Presentation Transcript

1. The Fall of New France

   Grade 7 History
2. New France vs. British Colonies The government of New France was very concerned about security. The British surrounded New France on all sides. If New France were to survive, it would have to be able to resist the threats of its enemies.
3. Acadia At the beginning of the 1700s, the rivalry between the French and British increased. King Louis XIV was trying to make France the most powerful nation in Europe and got into a number of wars with Prussia (Germany) and Britain. Each war seemed to be bigger than the previous one. Britain and France not only fought in Europe but also attacked each other’s colonies.
4. Acadia con’t Eventually, the fight between France and Britain went to the colonies in North America. Acadia was France’s second colony in North America (the first was New France).
5. The Loss of Acadia The king of France never seemed to give as much attention to Acadia as he did for New France. Therefore, the military seemed to concentrate its efforts on defending New France. In 1694, attackers from New England took control of Port Royal (in Acadia). Eventually Britain returned it to France in 1697 (in a peace treaty). But France was not going to keep Acadia for long.
6. Acadia now belongs to Britain The War of the Spanish Succession was a very important war between France and Britain – European countries fought to stop France from taking over Spain. (1702-1713) Britain got control of two of France’s colonies – Acadia and 2 islands in the Caribbean. In 1713, Britain and France negotiated a peace treaty and they agreed to give back a colony to each other. France asked for one of the islands in the Caribbean...and so Britain got to keep Acadia.
7. Seven Years’ War 1756-1763 The Seven Year’s War was the climax of the fighting between the British and the French. It was fought all over the world. In North America, the war got going seriously in 1758. In that year, the British captured Louisbourg and destroyed the fortress. The St. Lawrence River now lay open to British invasion.
8. The Attack on Quebec In the spring of 1759, General James Wolfe led a campaign to capture Quebec. He sailed from Britain with a massive force. But Quebec sat at the top of a cliff at the edge of the St. Lawrence River – it would be hard to attack. In July, Wolfe sent troops up the Beauport shore where the land is more gently sloping. The French beat the British. Wolfe organized some of his ships near the Beauport shore again to make the French think he would attack there again. General Montcalm (French) sent more troops to the shore to prepare for the attack. But it never came. On Sept. 12, Wolfe lead his troops up the west side of Quebec up the path to the Plains of Abraham (an open field to the west of Quebec.)
9. The Plains of Abraham On Sept. 13, 1759, Wolfe stood waiting to attack Quebec but he could not as Quebec was defended by high stone walls. But the people of Quebec would need to go out in search of food, which was scarce because the British had stopped all trade on the river. Wolfe knew that Montcalm would probably send out troops to fight the invaders – but his best men were at the Beauport shore.
10. The Plains of Abraham con’t “The Thin Red Line” – the British soldiers in their red uniforms stood shoulder to shoulder in three lines, one behind the other. As French soldiers came close to attack, the first line of British soldiers started firing. The front line knelt to reload and the second line started firing. The second line knelt to reload and the third line started firing. Then the first line started again. The French didn’t stand a chance. The British won.
11. Surrender As part of the terms of surrender, the French were allowed to keep their Roman Catholic religion (even though most of the British were Protestant). The French were also allowed to keep their churches – the British would not destroy them. The Seven Years’ War ended in 1763, when the French and British signed a peace treaty in Paris. Each side returned some of the places it had captured – but New France was not one of them. New France no longer existed.