Unit 1
New France and British North America
Lesson 11
Timeline Review
7 Years' War
As you read, practice the 6-Word-Summary strategy
The Seven Years' War (1756-1763) between France and Great Britain was a global conflict that was fought on five continents including North America. It is known by many names. In Canada it is called the Seven Years' War. In Quebec it is the War of the Conquest. In the United States it is called the French and Indian War.
By 1754, tensions among the French, the British, and First Nations living in North America had been building. There was lots of conflict. The French and British wanted control over North America’s resources for trade purposes.
In 1753, the French tried to assert their claim on the land by constructing some military forts. One of the forts was built near present-day Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.It was called Fort Duquesne. The fort was built in a very strategic location that both the British and French wanted to control.
This upset the British, who sent in a militia colonel (and future U.S. president) by the name of George Washington. Even though George Washington surprised the French with his attack, he was defeated by the French soldiers who had partnered with warriors from First Nations tribes (Shawnee, Delaware, and Seneca). Many historians consider this battle for Fort Duquesne as the start of the Seven Years’ War.
France
Britain
During the Seven Years’ War, Britain sent 20,000 additional soldiers to North America. The French, for the most part, let their colonists fight for themselves.
The British and the French had different styles of fighting. The British used a row strategy where unformed soldiers would march in two rows. The front row would kneel and fire, while the back row reloaded their ammunition.
The French favoured a strategy called guerrilla warfare. This meant that small armed groups of men would raid British areas in hit-and-run attacks. This strategy proved to be very successful in the early stages of the war. They won a series of impressive victories in the first few years of the war.
Painting by Robert Griffing entitled A Charming Field for an Encounter
What advantages and disadvantages do you see?
What advantages and disadvantages do you see?
Painting by Robert Griffing entitled One Mile to Bushy Run Station
Because the French were outnumbered by British settlers and the thousands of British troops that began to arrive, their key military strategy was to make alliances with First Nations, such as the Ojibwe. Similarly, the Ojibwe sought alliances with the French to help protect their interests and ensure their survival in North America..
Not all First Nations allied with the French. Most of the Haudenosaunee nations allied with the British during the fighting. The Seneca tended to remain neutral. The Ojibwe maintained their French alliance until the French started to lose the war. As the war went on, many Ojibwe were killed. The survivors either retreated or joined the British side.
The Seven Years’ War consisted of many battles that took place over a number of years. Forts changed hands, often more than once. The side that controlled a fort controlled the trade, so neither side would give up control of a fort without a fight. As the war went on, both Britain and France began to send more and more troops to North America to fight.
The first few years of the war went badly for the British. This began to change in 1757. Britain developed a new strategy to take over New France completely. Britain started sending a lot more money and troops to North America.
Britain began capturing key French forts one by one. They started with the forts at Louisbourg, Ohio Valley and Québec.
(Remember Acadia)
This was a strategic attack by the British because they needed to gain control over the St. Lawrence to cut off supplies to the French and sail down the river to attack Québec.
200 British ships arrived in June of 1758 at Louisbourg. The French were able to hold them off for 60 days, but eventually surrendered to the British.
The British wanted control over the fur trading forts in this region. In August 1758, Fort Frontenac was attacked by the British and quickly fell. Later that year in November, Fort Duquesne also fell into British control.
Québec was the heart of the French influence and control in North America. It was a central point in the fur trade, a shipping centre, and a stopping point for soldiers, traders, and settlers moving west. Geographically, it was a stronghold, hard to attack, because of its location high on a cliff overlooking the St. Lawrence River. The British wanted to capture Québec so that they could end the French regime in North America, and claim the land for themselves.