French and Indian War Summary

The French and Indian War is a very well known war and it’s most famous cause is the events that took place at Fort Necessity. However the truth is, is that there is much more to that war than just one incident. The French and British did not have good history with each other already so it was not easy immigrating to the same land without a head leader. As well as the ways of making money for the two different countries is different so they tend to clash in that respect. Lastly coming to the New World is about gaining power and control and they saw each other in the way of becoming a superpower country.

The French and the British have had their disagreements in the past and just because they have moved to a new country doesn’t mean that those disagreements have gone away. The British were farmers, manufacturers, and tradesmen. The French on the other hand were mainly trappers and riverboat traders. This caused the inevitable, a conflict of interests from the Ohio River to Lake Champlain. The boundaries back then were not set in stone so it was pretty difficult to definitely say what land belonged to whom. The French and the British also had sort of an unspoken competition over land and power.

This also caused conflict. Both France and Britain came to the New World to become much more powerful and basically take over most of the world. They came with greed for money, land and control. Initially Britain had more land, but the French had some good resources. In order to gain global power, resources were key. Resources could lead to money and trade and everything a country could want. As stated before, boundaries were pretty vague and both Britain and France wanted control over the Ohio River Valley.

In reaction France began to build forts there and the British tried to take them down and failed. Then the British started to build their own fort, Fort Necessity. Soon the French approached the fort and this caused a battle, which left the British in a worse position than before and they had to surrender. This caused the tension and anger between the two countries to rise even more. Lastly trade was a huge issue between the French and British. They wanted different things, but they needed the same land. The Ohio Valley was full of trees and rich soil.

The French wanted the land to keep the trees and continue the fur trade. This keeps the Indians happy because they get the benefit of trading with the French. However, the English wanted the land to chop down the trees and farm. This is how they make their profit, but it was also cause the Indians to have to move out. The French were not happy with what the British wanted to do with the land. The French were allies with the Indians and didn’t want to see them displaced. In conclusion there were many causes to the French and Indian War, not just the incident at Fort Necessity.

The French and British already were not on the best terms with each other and they had no plan to change that. Also the French and British both wanted to be all-powerful, but they couldn’t do that together. The both wanted the land and the economic gain, but they both couldn’t have it. It also affected the trade. They wanted to use the Ohio River Valley for two different things that could not coincide. All these disagreements and the tension rose to the point of war. This was war was also known as the French and Indian War or the Seven Years War.