The French and Indian War: Causes and Impacts

1. REBELSDay 2The French and Indian War American History I Mr. Hensley SRMHS

2. Demographics • Colonists are 2 inches taller than Europeans • Colonists have longer life spans and lower infant mortality • Why? “Elbow room” • Why? Better sanitation • Why? Better, more food • Population increases from 250,000 to 2.5 million between 1650 and 1750

3. What “On Average” Means This is called a “bell curve” or “normal distribution” Most biological measurements are distributed like this Most results (two-thirds) are found symmetrically around the “mean” (average) About one-sixth are significantly above the average; about one-sixth significantly below the average

4. Britain versus France • By 1750, Britain & France had become rivals • Both nations used mercantilism to expand their colonial claims to increase their wealth • Britain & France went to war 3 times in Europe from 1690-1750 • These wars in Europe meant that their colonists would fight too

5. Ohio River Valley • The Ohio River Basin was claimed by both Britain and France • Best farmland for American colonists • Best beaver habitat for French traders • Colony of Virginia claimed most of the area for the British

6. Relations with Native Americans • The French increased their alliances with Native Americans along the Ohio River Valley • The spread of British colonists across the Appalachian Mountains into the Ohio River Valley led to numerous wars and conflicts

7. French were friendly with Indians for fur

8. Indians grew increasingly concerned about British colonists filling into the backcountry New settlement

9. The Albany Congress: 1754 • In 1754, colonists met at the Albany Congress to discuss the common problem of Native attacks • Benjamin Franklin proposed the Albany Plan of Unionfor a colonial army • The plan was not approved • The colonists lacked the unityto solve a common problem

10. Ben Franklin’s “Albany Plan of Union”America’s 1st political cartoon

11. First Shots Fired: Fort Duquesne • 1754: a young officer, (George Washington) is sent to protect Ohio land claims from the French • French have built a fort (Fort Duquesne) on what will become Pittsburgh • Washington and his troops are defeated by the French and go back to Virginia

12. 1756: Seven Years War • By 1756, Britain and France are fighting each other in North America, in Europe and in India • This is known as the “Seven Years War” • At stake: control of the world’s wealth • The winner of the war will be a superpower

13. Pitt’s Blank Check • England is losing the war to France • Prime Minister Pitt decides to borrow money and spend whatever it takes to win • 1759 is the British “Year of Miracles” – they defeat the French in America and India

14. 1763: Treaty of Paris • France is kicked out of North America, the Caribbean and India • Spain gets Louisiana • Treaty sets up Britain to be a global superpower • Sad story: French Acadians forced to leave Canada for Louisiana (“Cajuns”)

15. 1763: Pontiac’s Rebellion • French had treated Natives in New France as allies and trusted friends • British treat them like slaves • Native anger against the British treatment results in war, led by Pontiac • British Army puts down rebellion but at a high cost

16. 1763: Proclamation Line • King George III said (“proclaimed”) that all the land to the west of the mountains belonged to the King • No one could move there or claim land there without the King’s permission • This put a limit on the westward expansion of the colonists

17. Impacts of the War Impacts on Great Britain • Controls world economy • Huge war debts because of Pitt’“blank check” • Will need to raise taxes to pay off debts • Will need to keep British Army units in America to protect against Native attacks Impacts on the Colonists • Angry over Proclamation Line (no new land) • Angry that the colonies have no representation in Parliament • Angry over troops kept in America • Learned new fighting techniques from Natives

18. Parliamentary Sovereignty • After the War, Parliament takes control over the colonies, ending the period of salutary neglect • Parliament’s decisions over-rule any made by colonial governments • New policy is known as “parliamentary sovereignty, meaning Parliament is in charge

19. North America in 1763

20. Review: The French and Indian War BIG QUESTIONS: What caused the French and Indian War and who won? How did the Proclamation Line impact the colonists? What is meant by ‘parliamentary sovereignty’? Both the French and the British claimed the rich lands of the Ohio River Valley. Conflict over these claims led to war in 1754 and the French and their Native allies fought the British Army and the American colonists. This war soon turned into a worldwide conflict between Britain and France which Britain won by outspending her rival. In 1763, at the end of the War, the British King made it illegal for the colonists to claim or settle lands west of the mountains, which made the colonists very angry as they were now being denied the very thing the had fought for. Parliament took a dominant role in the governing of the colonies – we can this “parliamentary sovereignty”.