The Expulsion of the Acadians

Dispersing a group of Canadians

The Lead Up At the beginning of the 1700’s

France and Britain were right in the middle of a heated rivalry

King Louis XIV (14th) wanted nothing more than for France to be the most powerful nation in Europe.

France got into many wars with countries such as: Prussia (Germany) and Britain.

They weren’t just fighting in Europe, they were fighting in the colonies like North America!

All of this fighting would have consequences for France

Loss of Acadia Acadia was France’s

second colony in eastern North America

Louis XIV didn’t really give Acadia as much attention as New France (now Quebec)

Most of the military was in New France

This left Acadia vulnerable to attack

Loss of Acadia In 1694, attackers

from New England took over Port Royal

A peace treaty (1697) returned Port Royal to France

Acadia was tough to defend as it could be attacked from multiple sides

The War of Spanish Succession This was a war where

European nations fought against France who was trying to take over Spain and its colonies

It was fought from 1702-1713

This was the war that led to France’s loss of Acadia!

The War of Spanish Succession Continued

During this war, Britain gained control of Acadia and the Caribbean islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique.

In 1713, the 2 sides negotiated a peace treaty at Utrecht in the Netherlands.

Each side agreed to give back some colonies they had captured.

Britain offered to give back either Acadia or the 2 islands.

The islands grew sugar, so ...

Weighing the Pros and Cons

France agreed to give up Acadia.

They could still get furs from New France

They needed that sugar for back in Europe.

Acadia is Now Part of Britain

In 1713, Acadia became a British Colony (Treaty of Utrecht).

France kept modern day Cape Breton (Ile Royale).

France found it difficult to strengthen its position in North America. The British completely surrounded New France.

The French built Fort Louisburg on Cape Breton Island in order to help keep the British from sailing up the St. Lawrence River to New France.

Fort Louisbourg – Largest European Style Fortress in North America

The Expulsion of the Acadians For many years,

Britain paid little attention to Acadia.

The British really wanted to know that the Acadians would not revolt/rebel against them.

Reason for Expulsion The British tried to get

the Acadians to take an oath of allegiance.

This was a show of loyalty to the British King.

The king and most British were English Protestants. The Acadians were French Roman Catholic.

They refused to take the oath.

Why They Refused to Take the Oath

Religious reasons The Acadians had lived in the region

for generation and wanted to continue to live peacefully.

They resented being ruled by the British and soldiers would often harass them for no reason.

The Acadians would harass them back and this made the British feel insecure.

What Does Being Expelled Mean? It means kicked out. Acadia had about

12 000 inhabitants of French origin.

Between 1755-1760 about 10 000 of them were split up and expelled to other regions such as the French colony Louisiana or even back to France.