• The English and French had created rival empires in North America. The competition between these two powers often led to war
– While the French had claimed the Ohio River
Valley, the English competed with them for furs to trade.
– The fur trade led to alliances with between the
Europeans and the Native Americans.
• Because of these alliances, the Native Americans were often dragged into the wars.

• The Ohio River Valley began to attract settlers from Virginia and Pennsylvania for fur trading.
– This caused France to panic and fear that they were going to loose the area to the
British.
– This was the main event that paved the way for the 9 year long war.

• The French sent troops into the area to expel the settlers and build forts to protect the area.
– This didn’t sit well with the governor of Virginia who sent troops in 1753 to force the French to leave.
• The Virginia militia was led by a 21 year old major named
George Washington
• Washington built a small fort near to Ft.
Duquesne named Ft. Necessity.
– From there he led a surprise attack on the French who retaliated and attacked the Virginians on July
3, 1754.
– Thus the French an Indian war had begun

• The Huron Indians sided with the
French and the Iroquois sided with the
British
• Benjamin Franklin suggested that all the colonies band together to defend themselves.
– This was known as the Albany Plan of
Union.
– It failed because the colonies didn’t want to give up individual power.

• By August 1759, the British controlled 6
French forts and were aiming to attack the city of Quebec
• After a surprise attack, the French surrendered Quebec in September of 1759.
– The war raged on for almost another three years in various places around the world.
– Thanks to the help of the Spanish, a treaty of signed and the Seven Years War ended in 1763 with the Treaty of Paris.
• The treaty ended almost all the French control over North
America and changed the way that the British colonies looked.

• With the pull out of the French, the British began to treat the Native Americans badly.
– They refused to give the Native Americans gifts to appease them.
• In response, the Native Americans began to attack and destroy the forts west of the Appalachian Mountains.
– This revolt was known as Pontiac’s Rebellion after one the Indian leaders.
• The British responded by giving the Native Americans smallpox-infected blankets during peace talks.
– A deadly outbreak of the disease spread among the Indians and within 3 years a peace treaty was signed.
• The British also issued the Proclamation of 1763 to protect the colonists from living west of the Appalachian
Mountains to prevent future conflict.

• The colonists were angry because they had wanted to settle in the Ohio River Valley and the British government was angry with them because they insisted on settling on Native
American lands.
• The war had also given the colonists their first taste of fighting as a unit against a common enemy.
• This feeling grew in strength as the colonists began to complain against the British.
– The stage was set for the final conflict between the colonies and Britain.