The French And Indian War In North America

The year 1754 saw the beginning of the French and Indian War in North America, which was an international conflict between the British Empire and The French Empire and its Native American allies (Schwartz, 1994, p.vii). The French and Indian War, or the Seven Years war in Europe, remains significant because it created an international redistribution of power and money that required European powers to shift focus away from their colonies. Scholars have argued that the French and Indian War is responsible for the exponential decline of the North American English colony’s dependence on the English government, and for creating the colonial stirrings for rebellion, causing the formation of the United States. It’s still important to study the French

228). Even though outnumbered, at the end of the war, Prussia managed to defend her land from the French coalition counter-assault, maintaining the status quo ante bellum. Thus no land in Europe was lost by any country as a result of the French and Indian War/Seven Years War. However, in North America, France lost control of Louisiana, relinquishing the expansive territory to Spain despite France being a major imperial power (Scott, 2011, p.423). At the end of the war it was clear that the European, non-combatant, citizens of the empires involved in the war were minimally affected; the majority of the fighting occurred in North America. The group that was most negatively affected was the Native Americans, as the post-war British westward expansion occupied the Native population’s territory in the Ohio Valley region, and Louisiana. The French and Indian War was fundamental in inspiring rebellions that would shape the future of Native Americans and British colonists. With the French defeat causing the British to stake claims the Ohio River and Mississippi River valleys, the Native Americans living in those areas knew their prosperous economic relationship with the French settlers was soon over. The French settlers were more interested in trading goods to be sent to Europe, where as the British settlers were in the business of agricultural production, both for sustainability and for economic gain. The ferocity of Native American militants in the French and Indian War reinforced the already fearful British colonists’ hatred of them. This hatred of Native Americans, caused the colonists to justify expanding westward and taking land from the “savages”. On the other hand, Native Americans began to equally resent the white settlers encroaching on their land. This encroachment inspired Pontiac’s Rebellion in 1763, The leader of the