French+and+Indian+War

__** French and Indian War **__ The French and Indian War was a seven-year war between England and the French and some of the Indians in North America. When the war ended, France was no longer in control of Canada. The Indians that had been threatening the American colonists were defeated. Great Britain spent a great deal of money fighting the war and colonists fully participated in this war. Both these facts were to have a profound effect on the future of the colonies.

The French and Indian War began in November 1753, when [|George Washington] and a number of men headed out into the Ohio region with the mission to deliver a message to a French captain demanding that French troops withdraw from the territory. The demand was rejected. In 1754, Washington received authorization to build a fort near the present site of Pittsburgh. He was unsuccessful because of the strong French presence in the area. In May, Washington's troops clashed with local French forces, a skirmish that ultimately resulted in Washington having to surrender the fort he had managed to build just one month later. Washington retreated to Fort Necessity and on July 3, 1754, the French attacked and forced Washington to surrender. The British then organized a force that was to be led by General Edward Braddock and whose goal it was to remove the French from the area. Braddock's first move was to try and take [|Fort Dunsque], which ended with disaster and Braddock was mortally wounded. Over the next year, the British would suffer a number of humiliating defeats, such as the Battle of Fort William Henry which ended in a massacre of the British who had surrendered.

The British then embarked on a series of offensives to capture Quebec, the French captial in North America. After seizing Fort Dunsque and Louisbourg, the French foriegn minister decided to invade Britan itself. This plan resulted in complete failure, as the French niether had the means nor the organization to complete such an invasion. British victories continued in 1759, when they finally captured Ticonderoga, James Wolfe defeated Montcalm at Quebec (in a battle that claimed the lives of both commanders), and victory at Fort Niagra successfully cut off the French frontier forts further to the west and south. The victory was made complete in 1760, when, the British were able to prevent French relief ships from arriving in the naval Battle of the Restigouche while their armies marched on Montreal from three sides. The war in North America officially ended with the signing of the [|Treaty of Paris] on February 10, 1763.

The results of the war effectively ended French political and cultural influence in North America. England gained massive amounts of land and vastly strengthened its hold on the continent. It badly damaged the relationship between England and Native Americans and although the war seemed to strengthen England's hold on the colonies, the effects of the French and Indian War played a major role in the worsening relationship between England and its colonies that eventually led into the Revolutionary War. After the war, the British ended their century-long policy of salutary neglect, attempting to keep the colonials under a more watchful eye. The British also raised taxes in an effort to pay for the war. Both of these postwar policies resulted in massive colonial discontent and added to the budding nationalism that eventually resulted in the Revolutionary War.

Changes ||< France cedes Canada to Great Britan and gives Louisiana to Spain. Spain also cedes Florida to Great Britan. ||
 * < Date ||< 1754-1763 ||
 * < Location ||< North America ||
 * < Result ||< Treaty of Paris (British victory) ||
 * < Territorial


 * __Sources:__**
 * []
 * "United States History: Preparing for the Advanced Placement Examination" (Amsco)
 * "American History" Textbook by Adam Brinkley
 * Washington image: []
 * Fort William Henry image: []