The French may have been the first Europeans to live in Acadia, but the British also had claims in the area. The British settlers around Newfoundland controlled the cod fishing around Grand Banks. The French settlers around the St. Lawrence River controlled the fur trade with the First Nations people. Acadia was a strategic geographic location. Whichever country controlled the land of Acadia would control access to three important natural resources: the St. Lawrence River, the fur trade and cod fishing.

Throughout the 1600s, both the English and the French fought over who owned Acadia. For about 100 years, battles happened in North America and in Europe and ended when France and Great Britain signed the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. In it, France ceded (gave away) Nova Scotia to the British, but many French colonists continued to live in Acadia and remained loyal to France.

After the Treaty of Utrecht was signed the Acadians became British subjects. They were given one year to leave Acadia if they wished to remain loyal to France. The Acadians were asked by the French to move to Cape Breton Island and the Island St. Jean. Once the British had established their rule in Acadia, they asked the Acadian settlers to take an oath of loyalty to the British Crown. They refused. They promised that they would not take sides between the French and British if war began between France and England. The Acadians that remained were granted freedom of religion and culture.

The Construction of Halifax

The British were threatened by the construction of Louisbourg, and built their own fortress in Halifax in 1749. During the years 1745 and 1758 Louisbourg was captured twice by the British, then returned to France.

The British wanted to remain strong in the Acadian region. They did not want to lose it to the French again. The British brought in an army and settlers to Nova Scotia. In the summer of 1749, more than 2500 people moved to Halifax from Europe. Slowly, a town started to emerge and several houses were built. There was not enough room for all of the settlers. Some settlers spent the winter on the ship, or in tents, but many left Halifax for other cities such as Boston.

The British wanted more settlers to offset the number of Acadians in this area. The French Acadians outnumbered the British settlers nearly 3:1. The British were starting to become weary of the unknown Acadian allegiance. They were not convinced that the Acadians would stay neutral in the event of a war between France and Britain.

As time went on, tensions grew between the Acadians and the British. The British became very anxious about the Acadians wondering if they would be loyal to Britain or France if a war started. In 1755, Governor Charles Lawrence demanded that the Acadians sign an oath of allegiance. This meant that if Britain and France went to war, the Acadians would have to fight the French. The Acadians refused. In 1755, Britain ordered the expulsion of the Acadians.

As many as 10,000 people were forced onto ships and sent to Europe or to distant British colonies in what is known as present-day United States. Some Acadians managed to escape into the forest and find refuge with French or First Nations communities in the area. Others died of exposure or starvation while hiding. Nearly one-third of the people who were forced onto ships died before they reached their destination. In the terror and confusion, families were separated, and some never found each other again. After the Acadians were forcibly removed from their communities, the British burned down their homes and destroyed their farms so that the Acadians would have no reason to return.

The Acadians who were deported had difficulty settling in the American British colonies where they were sent. The most successful settlement was in New Orleans, Louisiana. By 1785, nearly 2600 of the Acadians who had been deported from Acadia ended up in New Orleans. There, the locals began referring to them as Cajuns.

In 1764, the British allowed the Acadians to return to Acadia. Nearly 3000 Acadians returned to their homeland. By then, however, their land had been given to British settlers. Many of the returnees settled in what is now known as New Brunswick.