In 1754 George Washington’s military incompetence caused his surrender at Ft. Necessity and began the French and Indian War. The war was a very long and expensive war, and it would even spread to Europe.
During the ware and the events immediately following, the English would begin to tighten their grip on the government of the colonies and the colonists would grow to resent their oppressive tactis and their arrogance, an attitue that would eventually lead the colonists to all out rebellion. The resentment of the British began witht emilitary blunders of General Braddock. In 1755, General Braddock with 2, 000 men largely composed of colonials called “ bucksins” headed off the capture Fort Duquesne. The colonials undisciplined manners and their Indian-like methods of fighting brought contempt from the well’established British Red-Coats.
This would breed contempt for the British among the colonials since they felt that they were fighting well the way that they had been taught to fight. In 1756, the British launched an offensive into Canada, but rather than focus all their forces on Montreal and Quebec, they foolishily spread out their forces and tried to attach many places at one time. The British blunders destroyed their reputation as an invincible fighting force. This new attitude would boost the confidence of the colonials in the coming revolution.
Even though the British army would eventually defeat Montreal in 1760, their reputation was forever tarnished. The euphoria caused by the ending of the war would increase the confidence of the colonials. They believed that they had a respectable military capability. This bolstered confidence along with the coloneials new found opinion of the not’so-invincible Britsh army would come back to haunt the British.
The only thing needed to ignite the revolution was a few minor sparks. The British had little respect for the amateur colonial military efforts and forbid any colonial of having a rank above captain. The British also had low opinions of all the colonists in general. This enraged the colonists. They were resentful that the British did not acknowledge their hard work in making an empire for Britain. The colonists were not free of blame.
Many of them refused to provide troops or money in the war effort. Also, colonists from different parts of the country served together and found they had much in common. This unity was essential for the revolution to take place. The large debt created by the war forced the English to take greater control of the colonies. Also, in an effort to raise money, the British levied many new taxes to pay off the dbt and the colonists were angry at taxation without representation.
The French and Indian War, in many ways, was the start of the American Revolution. The British made several blunders during their miltary campaigns and their attitudes angered the colonists. The colonials were, in some ways, ungrateful and felt they should not have had to take an active role in their defense. Overall, the blunders of the British, their arrogance, all began to break down the link the colonists had with England.
This new-found confidence of the colonists and their resentment of Britain would bring them in only a dozen or so years to outright rebellion against the crown.
