Ch 6: The Duel for North America (1608-1763)
How the French and Indian War Set the Stage for Independence
A) France in the New World
1. What conditions in the Old World allowed for French colonization?
B) Clash of Empires
1. King William’s War (1689 – 1697) & Queen Anne’s War (1702 – 1713)
C) Effects of French and Indian War on Americans’ Attitudes
5. Didn’t need/want Brit motherland → more independent
→Pontiac Indians + Fr traders overran Brit posts, killing many soldiers/settlers
→Brit retaliated w. biological warfare & decided to stabilize relations w. Indians
1. What conditions in the Old World allowed for French colonization?
- Edict of Nantes granted limited toleration to Fr Prot, thus ending rel wars
- Under King Louis XIV, France became most powerful/feared nation in Europe
- Samuel de Champlain, “Father of New France,” founds Quebec
- French ally w. Huron Indian tribes to battle against Iroquois tribes → Iroquois revenge: hamper Fr penetratn of OH Valley, ally w. Brits, ravage Fr col
- Grew slowly bc Fr peasants had no incentive to move & Prot forbidden migration
- Fur trappers pursued beavers to serve demands of European fashion
- Detroit founded to check Eng penetratn into OH Valley
- Louisiana founded to thwart Sp penetratn into Gulf of Mexico region
- New Orleans- located at mouth of MS River; most important fortified/tradg post
B) Clash of Empires
1. King William’s War (1689 – 1697) & Queen Anne’s War (1702 – 1713)
- Fr (+ Sp) vs. Brit, both of which didn’t consider Am worth large troops → primitive guerilla warfare, each side recruited as many Indian allies
- Despite initial setbacks, Brit colonists won when they temporarily seized stronghold of Port Royal in Acadia (present-day Nova Scotia)
- Peace terms: Brit obtained Acadia, Newfoundland, Hudson Bay from Fr & limited trading rights in Sp America (though much friction involved over smuggling)
- Brit vs. Sp (+ Fr who allied later) in Caribbean Sea & Georgia
- New Eng-ers invaded captured strategic Fr fortress of Louisbourg
- Peace terms: Louisbourg, to the chagrin of colonists, handed back to Fr
- Fr (link Canada w. MS Val) vs. Brit (westward-pushing) for strategic OH Valley
- Brit colonial speculators, mostly Virginian, had secured legal “rights” to 500,000 acres in the region while Fr were erecting a chain of forts there
- George Washington + 150 men dispatched to secure VA claims; Despite initial victory near Fort Duquesne, Wash’s troops forced to surrender after 10-hr siege
- Hwvr, Fr wasted so much strength in Eur war that it was unable to fight well in Am
- Albany Congress: intercolonial congress summoned by Brit govt to achieve greater colonial unity & bolster common defense agnst France
- Beginning of war: Brit-Ams, led by General Braddock failed miserably agnst Fr
- William Pitt chose to lessen assaults on Fr W Indies & to concentrate on Canada; chose young, energetic generals;regained Louisbourg
- Battle of Quebec: Led by James Wolfe, Brit defeated Fr→ Quebec surrendered
- 1 yr later, Montreal fell & the Fr flag flew for the last time in Canada
- Terms of peace: Fr thrown off N. Am, but allowed to retain several sugar islands; Fr ceded MS, LA, New Orleans to Sp; Sp turned FL over to Brit in return for Cuba
- GREAT BRITAIN = DOMINANT POWER IN NORTH AMERICA
C) Effects of French and Indian War on Americans’ Attitudes
- Colonists emerged w. increased confidence in military strength
- Myth of Brit invincibility shattered (e.g. Braddock)
- Friction developed b.w Brit officers & colonial “boors”
- Arrogant Brit officers looked down on ‘scum’ who had ‘fled to Am’(=failure)
- Brit refused to recognize any Am militia commission above rank of captain
- Ams felt they deserved credit for risking lives to secure New World empire
- Brit distressed by reluctance of colonists to support common cause: provisioned enemy (Sp & Fr W Indies) w. foodstuffs while Brit tried to subdue them
- Some colonists refused to provide troops & money for war; had to be bribed
5. Didn’t need/want Brit motherland → more independent
- Fr eliminated from New World while Sp removed from Florida
- Indians can’t play off rival Eur powers agnst one another; must deal only w. Brit
→Pontiac Indians + Fr traders overran Brit posts, killing many soldiers/settlers
→Brit retaliated w. biological warfare & decided to stabilize relations w. Indians
- Proclamation of 1763 prohibited settlement in area beyond Appalachians to allow for time to work out Indian problem; completely ignored by Ams
- Colonists develop new vision of destiny: conquest of continent→ didn’t want to be restrained by Brit (e.g. Proclamation of 1763)
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