiana.
 Continued skirmishes between Britain and its Europeans in America
continually required the colonists to defend their home, while Britain
continued its policy of salutary neglect.
 Britain’s unofficial policy of relaxing restrictions on the colonies ~1690s
Fighting the French
 Clashes occurred over territory in the Ohio Valley
between France and Britain.
 Virginian farmers had claimed land in western
Pennsylvania, but the French were in the process
of establishing forts in that areas.
 Young George Washington was sent to lay claim to
the land.
 At Fort Duquesne, Washington and his troops
won against a small group of French.
 However, the French soon returned with
reinforcements and attacked Washington and
his men at nearby Fort Necessity. Though
defeated, Washington was allowed to march his
men home with honor.
French and Indian War- the before
 After Washington’s defeat at Fort
Necessity, the British government
summoned the colonies to the Albany
Congress.
 The immediate purpose was to keep
the nearby Iroquois tribes on the side
of the British, but it failed.
 The longer range purpose was to
increase colonial unity in a defense
against France.
 Benjamin Franklin published his famous
‘Join or Die’ cartoon in the
Pennsylvania Gazette.
French and Indian War- the start
 Known as the French and Indian War in the
colonies, the Seven Years War began in 1756,
with the invasion of Canada by the British.
 The British went after the major port cities of
Quebec and Montreal.
Had the British been able to capture the
ports, the war would have ended as soon as it
began, with the French having no way to
import goods to the interior of the territory.
 These cities were taken in 1759 and 1760,
respectively, ending any chance at French
victory.
French and Indian War- the aftermath
 Colonists gained a growing sense of independence, no longer fearing
the presence of France in North America. The ‘seeds’ of
independence had been planted.
 Tensions between haughty British officers and colonists caused ill feelings;
 Growing sense of unity within the colonies.
 Native Americans could no longer pit the European colonies against
one another.
 Chief Pontiac wanted to keep the British out of the Ohio Valley, launching
an attack that prompted the British to station troops on the western border
of the colonies for ‘protection’.
 Colonists wanted to push west- but could not because of the
Proclamation Line of 1763, which barred settlement west of the
Appalachian Mountains.
Treaty of Paris (1763)
 The peace treaty ending the war was signed in 1763.
France
- Lost
Canadian
holdings
- Lost claims
to land
east of the
Mississippi
River
Spain (France’s ally)
Britain
- Acquired all French lands in
- Acquired
Canada
French lands
west of the
- Acquired all lands east of
Mississippi River
the Miss. (except New
and New
Orleans)
Orleans
- Lost Florida to
Britain, in
exchange for
- Lost empire
Cuba
in India
- Were given exclusive rights
to the Caribbean slave
trade
- Emerged as a major
commercial power in India