Some American Indians welcomed this policy, believing that the separation would allow them to resume their traditional ways of life; others realized that the proclamation, at best, would only provide some breathing room before the next onslaught of invaders.
The other intention of the proclamation was to concentrate colonial settlements on the seaboard, where they could be active participants in the British mercantile system. The first priority of British trade officials was to populate the recently secured areas of Canada and Florida, where colonists could reasonably be expected to trade with the mother country; settlers living west of the Appalachians would be highly self-sufficient and have little opportunity to trade with English merchants.
The reaction of colonial land speculators and frontiersmen to this proclamation was highly negative. From their perspective, they had risked their lives in the recent war only to be denied the lands they coveted. Most concluded that the proclamation was only a temporary measure; a number ignored it entirely and moved into the prohibited area anyway. Almost from its inception, the proclamation was modified to suit the needs of influential British people with interests in the American west, including many high British officials as well as colonial leaders.
As a result, the boundary line was adjusted in a series of treaties. The British American colonies in : This map shows the status of the American colonies in , after the end of the French and Indian War.
Although Great Britain won control of the territory east of the Mississippi, the Proclamation Line of prohibited British colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains. In December of , following the end of the French and Indian War and the signing of the proclamation, a vigilante group made up of Scots-Irish frontiersmen known as the Paxton Boys attacked the local Conestoga, a Susquehannock tribe who lived on land negotiated by William Penn and their ancestors in the s.
In the aftermath of the French and Indian War, the frontier of Pennsylvania remained unsettled. A new wave of Scots-Irish immigrants encroached on American Indian land in the back country. These settlers claimed that American Indians often raided their homes, killing men, women, and children. Many Conestoga were Christian, and they had lived peacefully with their European neighbors for decades. Although there had been no American Indian attacks in the area, the Paxton Boys claimed that the Conestoga secretly provided aid and intelligence to the hostiles.
On December 14, , more than 50 Paxton Boys marched on the Conestoga homes near Conestoga Town, Millersville, and murdered six people and burned their cabins. The colonial government held an inquest and determined that the killings were murder. The new governor, John Penn, offered a reward for their capture. The ruthlessness of these conflicts reflected a growing divide between the British colonists and American Indians.
Privacy Policy. Skip to main content. The Colonial Crisis: — Search for:. Learning Objectives Describe the political and economic impact of the French and Indian War on the colonies.
The war was primarily fought over contested claims between the British and French over the land of the Ohio Country. The outcome of the war was one of the most significant developments in a century of Anglo-French conflict, with Britain gaining control over Canada and Florida.
American Indian tribes supporting the British included the Iroquois Confederacy, Catawba, and the Cherokee prior to Map of the French and Indian War.
The Albany Congress and the Intercolonial Defense The Albany Congress brought together colonial representatives to discuss relations with American Indian tribes and common defense against the French. Learning Objectives Identify the Albany Congress. Key Takeaways Key Points In , the British government asked colonial representatives to meet in Albany, New York, to develop a treaty with American Indians and plan the defense of the colonies against France.
Exceeding their limited objectives, the assembly adopted a plan developed by Benjamin Franklin for government of the colonies by a central executive and a council of delegates. Though Britain gained the territory of New France and French Canada, France and Britain both suffered financially because of the war, with significant long-term consequences. Following the British victory in the French and Indian War, British postwar policies in the Great Lakes region greatly disregarded American Indian rights to their land.
Involved in the rebellion were the numerous tribes of the Great Lakes region and the eastern Illinois Country, both of which had been allied with the French; the tribes of the Ohio Country, allied with neither, were also involved. Pontiac : An Ottawa leader who became famous for his role in the American Indian uprising of , in which a pan-tribal coalition of American Indians resisted British military occupation of the Great Lakes region following the British victory in the French and Indian War.
Learning Objectives Analyze the British policy regarding westward expansion. Key Takeaways Key Points The French and Indian War of the s resulted in a complete victory for the British, who took over the lands west to the Mississippi River that had previously been claimed by the French, but was largely inhabited by American Indians. Following the acquisition of new territory, colonists pushed west into the frontier lands.
By the early s, British colonists were moving across the Appalachians into western Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Ohio.
Major-General Edward Braddock and two regular regiments were sent to America in On learning of these movements, the French ordered six battalions under Baron Armand Dieskau to reinforce Louisbourg and Canada. Vice-Admiral Edward Boscawen and a squadron of the British navy tried to intercept and capture the French convoy but captured only two ships.
The British had even less success on land. Instead, they strengthened their position at the opposite side of the lake, where they built Fort William Henry. The proposed assault on Niagara collapsed due to supply problems and heavy desertion, and Braddock's army was destroyed by a small detachment of French soldiers and Indigenous warriors.
The Acadian settlers were then deported, as the British viewed them as potential rebels see History of Acadia. In April , more French troops and a new commander, the marquis de Montcalm , arrived in Canada. The next month Britain declared war. The strategy of the French commander-in-chief and governor general, the marquis de Vaudreuil , was to keep the British on the defensive and as far from Canadian settlements as possible.
At the same time, Canadian and Indigenous war parties attacked American frontier settlements. The Americans could not cope with these attacks and Britain was forced to send over 20, troops to the colonies and commit most of its navy to blockading the French ports.
The French plan was to use a small army, aided by the Canadians and Indigenous allies, to tie down these large British forces in the interior, thereby sparing more valuable colonies such as Guadeloupe from attack.
Despite the large numbers of British regulars arriving in North America, the French government refused to send more than token troop reinforcements. In , the tide of war turned against the French, with the British launching several major attacks on French posts. They were defeated by Montcalm and a force of only 3, men.
However, the British also launched a successful amphibious attack on Louisbourg that summer, which opened up the St. Lawrence River to British ships. In August , the British destroyed Fort Frontenac [ Kingston , Ontario] with its stock of supplies for the western posts. France's Indigenous allies in the Ohio region made a separate peace with the British, forcing the French to abandon Fort Duquesne.
In , the British captured Guadeloupe in the Caribbean, and mounted three campaigns against French fortifications on the mainland. Two British armies advanced on Canada while a third captured Niagara.
Wolfe tried to lure the French into open battle throughout the summer, attacking outposts and settlements while laying siege to the city. On 13 September , a British force of 4, men landed about 3 km upriver of Quebec. Instead of waiting for reinforcements, Montcalm decided to attack. The British inflicted a shattering defeat in the Battle of the Plains of Abraham. Both Wolfe and Montcalm died from wounds sustained during the battle.
When his company returned to their base camp, Washington knew that the French would answer and hastily constructed defense fortifications in a low-lying watery meadow. He named the site Fort Necessity , and waited for the French to appear. After three days of fighting, Washington was offered terms of surrender. He and his men would be permitted to march back to Williamsburg to make a report to the Governor that sent him out.
These were the only terms of surrender that Washington ever signed. Reacting to this incident, British officials decided that local militias were not adequate to challenge the French. Braddock ordered a road built to carry heavy artillery into the area. Soldiers slowly carved over several months from northern Virginia into southwestern Pennsylvania.
Braddock was mortally wounded and Washington organized the retreat, saving lives in the process and gaining acclaim as a leader of men. Montreal fell in September of the following year. The British under George III were not just fighting over territory in the Americas; they were simultaneously involved in maritime battles that tested the might of the British Navy. The British victory in the French and Indian War earned England a reputation as a world power with a strong navy, a reputation they would use to continue their empire-building around the globe.
The French loss would later inspire them to side with American patriots against the British during the Revolutionary War. Frederick, for his part, welcomed another war where he could gain even more territory. Frederick made the first move, kicking off the war in Europe when he invaded Saxony in August , quickly taking Leipzig and Dresden before moving on to attack Bohemia.
Following a failed siege of Prague in May of , he earned early victories at Rossbach on November 5, , when Prussian forces defeated France and Austria, and again at the Battle of Leuthen on December 5, , when the Prussians were victorious over the Austrians. It was at Leuthen that Frederick began to rely less heavily on swordsmanship and more on firepower to keep up with the advanced weaponry of his opponents. The Russians and Austrians withdrew as Prussian reinforcements arrived to battle for their capital.
Prussia was winning, but at great cost. That miracle happened when Russia withdrew from the war in following the death of its leader, Tsarina Elizabeth, and the ascension of her nephew, Czar Peter III, to the throne.
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