French & Indian War Gr. 8

America

How the French & Indian War began… The war was actually a part of the Seven Years War being fought in Europe. England and France had been at war with each other for years, They were the Hatfield’s and McCoy’s, Red Sox/Yankees, Eastford and Canterbury What is interesting to note: England and France used America as only one theatre of war, They also fought in India, Europe and on the seas

First, So and Then First, So, Then…

French and the Native Americans French were allies with many Native American tribes, French were interested in trading furs, British were not, British interested in taking lands Comprehension Check: Why would Native American tribes much more willing to align themselves with France than England?

French & Native Americans French seem to respect the Native Americans more than the British, French fur traders would marry Native American women and followed their customs. French missionaries also converted many Native Americans to Catholicism. Memory Check: What religion did the English follow?

French & Native Americans Native Americans, specifically Iroquois Indians, would help the French by raiding British settlements. In 1713, a Massachusetts based tribe, the Abenaki people, joined the French and attacked a British frontier post in Deerfield, MA.

Where is Deerfield? Right here! Raid itself left 16 people dead and 14 – 24 taken captive.

Treaty of Paris This treaty ended the French and Indian War. When two countries come to negotiate a treaty, 2 things happen, 1. The country or countries who won the war, ask for everything they think they can get; 2. The country or countries who lost the war, want to try to protect as much of their assets as possible, knowing they don’t have much to leverage, because they are losing the battle So, the loser needs to ask themselves, what must I have and what am I willing to let go in order to protect the integrity of what I feel is most important to me (the loser).

Treaty of Paris Activity… Here what we are looking for; As the winner, you don’t want to give anything to the enemy, however, if the enemy has something of great interest of yours, you will have to trade to get it back. As the loser, you want to try to get as much back as you can, if you have something of great interest of the enemy, you want to hold that for has much as you can get from the enemy, but be careful, you ask for to much, you may upset the winner and he/she may end up back on the war path, something you want to avoid. Think outside the BOX

Treaty of Paris The give and take of the Treaty of Paris: France was permitted to keep its sugar-producing islands in the West Indies France was forced to give up Canada (known as New France at the time) and its lands east of the Mississippi River to Great Britain. From Spain, France’s ally, Great Britain gained Florida. From France, Spain received French lands west of the Mississippi River – the Louisiana Territory – as well as the port of New Orleans The end of the war marked the end of France as a power in the New World

Treaty of Paris The New World was know dominated by the Spanish and the English, with the Mississippi River being the Division in the proverbial sand.

Treaty of Paris

Pontiac’s War More than just a car…who knew? Like Benjamin Franklin, Pontiac, Chief of the Ottawa village near Detroit, looked at the British presence in the Ohio Valley as a threat to the livelihood of Ottawa life. Pontiac assembled an alliance of Native American peoples. He laid siege to the British fort in Detroit while other parties captured most of the other British outposts in the Great Lake region.

Pontiac’s War Let’s look at the area we are talking about on Google Earth… The Natives failed at their initiatives b/c they did not capture the strongholds of Niagara, Fort Pitt and Detroit. Just b/c you hold siege doesn’t mean you control it. Remember back to our discussions regarding the Crusade’s. Perhaps discouraged, Pontiac called off the Native Americans after the French signed the Treaty of Paris, perhaps acknowledging the inevitable.

Fallout The Native Americans of the Ohio Valley were dealt a serious blow; Lost French allies and trading partners Did trade with British, considered Brits as enemies British raised prices on what they sold Natives and refused to pay rent for British forts, something the French did do, Worst of all, British settlers began to settle Monongahela and Susquehanna River Valleys in Western Pennsylvania.