2.  1750 – France and GB chief rivals for empire  British and French were both interested in the Ohio River Valley  Had been fighting for power in Europe  Spilled over into America  British cleared land, grew crops

3.  1608 – Quebec 1 st permanent settlement – Samuel de Champlain  By 1754 New France had grown to 70,000 including entire Miss. Valley (1 million for GB)  Mostly fur traders & catholic priests neither look to settle  Friendlier relations with Natives – Huron's, Ottawa's, Ojibwa’s – led to military alliances

4.  Lt. Gov. of VA Dinwiddie called upon George Washington, an officer in the Virginia militia, to raise a force against the French  (May 1754) Washington marched troops towards the Ohio River

5.  1754 – rivalry re-ignited – French built Ft. Duquesne (Pittsburg) British had given 200,000 acres wealthy farmers – GB sends militia to evict French  George Washington (22 year old officer) – set up Ft. Necessity (40 miles) – battled French and forced Washington to surrender  1 st Battle of French and Indian War

6.  Drafted the Albany Plan of Union  Developed by a committee led by Benjamin Franklin  Proposed that the colonies unite to form a central government vs. French and Indians  Was approved by the delegates; rejected by the colonial legislatures

7.  ( 1755) British commander-in- chief General Edward Braddock arrived in Virginia with troops  Joined with local militia  George Washington served as his aide  Together, they headed west, intending to attack Fort Duquesne

8. Just short of the Fort, Braddock’s troops were ambushed by French and Native American forces  Braddock was killed  Surprised British, many fled – Washington stayed and fought & organized a successful retreat  colonist began to questions British Army

9.  (1756) Fighting between Britain and France spread to Europe [Seven Year’s War]  The British still focused their energy, time, and troops on North America  (1757) William Pitt becomes prime minister of Britain  Believed that the entire British Empire was at stake.  Persuaded Parliament to raise taxes and borrow money to fight the war…it worked

10. The three main thrusts of British strategy are shown here.  In 1758, British forces struck in two directions  French strongholds in the West  Louisbourg in the East  Finally, in 1759, they attacked Quebec and Montreal.

11.  (1759) British fleet commanded by General James Wolfe sailed up the St. Lawrence to Quebec City  Wolfe took his troops up a steep cliff  Fought Montcalm, the French General  Both Wolfe and Montcalm were killed  The British were victorious – Quebec surrendered

13.  The Treaty of Paris was drafted in 1763 to end the French and Indian and Seven Year’s Wars  France turned present-day Canada over to Britain  Surrendered its claim to all lands east of the Mississippi River.  Britain also returned Cuba to Spain in exchange for Florida.

14.  Ottawa leader Pontiac recognized French loss bad for Native Americans  NA attack and capture 8 British Ft. – British give smallpox infected blankets – by 1765 sign treaties  British Govt’ issues the Proclamation of 1763 – banned settlement's W of Appalachian Mts.

15.  The French and Indian War & Proclamation seriously strained relations between the British and the American colonists.  Mass – British tensions over smuggling and searching homes  British thought that the colonists did not provide enough support for the long and costly war that Britain had fought to protect them.  Left Standing Army in the colonies (10,000)  George Grenville – new PM  Passed Sugar Act 1764 – lower tax on Molasses, duties on imports – Smuggling trials in more serious courts  The American colonists were shocked by the weakness of British military tactics.  These feelings would soon combine with other events to expand the rift between Britain and its colonies.