French & English Mercantilist Wars

1. French & English Mercantilist Wars

2. The introduction of new English mercantilist policies changed its economic & military attitude towards the colonies: • England increased protective tariffs & trade regulations so the colonies worked for motherland • If that failed, go to war with economic rivals & get the colonists to fight too French & English Colonial Wars These regulations began with the Navigation Acts in 1660 The French & Indian War changed EVERYTHING between England & the colonies New mercantilist policies after the French & Indian War led to colonial resentment & the American Revolution

3. A series of European conflicts involving England & France spilled over into colonial North America: • King William’s War (1689-1697) • Queen Anne’s War (1702-1713) • King George's War (1743-1748) • These wars were based on mercantilist competition & had little political significance, but… French & English Colonial Wars

4. …these wars led to a land frenzy in the 1750s, among French & British colonists Territorial disputes along the Ohio River sparked the French & Indian War

5. Westward Expansion & Land Conflicts, 1750-1775

6. 1754 proved to be a turning point in American colonial history • In 1754, English officials & colonists met to discuss Iroquois problems at the Albany Congress • Benjamin Franklin proposed the Albany Plan of Union for a coordinated colonial army • The plan was vetoed by colonial assemblies & Parliament Turning Point: 1754 This would give the colonists too much power The plan was too expensive & would limit each colony’s power to control its own actions

7. Ben Franklin’s Albany Plan of UnionAmerica’s 1st political cartoon

8. In 1754, VA governor sent 22 year old George Washington to protect an Ohio Company claim Turning Point: 1754 Washington’s troops were forced to retreat from Fort Duquesne; This clash proved to be the beginning of the French & Indian War

9. French & Indian War

10. The war went bad for England from 1756 to 1758 • In 1757, Prime Minister William Pitt took command of the military: • Used well-qualified generals • Had a “blank check” to fund the war in America, India, & Europe • In 1758, the tide of the war turned; England won by 1760 The French & Indian War

11. 1758-1761 The Tide Turns for England By 1761, Spain became an ally of France

12. France—lost Canada, most of its empire in India, & claims to lands east of the Mississippi River Spain—got all French lands west of the Miss. River, New Orleans, but lost Florida to England England—gained all French lands in Canada, exclusive rights to the Caribbean slave trade, & total control of India Treaty of Paris

13. North America after 1763 America in 1750 America in 1763

14. How was 1763 a“turning point” in the British-colonial relationship?

15. Colonial views: • Colonies could be very strong when they worked together • Newly gained frontier presented opportunities for wealth & land • Colonists learned how to fight • English views: • Americanswereslowtoorganize & balked at helping raise money even to protect their own lands Perceptions of the War

16. British-American Tensions

17. The war increased England’s colonial empire in North America But, the Pitt’s “blank check” greatly enlarged England’s debt Britain’s contempt for the colonials created bitter feelings As a result, English leaders felt that a major reorganization of its American empire was necessary! Effects of the War on Britain?

18. The 1760s were an affluent & optimistic “post-war” period: • The French & Indian War united the colonists against a common enemy for the 1st time • Most colonists considered themselves proud members of England’s empire with little (if any) thought of independence Effects of the War on Americans?

19. Eroding Bonds of the Empire

20. In 1760, George III became king & began a new colonial attitude: Parliamentary Sovereignty • English officials assumed that Parliament must have ultimate authority over ALL laws & taxes • The colonists tried to reserve the colonial authority for their own legislatures Parliamentary Sovereignty

21. The colonists assumed that their assemblies were quasi-equal to Parliament because they had no Parliamentary representatives • British officials countered with “virtual representation” argument • The colonists insisted that only their colonial assemblies could tax Americans “No Taxation Without Representation” Parliament represents ALL British citizens no matter where they live

22. After the Seven Years War, everyone expected George to remove British army from America (French were no longer a threat) • But…this large, expensive army was not removed • British citizens were not happy because they had to pay for it • Colonists doubted the army’s ability to defend against Indians Eroding the Bonds of Empire

23. Backcountry natives banded together to repel white frontier settlers during Pontiac’s War: • Indian successes exposed the British army’s weakness • Attacks revealed desperation of Native Americans after the withdrawal of their French allies • Colonials took matters into their own hands (Paxton Boys in PA) Pontiac’s War English colonists flooded across the Appalachian Mountains: “There’s all this land & no French!!”

24. Chief Pontiac led the Ottawa & other tribes against colonists due to: • The flood of colonists into Ohio Country • British “gifts” of smallpox-infected blankets from Fort Pitt Pontiac’s Rebellion, 1763 Fort Detroit

25. Retaliatory attacks by frontier colonists (like the Paxton Boys in Pennsylvania) were common

26. In response to Pontiac’s War, the British government established the Proclamation Line of 1763: • This law forbade colonists from settling across the Appalachian Mountains (for their own protection) • Americans viewed the line as an obstruction to their “legitimate economic development” The Proclamation of 1763

27. The introduction of Parliamentary sovereignty contradicted England’s original policy of salutary neglect • The influx of new political ideas of the European Enlightenment began to impact colonial thought (especially those of John Locke) • While no colonists were thinking of independence by 1763, many became committed to “natural rights” & opposed to “tyranny” All gov’ts are susceptible to corruption, tyranny, & intrusion upon citizens’ liberty New Political Ideas “Virtuous” citizens must fight tyranny

28. Conclusions:Rule Britannia?

29. Despite the mounting tensions between the English government & American colonists by 1763, most Americans were loyal “brothers” to England due to: • a shared British culture • dependence upon British consumer goods • shared nationalism after British military victories against France Rule Britannia?