French and Indian War - Essay Example

The Causes and Major Outcomes of the French and Indian War. The French Indian war, also commonly referred to as the great war of the empire, was fought from 1754-1763 in America between the British and the French. Before the war, they had coexisted peacefully for many years. The fighting was severe because of the many colonies this two colonialists had. As a result, they needed vast areas for settlement. This paper will focus on the French and Indian war. More specifically, the essay will address the causes and the outcome of the war. The essay will also focus on the military aspects of the war. The fighting took nine years with the British emerging as winners. There was hostility between the French army and the British army mainly caused by the zeal to acquire more colonies. Earlier in 1649 the British allies had attacked French settlement of La Chine and well before the French knew, a war had been declared on them. The French generals led by Louis Frontenac attacked isolated Indian allies and held them for a ransom; this created fear against the Catholics. The English felt that the Catholics missionaries used to fight the English protestant. (Anderson 17). Causes of the war Struggle for territory and the land was one of the reasons for the war. The British and the French colonies increased; the need for settlement of this population became high and, therefore, the struggle to acquire more land was present. The British and the French were searching for new markets for trade. As a result, the two powers deployed soldiers to secure any new claims, communities, fortresses, missions and trading posts. The British used the Indian to get the territories in the vast American world (Calloway 40). The Construction of fortresses in the Ohio valley was also a cause of the war. In 1750, a group of Virginian businessmen secured themselves about 500,000 acres in Ohio valley for settlement. This same piece of land had earlier been claimed by Joseph Celeron for France; the French did so to prevent the British from further expanding into the French colonies and, therefore, begun to construct fortresses on Ohio valley, which made, the British suspicious (Santella 45). This move made the British suspicious and they begun constructions of fortresses and army preparations to counter the French. These army preparations can be regarded as the main cause of the war. Different religious affiliations were also a key concern. The French who had earlier settled in America were Catholics, and they felt threatened since the many violent Indians were non Catholics. The Britons had religious freedom and also felt threatened by the French catholic. This was an ideological difference rather than political; it contributed to the war. Economical differences between France and the British also led to the war. Since both the French and the British were traders, need arose to increase the market base. As a result, the two countries fought to acquire more space for trading and also a market to sell their commodities (Calloway 41). Dispute of the confluence of the Allgney and Monongahela River caused the war. The two rivers situated in the present day Pennsylvania and, Pittsburgh were a main concern for the two colonialists; each wanted to take full control. Consequently, a war erupted between the Native American soldiers and the French soldiers. The French leaders from Quebec sent the military to discourage the Indian from trading with the British people in that region. Massacre of some French by the Indians also contributed to the war; the Indians were colonies of the British. Their soldiers got directions from George Washington to kill the French. This massacre forced George to surrender and withdraw from further fighting (Calloway 43). The British had not formally declared war on France. The British military, leader Duke organized a series of campaigns designed to cease the French rule in North America. The Generals led attacks against the French in the regions where the French had built fortresses; this was done to reduce the French influence in North America. It was easy to attack French empires from all fronts since Britons had well organized military and adequate war machinery (Anderson 20). The outcome of the French and Indian war The war ended in the year 1763 with the signing of a peace treaty called the Paris treaty. The treaty led to British success where they controlled half of North America. The French claimed west of Mississippi river and Spanish Florida. The British also gave Cuba back to Spain. The French Indian war also led to the End of the French empire in North America. The war wiped out the French from North America apart for the few who owned sugar plantations in West Indies and the two newfound islands (Santella 46). The war also ended the fear that the French took over the colonies that belonged to Spain and also ensured that the British rule expanded to the vast North America. After the defeat of the French by the British in the war, the French started to support the American rebels by providing ammunition, and finances to counter the British. This significantly influenced the British loss of their American colonies. However, the move was detrimental in causing financial crises in France, and in turn the outbreak of French revolution due to financial crisis. Close ties between the British and its colonies increased tremendously. The war made the British open up diplomatic ties with her colonies that never existed in the past. In America, the British found her interest conflicting with those of its colonies. The British allowed colonial assemblies to give instructions or to pass legislations suited to their own need (Anderson 22). Another outcome of the war was the Royal proclamation of 1763. King George the third issued the proclamation on October 1763; it outlined the administration and division of the newly conquered lands. It also contained reservations of the lands west of Appalachian Mountains, given to the Indian populations. The proclamation deterred the civic participation of the Roman Catholics, although this changed later with the Quebec act (Santella 48). In conclusion, the French and Indian war had multiple causes. They include the struggle for territories and land as well as religious differences among others. The war had several outcomes, which included the signing of the Paris treaty and the royal proclamation of 1763. The involvement of the military in the war was high. Both parties involved in the war aimed at controlling and conquering their territories by exerting military force. Works Cited Anderson, Fred. Crucible of war: the seven years war and the fate of empire in British North America, 1754-1766. New York: Vintage Books, 2000. Print. Calloway, Colin. The scratch of a pen: 1763 and the transformation of North America. Oxford: Oxford university press, 2006. Print. Santella, Andrew. The French and Indian War. Minneapolis: Compass Point Books, 2004. Print. Read More