MJ+Chapter+6+Notes

Chapter 6 The battle for North America included three major European countries – England, France, and Spain – as well as the Native Americans. France’s major outposts were in Canada. In 1608, France founded Quebec which was very conveniently placed near the St. Lawrence River, a major waterway that stretches far into the continent. Because of sponsors falling into bankruptcy, the French king soon had control of the settlement. France’s territory expanded in all directions in the search for beaver pelts. With French and British territory creeping closer together, it was only a matter of time before a war broke out. The French and British had their eyes on the Ohio Valley. The British claimed the rights to some 500,000 acres in that area even though the French had already setup a settlement or two there. The dispute led to the French-Indian War. General Braddock of the British army attacked a French fort with two thousand men and was crushed. With the British army in tatters and the colonists vulnerable, the Indians started raiding Pennsylvania and North Carolina. In 1756, the British launched a full-scale invasion of Canada and lost multiple battles before they finally won one in Louisbourg in 1758. In 1759, the French were run out of their Quebec settlement and out of America. With the French eliminated, colonists felt an overwhelming spirit of independence. The new dominating power did not have to worry about the Spanish and Indians as much as they used to. In 1763, Pontiac led several tribes to try and run the colonists out of the Ohio area. All but three outposts were overrun and at least 2,000 settlers and soldiers were killed. This made the British realize that a good relationship with the Western Indians was a necessity. The Proclamation of 1763 prohibited the establishment of outposts west of the Appalachian Mountains to reduce the number of Indian attacks. This ban on expansion upset a lot of colonists, especially those growing tobacco.