Historical Background
Seven Years' War
France had colonies to the north and down through the Mississippi Valley into Louisiana, and Spain had colonies along the Gulf Coast, which left the English the strip of land between the Atlantic and the Appalachian Mountains. Especially annoying for the English colonists were two French forts: Fort Saint Frederic (called Crown Point by the English) on Lake Champlain, which resembled a knife stabbing towards New York, and Fort Niagara on Lake Ontario. Land poor but people rich, their only hope for release was the Ohio Valley (modern-day Ohio, eastern Indiana, western Pennsylvania, and northwestern West Virginia). Unfortunately, this area was claimed by the French, and they planned to build a line of forts through the Ohio Valley to connect Canada with Louisiana. To the neutral observer it would appear that the French had bitten off more than they could chew because in 1754 the French had 55,000 people in Canada, and another 25,000 in Acadia and Louisiana, while the English colonies had 1,160,000 people. This population disparity was due to the French policy of only accepting French Catholics, while the English colonies accepted anyone as long as they were white.
In the spring, the governor of New France, Ange Duquesne de Menneville, began enforcing French claims to the Ohio Country by building a series of forts and expelling British traders. Many Virginia merchants, including the acting Governor, Robert Dinwiddle, owned large tracts of land there, so a young militia major named George Washington was dispatched to evict the French. When they refused to leave, Dinwiddle drew a line in the sand by sending men to build a fort at the forks of the Ohio River.
If his goal was to provoke a fight then he succeeded admirably. The French captured the fort on April 16 and renamed it Duquesne. Dinwiddie raised the stakes by sending Washington with more men back to the Ohio Valley, where he took a small French force by surprise at dawn on May 28, even though France and Britain were at peace. Fort Necessity was quickly erected but he was forced to surrender on July 3 after a brief battle, which convinced the local Indian tribes to back the French. When news of the defeat reached England, troops were sent to America under the command of Major General Edward Braddock, while Admiral Boscawen was ordered to prevent French reinforcements from reaching Canada. It was impossible to keep this movement a secret but no one in the French or British government believed that skirmishes in the colonies would lead to war.
In addition to gaining control of the Ohio Valley, Braddock’s plan was intended to eliminate every threat against the English colonies. Governor William Shirley of Massachusetts was to lead a force against Fort Niagara. William Johnson, Superintendent of Indian Affairs, was to attack Crown Point. Governor Charles Lawrence of Nova Scotia was to capture Fort Beausejour and gain control of Acadia (modern-day New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Cape Breton).
The destruction of Fort Duquesne was left to Braddock, who experienced firsthand the logistical difficulties of moving an army through wilderness. By early June he was a month behind schedule, so the main column was left with Colonel Thomas Dunbar while he moved forward with half the troops but he walked into a French ambush at Monongahela on June 9. The Indians and French remained safe in the woods and simply poured fire into the mass of soldiers standing in the road. Braddock received a fatal wound shortly after he finally ordered a retreat, which became a rout. Dunbar then led the army back to Philadelphia, essentially leaving the frontier defenseless against Indian raids
Shirley proved unable to organize the huge logistical task of marching an army from Albany to Oswego so Niagara was safe, at least until next year. However, a force of militia and British regulars under Lieutenant Colonel Monckton forced Fort Beausejour to surrender on June 16 after three days of shelling. All Acadians who refused to swear loyalty to the British Crown were expelled, in what is called the Great Upheaval.
Johnson had intended to build two forts, Fort Edward, forty miles up the Hudson from Albany, and Fort William Henry on the southern end of Lake George, before advancing on Crown Point. However, he experienced a setback on September 8 when a thousand militia sent to reinforce Fort Edward were ambushed by the French. The fleeing militia made it to Johnson’s camp on Lake George and the French finally retreated after several hours of intense fighting. Neither side wanted to try again the next day, so the English returned to building their fort, while the French started work on Fort Carillon on the north side of the lake.
Since Braddock’s force had been routed, Shirley’s advance had never really started, Johnson was blocked at Lake George and only weakly defended Fort Beausejour had been captured, recently arrived Pierre de Rigaud de Vaudreuil de Cavagnial, the Marquis de Vaudreuil, the first Canadian born governor, can be excused for feeling good.
However, Vaudreuil’s good cheer disappeared when Louis-Joseph de Montcalm, marquis de Montcalm, arrived as commander of French forces.
Realizing the danger of the situation, reinforcements were sent from England and John Campbell, the earl of Loudon, was put in overall command with Major General James Abercromby as second in command and Major General Daniel Webb as third.
England finally made the war official on May 18 and France responded by seizing the key Mediterranean naval base at Minorca on May 20. When a British fleet under Admiral John Byng failed to dislodge them, he was executed to better motivate the other admirals. The situation in Europe quickly became heated as England and Prussia made a formal alliance in January and Austria did the same with France in May.
While Loudon was preoccupied devising a strategy and dealing with the combative colonial assemblies, Montcalm took Oswego in mid-August, capturing a thousand prisoners and huge quantities of equipment before burning the forts and returning north. The speed with which he had eliminated Oswego as a threat forced Loudon to call off a planned expedition against Fort Carillon.
Given his poor performance it should come as no surprise that Newcastle resigned in October and gritting his teeth, George II accepted William Pitt as secretary of state but actually the de facto leader of the government.
The war reached global proportions when Robert Clive, deputy governor of a British settlement in India, defeated the nabob of Bengal, a powerful Indian ruler, who had been negotiating with the French, at Plassey Grove on June 13. Vastly outnumbered, Clive had conspired with the nabob’s uncle to bribe large parts of the army to not fight, and the nabob’s uncle seized the throne, thus giving the British control of Bengal.
Clive of India (1935)
Directed by Richard Boleslawski, starring Ronald Colman and Loretta Young
Frustrated with his position as a clerk, Robert Clive, transfers to the military arm of the British East India Company, where his leadership enables the company to become the dominant power in India and Clive to achieve wealth beyond his wildest dreams.
Pitt ordered Loudon to make Louisbourg his first priority, but bad weather and indecision gave the French time to reinforce the fortress, so he finally cancelled the attack.
Meanwhile, the key to the defense of the northern frontier was Fort William Henry, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel George Munro. Despite the appearance of a powerful French force on August 3 Munro knew that Webb was only a few miles away at Fort Edward with reinforcements. However, Webb feared being ambushed and the French were already winning the artillery duel, so shortly after seeing a captured message from Webb saying he was on his own, Munro agreed on August 9 to an honorable surrender. Montcalm asked his Indian allies not to take prisoners, which greatly confused them since prisoners and loot were why they had joined the French in the first place. When the British marched out the Indians simply dragged people away and then returned home, so he decided not to advance on Fort Edward, thus cutting short the campaign.
The Last of the Mohicans (1920)
Directed by Clarence Brown and Maurice Tourneur, starring Alan Roscoe and Wallace Beery
In 1757, the daughters of British Colonel Munro are on their way to join their father at Fort William Henry on Lake George when they are ambushed by Huron warriors. Rescued by a colonial scout, Hawkeye, and his two Mohican allies, they reach the fort but soon after, Munro surrenders to General Montcalm, who proves unable to restrain his Huron allies, and the women find themselves prisoners.
The Last of the Mohicans (1936)
Directed by George Seitz, starring Randolph Scott and Henry Wilcoxon
In 1757, the daughters of British Colonel Munro are on their way to join their father at Fort William Henry on Lake George when they are ambushed by Huron warriors. Rescued by a colonial scout, Hawkeye, and his two Mohican allies, they reach the fort but soon after, Munro surrenders to General Montcalm, who proves unable to restrain his Huron allies, and the women find themselves prisoners. (please click here to read the review)
The Last of the Redmen (1947)
Directed by George Sherman, starring Jon Hall and Michael O’Shea
In 1757, the daughters of British Colonel Munro are on their way to join their father at Fort William Henry on Lake George when they are ambushed by Huron warriors. Rescued by a colonial scout, Hawkeye, and his two Mohican allies, they reach the fort but soon after, Munro surrenders to General Montcalm, who proves unable to restrain his Huron allies, and the women find themselves prisoners.
The Last of the Mohicans (1992)
Directed by Michael Mann, starring Daniel Day-Lewis and Madeleine Stowe
In 1757, the daughters of British Colonel Munro are on their way to join their father at Fort William Henry on Lake George when they are rescued from Huron warriors by a white trapper who has been adopted by the last two members of the Mohican tribe. They have no interest in the war but love forces them to become involved when the British surrender the fort and the women are captured by the Hurons. (please click here to read the review)
In Europe, extremely large French and Russian armies were pressing into Hanover, the king’s ancestral home, and Prussia respectively. Despite the threat to Britain’s sole ally, Pitt was unwilling to commit many British troops to the continent, preferring to devote more resources to North America, where they were clearly badly needed.
Realizing that he had limited resources, Montcalm decided to concentrate his troops at Fort Carillon and send no reinforcements to the other French strong points. Vaudreuil strongly opposed this static strategy, pointing out that there was no reason to abandon the previously successful strategy of keeping the British off-balance with sudden raids.
Loudon’s string of defeats led to him being replaced by Abercromby, although given Pitt’s astonishingly precise orders it was not really an independent command. Abercromby was told to take Fort Carillon, Major General Jeffrey Amherst was to assault Louisbourg and Duquesne was given to Brigadier General John Forbes. Pitt’s announcement that the king would pay for the war motivated the governors to send militia units.
Abercromby’s army managed to slip past French scouts by rowing at night but the troops became disorganized the next day, and this delay gave Montcalm enough time to dig in on the ground that overlooked the fort. After a day long battle, both sides had taken appalling losses but the French still held their ground. Abercromby’s decision to retreat earned him the ridicule of his men but Montcalm knew that he was still heavily outnumbered and refused to follow the British as they returned to Fort William Henry.
Aside from this humiliating defeat, the remaining campaigns went well for the British. Amherst captured Louisbourg on July 26 after a month long bombardment but abandoned his plan to continue on to Quebec because the colonies were now vulnerable. The trek to Duquesne was arduous but Forbes persevered even though he was so ill that he had to be carried on a litter. Believing that it was pointless to waste badly needed men in a futile defense, the French commander blew up the fort on November 25.
The French were clearly on the defensive and Pitt wanted to maintain the momentum, so Amherst was told to take Fort Carillon and then advance towards Montreal, while Brigadier General James Wolfe led a force from Louisbourg to Quebec.
On June 27, the French woke up to see a large British fleet landing men near Quebec City. While the upper town of Quebec had massive stone walls, there was a small ridge upriver that was high enough that any cannon placed there would be able to bomb the town. Behind the ridge was an open field called the Plains of Abraham, but there had not been time fortify the ridge. However, Montcalm predicted that the British would attack across the St. Charles River, so he sent most of his troops to dig a line of entrenchments on the near side of the river. Since only four thousand of his seventeen thousand men were regulars, Montcalm made no effort to face Wolfe on an open field. Instead, he seemed to be waiting for the Canadian winter to drive the British away, which would not be a bad strategy except that it was July.
Quebec proved to be a tough nut to crack and by late August Wolfe began to despair that he would have to return to Britain a failure. The temperature would drop considerably in less than a month and he had already lost a tenth of his original force. However, he was cheered to learn that Fort Niagara had fallen on July 26 after a several week long siege. Soon after, the French blew up both Fort Carillon and Crown Point, although it was too late in the year for the British to advance on Quebec.
Wolfe had one single advantage, his fleet controlled the river, so he could move troops faster by water than Montcalm could by land. It took him a week to find a landing spot upriver from the city, and on the morning of September 13, Montcalm learned that Wolfe was forming up his army on the Plains of Abraham. Worried that if he waited too long the British would dig in, Montcalm attacked even though not all of his troops had arrived. The militia proved unable to stand up to British regulars and retreated after one volley. Each side had lost roughly 600-700 troops, including its commander, but the French were able to safely re-enter Quebec City.
Montcalm’s successor knew that he could not hold Quebec City but the British had no desire to freeze outside the city so generous terms were given and the French surrendered on September 17.
When British messengers sent to the Abenaki village of St. Francis to negotiate a prisoner exchange were captured Amherst furiously ordered Major Robert Rogers to punish St. Francis . 150 rangers attacked at dawn on October 4 and torched the village. It became a race to stay ahead of the vengeful Abenaki, but the greatest threat was hunger. When Rogers’ men reached safety a month later, the Abenaki had found eighteen men and thirty more had starved to death, so Amherst’s revenge had come at a high price.
Northwest Passage (1940)
Directed by King Vidor, starring Spencer Tracy and Robert Young
A young man who has been expelled from Harvard gets drunk in a tavern with an old friend and is overheard criticizing the English governor. Fearing punishment, they join Major Rogers’ Rangers on a successful raid against an Indian town deep in enemy territory. They are then pursued by French troops as they race to a British fort where supplies and reinforcements are waiting.
British victories in North America and at sea were offset by Prussian defeats on the continent as Frederick’s army was slowly worn down. However, after a lengthy and harsh campaign, the British gained control of French-held Guadeloupe.
Barry Lyndon (1975)
Directed by Stanley Kubrick, starring Ryan O’Neal and Marisa Berenson
A young Irish man joins the British army after highwaymen rob him but deserts to the Prussian army and then becomes the partner of a noble born gambler/con artist. Eventually, he achieves his lifelong goal of entering the nobility by marrying a wealthy countess but manages to lose her fortune.
After a fierce battle outside the city the situation at Quebec City had reached stalemate. The French were too weak to force their way in and the British could not escape, so whoever received reinforcements first would win. However, Paris did not plan to send reinforcements but London did, and a British fleet arrived in mid-May.
All of the remaining French forces retreated to Montreal. An additional obstacle was the fierce rapids of the St. Lawrence, which cost Amherst’s army five wet, miserable, terrifying days and eighty-four men. However, the force continued and reached Montreal on September 6, where they were joined by the troops from Quebec City. Amherst’s offer was simple: immediate surrender or the town would be taken by storm. Vaudreuil saw reality and agreed to the surrender, which included all of the French troops in North America and took place on the morning of September 8.
Now that they could no longer balance the French and English against each other, the Indians faced an unending stream of English settlers thirsting for their land. Conflict broke out with the Cherokee in the fall of 1760, and they surrendered on September 23, 1761, after a brutal war where the English burned their way through Cherokee land.
When the French troops returned to France sixty thousand French colonists were left behind. The British government did not want to repeat the experience of Scotland and Ireland nor did it want uppity colonies like the American colonies, so the colonists were allowed to keep their culture but had no political power.
George II died on October 25, 1760 and was succeeded by George III.
Pitt refused to negotiate peace because he saw no reason to stop until England had taken all of France’s overseas territories. However, the rest of the British government wanted peace and George III did not want Pitt, so he resigned on October 2, 1761.
Newcastle was the prime minister, but Bute had the king’s confidence and both of them wanted to end the war before it bankrupted the country. Unfortunately for them, Czarina Elizabeth of Russia died on January 5, 1762, leaving the throne to her son Peter, who admired Frederick so much that he immediately negotiated a peace, which meant that Frederick had no interest in peace.
The Scarlet Empress (1934)
Directed by Josef von Sternberg, starring Marlene Dietrich and John Lodge
A young German princess marries the heir to the Russian empress and when the empress dies, she takes power in a coup d’etat, has him murdered and becomes Catherine the Great.
The Rise of Catherine the Great (1934)
Directed by Paul Czinner, starring Douglas Fairbank, Jr and Elisabeth Bergner
A young German princess marries the heir to the Russian throne and they are initially happy but when he changes after becoming emperor, she is urged to take the throne to save the nation.
It seemed that events were favoring England but everything changed in January 1762 when Spain entered the war on France’s side. After a series of well-executed amphibian operations, the French were forced to surrender Martinique on February 13. In August, the British had one of the greatest victories of the war when they captured Havana, the leading trading center in the Americas, after a bloody two month long siege. Manila fell to a surprise attack by British forces from India on September 23, 1762. Aside from the strategic value, the captured loot from both cities rejuvenated the British government’s dangerously low finances.
Bute managed to arrange for Newcastle to retire in May 1762. When news of the victory at Havana arrived, Bute feared that a joyous public would force the king to bring back Pitt, so he sped up negotiations and the Treaty of Paris was signed on February 10, 1763. The French government knew that there could not be peace if both nations had colonies in North America, so Canada officially became British, except for the two tiny islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon, which were vital for the cod fishing industry. Aside from New Orleans, everything east of the Mississippi was British, while Spain was forced to surrender West Florida. Despite the huge transfer of ownership that occurred outside of Europe, nothing actually changed in Europe, except that thousands of men had died. Pitt was apoplectic that France was permitted to keep the sugar islands of Guadeloupe and St, Martinique but not even a three hour long passionate speech could defeat the desire for peace and the treaty was ratified 319 to 65.
A century of almost constant warfare had finally come to an end but it had come at great cost since England’s national debt had doubled during the seven years. Furthermore, the colonial assemblies had increasingly come into conflict with London’s representatives, which did little to endear them to the government.
Indians in the west were angry about the newly arrived British traders and Pontiac, an influential Ottawa chief, raised a small army and tried to capture Detroit by trickery on May 7, 1763. Other tribes captured isolated post after post until they had retaken all of the west except for Forts Niagara, Pitt and Detroit. However, when the British relieved Fort Pitt on August 10 Pontiac’s allies began drifting away. In late October, Pontiac learned that the French had signed a treaty with the British and would not join the war, so he asked for peace. Amherst’s successor, Thomas Gage, felt that peace would only come when all the Indians were dead and in the summer of 1764 sent two armies through the west, forcing tribe after tribe to surrender and negotiate peace settlements until Pontiac led a large delegation of chiefs to Oswego in July 1766.
Unconquered (1947)
Directed by Cecil B. DeMille, starring Gary Cooper and Paulette Goddard
A fur trader is trying to incite an Indian rebellion in the hope that they will drive out the American colonists and British, leaving him in control of the fur trade in the Ohio Valley. He is opposed by a settler who tries to both persuade the Indians to remain peaceful and save a woman illegally condemned to become an indentured servant.
Empires At War: The Seven Years’ War and the Struggle for North America 1754-1763-William M. Fowler Jr., Toronto: Douglas & McIntyre, 2005.
The first chapter concisely explains the political situation in Europe and how conflict was brewing in North America despite the vast distances between the French and British colonies. The portraits of the main participants and contemporary paintings of the notable battles and forts are interesting but no replacement for actual maps. Admittedly, the footnotes give the modern locations of the places mentioned in the narrative but simply looking at modern maps does not give any sense of the scale of distance covered and just how empty the disputed areas were. Fowler also never details the specific number of casualties after each battle. As the title states, it focuses on the struggle for North America and spends little time explaining the situation in Europe. However, it is an excellent introduction to a conflict that set the stage for the American Revolution.
The French and Indian War: Deciding the Fate of North America-Walter R. Borneman, New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 2006.
Borneman devotes more time to an aborted plan of union between the colonies than to the initial fight that started the war and Washington’s surrender at Fort Necessity. He excels at explaining the economic aspect of the war and makes Pitt’s global vision easily understood. Although specific numbers of casualties for each battle are provided, some of his explanations of battles are better than others, which I suspect reflects whether they are considered important or not. Pontiac’s rebellion is examined in good detail and shows how Pontiac’s leadership role has been overstated. The years immediately following the end of the war are covered to show how the frustration of not being able to settle the captured French lands combined with heavy taxes drove the colonists to revolt. Finally, he briefly plays the what-if game, while never forgetting that the game is both fascinating and pointless. Above all, he shows how the war transformed the kingdom of Great Britain into the British Empire. Oh, it has great maps.
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