French and Indian War

European Competition

• All four leading powers are in a struggle for control – England, France, Spain, and the Netherlands

• Greatest rival for the English in North America was the French.– France controlled a vast majority of the interior

territory from the St. Lawrence River to the Gulf of Mexico.

French Presence in the New World

British and French Conflicts

• Between 1689 and 1748, there was a series of wars fought between the British and the French.–Most of the fighting took place in Europe but each

war ended with a treaty that did not really change anything.

• Eventually, war reached North America and the colonists were drawn into war.

Native American Influence

• The British knew that in order to drive the French out of North America, they had to get rid of French advantages.– Relationship with the Native Americans

• Native Americans, who inhabited the regions between the two competing powers received many generous gifts from both powers. –Weapons, ammunition

Canasatego, Iroquois LeaderJuly 7, 1742

“We know our Lands are now become

more valuable. The white People

think we do not know their value;

but we are sensible [aware] that the

Land is everlasting, and the few

Goods we receive for it are soon

worn out that gone…Besides, we are

not well used [treated] with respect

to the lands still unsold by us. Your

people daily settle on these lands, and

spoil our hunting…your horses and

cows have eaten the grass our deer used

to feed on.”

Native American Influence

• Native Americans wanted to continue to receive gifts from both powers– Required a balance of power between the two

• Balance between France and Britain began to shift as the British population in the colonies grew. – French colonists were greatly outnumbered by the

British colonists by 1754

• British began treating the Native Americans very harshly and began taking even more land.

Native American Influence

• The French showed more restraint– Treated Natives with respect and generosity in

comparison to how they were treated by the British

• French helped hold off British colonial expansion– Established forts along territorial boundaries–Manned and protected by the Native Americans

Ohio River Valley

• A point of conflict between Britain and France– Both powers claimed the area, but it was largely

unsettled

• Fort Duquesne built by the French to discourage British settlement.– Angered the British, especially Robert Dinwiddie,

governor of Virginia. – Sent troops to remove the French from the fort in

1754, led by George Washington.

Fort Duquesne

Washington’s Attack

• Washington’s attack on a small French force was successful

• French counterattack forced Washington to surrender. – Defeat sparked the French and Indian War, known

as the Seven Years War in Europe.

French & Indian War- Initial Battles

• Britain initially did poorly in the war• Britain was able to evict French troops from an area

near Nova Scotia • Britain encountered defeat when troops marched into

a French and Indian ambush near Fort Duquesne.• French destroyed British forts, Indians raided British

settlements.• British cut off French shipping to the Americas,

which caused some Natives to change sides for the better supplied British.

End to War

• British gained control of French forts and Montreal.– Forced French governor general to surrender the rest of

Canada– Accomplished their major goal

• Treaty of Paris (1763)- ended the war between France and Britain.– Canada, Ohio River Valley, Great Lakes Region, and

Florida were given to British– Mississippi River marked boundary between British and

Spanish in North America

Aftermath of the French and Indian War

Native American Reactions

• Surrender of Canada to the British was bad news for the Indians of the interior.

• Indians could not play the French and British off of one another anymore.

British Reactions

• Cut off supply of goods to the Indians• Settlers flooded into Indian areas and took the

land.• Many Indian tribes were affected

Pontiac’s Rebellion

• Native Americans attacked and captured many British forts

• Native Americans raided British settlements• Uprising called Pontiac’s Rebellion• Goals: – Weaken British – Bring French back into North America

• Natives failed to gain control of the three largest British ports: Detroit, Niagara, and Fort Pitt, formally known as Fort Duquesne.

End of the Rebellion

• Because supply lines were cut, Indians were unable to resupply ammunition and gun powder.– Caused an end to the rebellion– New British commander, Thomas Cage, interested

in respecting Natives

• Natives and the British made peace – British restraint, Proclamation of 1763

Proclamation of 1763

• Called for colonial settlers to remain east of the Appalachian Mountains

“And whereas it is just and reasonable, and essential to our Interest, and to the Security of our Colonies,…the several Nations or Tribes of Indians with whom We are connected, and who live under our Protection, should not be molested or disturbed in the Possession of such Parts of our Dominions and Territories as…are reserved to them, or any of them, as their Hunting Grounds.”

Effects of the Proclamation of 1763

• Troops were outnumbered by colonists, so they were not really able to limit expansion– Destroyed cabins built by colonists, colonists

rebuilt them

• Colonists were irritated by Britain’s attempt to control their expansion and settlement

War Aftermath

• Tensions between Britain and the colonies increased– Britain wanted more control of the colonies– Britain wanted help paying war debts

• Albany Plan of Union: drafted by Benjamin Franklin, plan called for colonies to unite under British rule and cooperate with one another– Created American continental assembly

• Plan failed• Britain imposed new taxes and regulations on the colonies

– Angered colonists