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History with Ms. H. teaches about the French and Indian War.
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At the end of the video, you should be able to answer three questions:
1. What are the main long-term and immediate causes of the French and Indian War?
2. Describe the different battle tactics used by the British, French, and Native Americans throughout the war.
3. What are the major effects of the French and Indian War?
We will also touch on the Jumonville incident, the Albany Plan of Union, the Proclamation of 1763, Fort Necessity, Fort Duquesne, the Battle of Abraham plains, and many other major events during this time period in American history.
The French and Indian War began in 1754 and lasted until 1763. Its name can lead to some confusion. Students sometimes think the French and Indian War was fought between the French and the Native Americans, when in fact, it was between the French and the British, each with their Native American allies. The French and Indian War was a part of the Seven Years War; a global conflict between Britain and France for world domination.
In 1754, the French began constructing Fort Duquesne. The Fort was built at the forks of the Ohio River, where the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers meet to form the Ohio River. By building a fort here, France hoped to control access to the Ohio River Valley, the fertile areas surrounding the Ohio River.
Governor Dinwiddie of Virginia sent George Washington, then a 22-year-old lieutenant colonel, and part of the Virginia Regiment to prevent France from capturing British forts on the Monongahela River. While encamped about 50 miles south of Fort Duquesne, Washington received a message from one of Britain’s Native American allies, a Seneca chief named Half-King. He told Washington that there was a small group of French soldiers encamped nearby. Washington decided to attack!
After the battle, Washington learned that the French leader, Monsieur Jumonville, was an ambassador sent to negotiate peace with the British. Some reports claim that Jumonville was wounded during the battle and told Washington they were a peaceful party. The Half-King then bashed in Jumonville’s skull, killing him.
After the Jumonville incident, Washington knew the French would counter attack. He quickly made a defensive fort, called Fort Necessity. Fort Necessity was not in the best location. It was in the middle of an open low-lying field surrounded by trees. Soon, about 600 French soldiers and 100 Native Americans attacked the fort. The French were able to hide behind the trees as they fired at the British. That night, Washington surrendered to the French.
Representatives from seven of the thirteen colonies agreed to meet in Albany, NY. They planned to convince the Iroquois Confederacy, a group of local Native American tribes, to join the British colonists in fighting the French. Since most of the Native Americans allied with the French were enemies of the Iroquois, they were eager to sign a treaty with the colonists.
The representatives also created the Albany Plan of Union. This plan encouraged the colonies to create one militia to protect all the colonies from the French. This was the first time anything like this had been suggested in the colonies. At the time, militias did not work together.
About a year after fighting began at Fort Necessity, British soldiers arrived in the colonies. General Edward Braddock, a highly respected British general, was sent to lead troops from Virginia to conquer Fort Duquesne once and for all.
Braddock was an old-school British general. He believed that wars should be fought in open fields and the soldiers should fight in straight lines. In Europe, this battle tactic worked well, since most battlefields were in open plains. On July 9, 1755, Braddock and his men were ambushed by about 900 French, Canadian, and Native American soldiers defending Fort Duquesne. The British were unable to fight off the attack. Within an hour of fighting, Braddock was killed and Washington’s horse had been shot out from under him. Washington was able to organize the survivors and lead a retreat back to Virginia. For his courage during battle and leadership skills during the retreat, Washington became known as the hero of the Monongahela!
The British government knew it would be expensive to send soldiers to build forts along to frontier to protect colonists, so the British Parliament, or lawmakers, passed the Proclamation of 1763. This law forbade the colonists from moving west of the Appalachian Mountains, the very territory they fought to move into. Many colonists simply ignored the Proclamation and moved to the Ohio River Valley anyway.
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