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126-608: British victory [REDACTED] Great Britain [REDACTED]   France The Battle of Jumonville Glen , also known as the Jumonville affair , was the opening battle of the French and Indian War , fought on May 28, 1754, near present-day Hopwood and Uniontown in Fayette County, Pennsylvania . A company of provincial troops from Virginia under the command of Lieutenant Colonel George Washington , and

252-475: A "so-called assassination". The French story contrasted with that of the British account. Based on Washington's report, the British suggested that Jumonville, rather than being engaged on a diplomatic mission, was spying on them. Jumonville's orders included specific instructions to notify Contrecœur if the summons was read so that additional forces might be sent if needed. Historian Fred Anderson theorizes about

378-669: A Power and Jurisdiction to examine, correct and amend" judgements of the Irish courts and declared that as the Kingdom of Ireland was subordinate to and dependent upon the crown of Great Britain, the King , through the Parliament of Great Britain, had "full power and authority to make laws and statutes of sufficient validity to bind the Kingdom and people of Ireland". The Act was repealed by

504-662: A clear Protestant heir and endangered the line of succession , with the laws of succession differing in the two kingdoms and threatening a return to the throne of Scotland of the Roman Catholic House of Stuart , exiled in the Glorious Revolution of 1688. The resulting kingdom was in legislative and personal union with the Kingdom of Ireland from its inception, but the Parliament of Great Britain resisted early attempts to incorporate Ireland in

630-521: A considerable part of his reign abroad. These visits were also occasions both for significant negotiations and for the exchange of information and opinion....The visits to Hanover also provided critics with the opportunity...to argue that British interests were being neglected....George could not speak English, and all relevant documents from his British ministers were translated into French for him....Few British ministers or diplomats...knew German, or could handle it in precise discussion." George I supported

756-685: A decisive Allied victory at the Battle of Minden . The victory over the French navy at the Battle of Lagos and the decisive Battle of Quiberon Bay ended threats of a French invasion, and confirmed Britain's reputation as the world's foremost naval power. The Treaty of Paris of 1763 marked the high point of the First British Empire. France's future in North America ended, as New France (Quebec) came under British control. In India,

882-469: A growing evangelical, revivalist faction in the "Low Church". Its leaders included William Wilberforce and Hannah More . It reached the upper class through the Clapham Sect . It did not seek political reform, but rather the opportunity to save souls through political action by freeing slaves, abolishing the duel, prohibiting cruelty to children and animals, stopping gambling, and avoiding frivolity on

1008-562: A larger economy, and the Scots began to provide soldiers and colonial officials to the new British forces and Empire. However, one notable difference at the outset was that the new Scottish members of parliament and representative peers were elected by the outgoing Parliament of Scotland, while all existing members of the Houses of Commons and Lords at Westminster remained in office. During the War of

1134-512: A little more tolerance for Protestant Dissenters. He avoided controversy and high-intensity disputes, as his middle way attracted moderates from both the Whig and Tory camps. H.T. Dickinson summed up his historical role: Walpole was one of the greatest politicians in British history. He played a significant role in sustaining the Whig party, safeguarding the Hanoverian succession, and defending

1260-455: A major battle to impose excise taxes on wine and tobacco . To reduce the threat of smuggling, the tax was to be collected not at ports but at warehouses. This new proposal, however, was extremely unpopular with the public, and aroused the opposition of the merchants because of the supervision it would involve. Walpole was defeated as his strength in Parliament dropped a notch. Historians hold Walpole's record in high regard, though there has been

1386-554: A major war and keep the peace. Both sides wanted peace, which allowed both countries enormous cost savings, and recovery from expensive wars. Henry Pelham became prime minister in 1744 and continued Walpole's policies. He worked for an end to the War of the Austrian Succession . His financial policy was a major success once peace had been signed in 1748. He demobilised the armed forces, and reduced government spending from £12 million to £7 million. He refinanced

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1512-435: A master of the effective use of patronage, as were Pelham and Lord Newcastle. They each paid close attention to the work of bestowing upon their political allies high places, lifetime pensions, honours, lucrative government contracts, and help at election time. In turn the friends enabled them to control Parliament. Thus in 1742, over 140 members of parliament held powerful positions thanks in part to Walpole, including 24 men at

1638-547: A message from Tanacharison, informing him that he had found the Canadian camp, and that the two of them should meet. Despite the fact that he had just sent another group in pursuit of the French Canadians, Washington went with a detachment of 40 men to meet with Tanacharison. The Mingo leader had with him 12 warriors, two of whom were boys. After discussing the matter, both leaders agreed to make an attack on

1764-467: A noise, one of the Frenchmen Shaw's narrative is substantially correct on a number of other details, including the size and composition of both forces. Shaw also claimed to have seen and counted the dead, numbering 13 or 14. Anderson documents a fourth account by a Virginian deserter, named Denis Kaninguen, and speculates that Kaninguen was one of Tanacharison's followers. His report to

1890-542: A permanent trading post and habitation was established at Tadoussac at the confluence of the Saguenay and Saint Lawrence rivers. However, because this trading post was under a trade monopoly, it was not constituted as an official French colonial settlement. The first official settlement of Canada was Québec , founded by Samuel de Champlain in 1608. The other four colonies within New France were Hudson's Bay to

2016-400: A recent tendency to share credit more widely among his allies. W. A. Speck wrote that Walpole's uninterrupted run of 20 years as Prime Minister is rightly regarded as one of the major feats of British political history... Explanations are usually offered in terms of his expert handling of the political system after 1720, [and] his unique blending of the surviving powers of the crown with

2142-584: A result of exploration efforts. First, the 1534–1603 period, in which Canada's territory comprised the coasts of Newfoundland , the entirety of Prince Edward Island , Nova Scotia and the coasts of New Brunswick , the Saint Lawrence River and the Gulf of Saint Lawrence . Then 1603–1673, in which, due to westward expansion and conflicts with Great Britain , the Canada territory was now composed of

2268-402: A ritual slaying. Kaninguen reported that 30 men were taken prisoner, and 10 to 12 had been killed. The Virginians suffered only one killed and two or three wounded. Washington wrote a letter to his brother after the battle in which he said "I can with truth assure you, I heard bullets whistle and believe me, there was something charming in the sound." Following the battle, Washington returned to

2394-669: A rural environment. Of the colonists, 18,000 lived under the Government of Québec , 4,000 under the Government of Trois-Rivières and 22,000 under the Government of Montreal . As for colonists not living in the Saint Lawrence River valley, Île Royale (now Cape Breton ) counted 4,000 inhabitants (of which 1,500 were in Louisbourg ), and Île Saint-Jean (now Prince Edward Island ) had 500 inhabitants. In 1791,

2520-738: A single unified parliament. Ireland remained formally separate, with its own parliament, until the Acts of Union 1800 took effect. The Union of 1707 provided for a Protestant-only succession to the throne in accordance with the English Act of Settlement of 1701 ; rather than Scotland's Act of Security of 1704 and the Act anent Peace and War 1703 , which ceased to have effect by the Repeal of Certain Scotch Acts 1707 . The Act of Settlement required that

2646-528: A small German state that was opposed to Prussian supremacy. George I and George II saw a French alliance as the best way to neutralise Prussia. They forced a dramatic reversal of British foreign policy, which for centuries had seen France as England's greatest enemy. However, the bellicose King Louis XIV died in 1715, and the regents who ran France were preoccupied with internal affairs. King Louis XV came of age in 1726, and his elderly chief minister Cardinal Fleury collaborated informally with Walpole to prevent

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2772-523: A small number of Mingo warriors led by the chieftain Tanacharison (also known as the "Half King"), ambushed a force of 35 French Canadians under the command of Joseph Coulon de Jumonville . A larger French Canadian force had driven off a small crew attempting to construct Fort Prince George under the auspices of the Ohio Company at present-day Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania , land claimed by

2898-521: A statement (written in French, a language that Washington did not read) that admitted that Jumonville was assassinated . That document and others were used by the French and the Canadians to level accusations that Washington had ordered Jumonville's slaying. Throughout the 1740s and early 1750s, British and French Canadian traders had increasingly come into contact in the Ohio Country , including

3024-540: A summary view of facts, with their authorities, in answer to observations sent by the English ministry to the courts of Europe". It used Washington's capitulation statement and other documents, including extracts of Washington's journal taken at Fort Necessity, to suggest that Washington had actually ordered the assassination of Jumonville. However, not all Frenchmen agreed with the story: the Chevalier de Lévis called it

3150-429: A summons to order Washington's troops out. The summons was similar in nature to the one that Washington had delivered to them four months earlier. On May 27, Washington was informed by Christopher Gist , a settler who had accompanied him on the 1753 expedition, that a French Canadian party numbering about 50 was in the area. In response, Washington sent 75 men with Gist to find them. That evening, Washington received

3276-588: A superb Royal Navy, which not only protected the British colonies but threatened the colonies of the other empires, and sometimes seized them. Thus the Royal Navy captured New Amsterdam (later New York City ) in 1664. The colonies were captive markets for British industry, and the goal was to enrich the mother country. During the 1760s and 1770s, relations with the Thirteen Colonies turned from benign neglect to outright revolt, primarily because of

3402-653: Is in this period that Canada was at its largest. Dependent on Canada were the Pays d'en Haut (upper countries), a vast territory north and west of Montreal, covering the whole of the Great Lakes and stretching as far into the North American continent as the French had explored. Before 1717, when it ceded territory to the new colony of Louisiana, it stretched as far south as the Illinois Country . In

3528-524: Is the least criminal part of his ministry. For what is the loss of allies to the alienation of the people from the government, or the diminution of trade to the destruction of our liberties? Walpole's allies defeated a censure motion by a vote of 209 to 106, but Walpole's coalition lost seats in the election of 1741, and by a narrow margin he was finally forced out of office in early 1742. Walpole secured widespread support with his policy of avoiding war. He used his influence to prevent George II from entering

3654-582: The Acts of Union 1800 , enacted by Great Britain and Ireland, under George III , to merge with it the Kingdom of Ireland . The name Britain descends from the Latin name for the island of Great Britain, Britannia or Brittānia , the land of the Britons via the Old French Bretaigne (whence also Modern French Bretagne ) and Middle English Bretayne , Breteyne . The term Great Britain

3780-682: The American War of Independence , it also had dominion over the Thirteen Colonies . From 1787, Britain began the colonisation of New South Wales with the departure of the First Fleet in the process of penal transportation to Australia . Britain was a leading belligerent in the French Revolutionary Wars . Great Britain was merged into the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland on 1 January 1801, with

3906-690: The BBC , and others, including the Historical Association , refer to the state created on 1 May 1707 as the United Kingdom of Great Britain . Both the Acts and the Treaty describe the country as "One Kingdom" and a "United Kingdom", leading some publications to treat the state as the "United Kingdom". The term United Kingdom was sometimes used informally during the 18th century to describe

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4032-653: The Battle of Fort Necessity and forced Washington to negotiate a withdrawal under arms. The capitulation document that Washington signed was written in French, which Washington did not know how to read, and it may have been poorly translated for him by a Dutchman who spoke neither English nor French well, and it included language claiming that Jumonville and his men had been assassinated . French officers included Pierre-Jacques Drouillon de Macé, and two cadets, Michel-Ignace Dandonneau, sieur du Sablé, and René Amable Boucher de Boucherville. They were removed to Virginia, ultimately being shipped to London by Dinwiddie, along with 19 of

4158-1003: The British Parliament 's insistence on taxing colonists without their consent to recover losses incurred protecting the American Colonists during the French and Indian War (1754–1763). In 1775, the American Revolutionary War began at the Battles of Lexington and Concord , and the Americans then trapped the British Army in Boston in the Siege of Boston and suppressed the Loyalists who supported The Crown . Canada (New France) In

4284-534: The Church of England gained strength in the late 18th and early 19th century. The movement challenged the traditional religious sensibility that emphasized a code of honour for the upper class, and suitable behaviour for everyone else, together with faithful observances of rituals. John Wesley (1703–1791) and his followers preached revivalist religion, trying to convert individuals to a personal relationship with Christ through Bible reading, regular prayer, and especially

4410-518: The Duke of Newcastle , after several months of negotiations, sent an army expedition the following year to dislodge the French. Major General Edward Braddock was chosen to lead the expedition. He was defeated at the Battle of the Monongahela , and the French remained in control of Fort Duquesne until 1758, when an expedition under General John Forbes finally succeeded in taking the fort. Word of

4536-819: The Earl of Sunderland , and Robert Walpole . Many Tories were driven out of national and local government, and new laws were passed to impose greater national control. The right of habeas corpus was restricted; to reduce electoral instability, the Septennial Act 1715 increased the maximum life of a parliament from three years to seven. During his reign, George I spent only about half as much of his time overseas as had William III, who also reigned for thirteen years. Jeremy Black has argued that George wanted to spend even more time in Hanover: "His visits, in 1716, 1719, 1720, 1723 and 1725, were lengthy, and, in total, he spent

4662-642: The French ship Alcide in a naval action on June 8, 1755, capturing her and two troopships transporting some of those soldiers to North America. Military actions continued on soil and at sea in North America until France and Britain declared war on each other in spring 1756. That marked the formal start of the Seven Years' War . Because of the inconsistent nature of the record of the action, contemporary and historical coverage of it has been easily colored by preferences for one account over another. Francis Parkman , for example, accepted Washington's account and

4788-591: The Repeal of Act for Securing Dependence of Ireland Act 1782 . The same year, the Irish constitution of 1782 produced a period of legislative freedom. However, the Irish Rebellion of 1798 , which sought to end the subordination and dependency of the country on the British crown and to establish a republic, was one of the factors that led to the formation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1801. The deeper political integration of her kingdoms

4914-657: The War of the Polish Succession in 1733, because it was a dispute between the Bourbons and the Habsburgs. He boasted, "There are 50,000 men slain in Europe this year, and not one Englishman." Walpole himself let others, especially his brother-in-law Lord Townshend , handle foreign policy until about 1726, then took charge. A major challenge for his administration was the royal role as simultaneous ruler of Hanover,

5040-562: The cultural distinctiveness of Quebec from the rest of the country has led to the emergence of a Québécois identity and the Quebec sovereignty movement . Descendants of the original Canadien of Canada (New France) living outside of Quebec are now often referred to by a name which references their province of residence (ex. Franco-Ontarian ). Francophone populations in the Maritime provinces , however, are more likely to be descended from

5166-507: The third Carnatic War had left France still in control of several small enclaves , but with military restrictions and an obligation to support the British client states, effectively leaving the future of India to Great Britain. The British victory over France in the Seven Years' War therefore left Great Britain as the world's dominant colonial power, with a bitter France thirsting for revenge. The evangelical movement inside and outside

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5292-480: The 1603 " Union of the Crowns " when James VI of Scotland became King of England and King of Ireland . Since James's reign, who had been the first to refer to himself as "king of Great Britain", a political union between the two mainland British kingdoms had been repeatedly attempted and aborted by both the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland . Queen Anne ( r.  1702–1714 ) did not produce

5418-540: The 16th century the word "Canada" could refer to the territory along the Saint Lawrence River (then known as the Canada River) from Grosse Isle to a point between Québec and Trois-Rivières . The terms "Canada" and "New France" were also used interchangeably. French explorations continued west "unto the Countreys of Canada, Hochelaga, and Saguenay" before any permanent settlements were established. In 1600

5544-459: The 36 men honoured were peers and members of parliament who would provide him with useful connections. Walpole himself became enormously wealthy, investing heavily in his estate at Houghton Hall and its large collection of European master paintings. Walpole's methods won him victory after victory, but aroused furious opposition. Historian John H. Plumb wrote: Walpole's policy had bred distrust, his methods hatred. Time and time again his policy

5670-706: The Americas. The First British Empire, based upon the English overseas possessions , was enlarged. From France, Great Britain gained Newfoundland and Acadia , and from Spain Gibraltar and Menorca . Gibraltar became a major naval base which allowed Great Britain to control the entrance from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. The war marks the weakening of French military, diplomatic and economic dominance, and

5796-474: The British military plans had leaked to France well before Braddock's departure for North America, and King Louis XV dispatched a much larger body of troops to Canada in 1755. Although they arrived too late to participate in Braddock's defeat, the French troop presence led to a string of French victories in the following years. Royal Navy Admiral Edward Boscawen led a small squadron of ships which attacked

5922-484: The Canadians. The attackers took up positions behind rocks around the Canadian camp, counting not more than 40 Canadians. Exactly what happened next has been a subject of controversy and debate. The few primary accounts of the affair agree on a number of facts and disagree on others. They agree that the battle lasted about 15 minutes, that Jumonville was killed, and that most of his party were either killed or taken prisoner. According to French Canadian records, most of

6048-519: The Company at a par value of £100—the idea was that they would profit by the rising price of their stock. Everyone with connections wanted in on the bonanza, and many other outlandish schemes found gullible takers. South Sea stock peaked at £1,060 on 25 June 1720. Then the bubble burst, and by the end of September it had fallen to £150. Hundreds of prominent men had borrowed to buy stock high; their apparent profits had vanished, but they were liable to repay

6174-759: The French advance. Trent also brought a message from Tanacharison, who promised warriors to assist the British. To keep Tanacharison's support, Washington decided not to turn back, choosing instead to advance. He reached a place known as the Great Meadows (now in Fayette County, Pennsylvania ), about 37 miles (60 km) south of the forks, began to construct a small fort and awaited further news or instructions. Contrecœur operated under orders that forbade attacks by his force unless they were provoked. On May 23, he sent Joseph Coulon de Villiers de Jumonville with 35 soldiers (principally French Canadian recruits) to see if Washington had entered French territory and with

6300-410: The French and their allies, and take possession of Canada. In the Treaty of Paris of 1763 , which formally ended the Seven Years' War, France ceded Canada in exchange for other colonies, with a large portion of Canada becoming the British colony of the Province of Quebec . In the 240 years between Verrazano 's voyage of exploration in 1524 and the Conquest of New France in 1763, the French marked

6426-586: The French commanders echoed that of Shaw: "notwithstanding the discharge of musket fire that [Washington] had made upon him, he [Washington] intended to read [the summons] and had withdrawn himself to his people, whom he had [previously] ordered to fire upon the French. That [Tanacharison], a savage, came up to [the wounded Jumonville] and had said, "Tu n'es pas encore mort, mon père!" [Thou art not yet dead, my father!] and struck several hatchet blows with which he killed him." Anderson notes that Kaninguen apparently understood what Tanacharison said, and understood it to be

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6552-415: The French language, civil law , customs, cultural aspects and the ruling power of the Catholic Church in government until the Quiet Revolution of the 1960s, the province of Quebec is considered by many to be the modern-day continuation of the Canada colony of New France. Still today, the majority of the Quebec population is descended from the original French-speaking Canadien of Canada, and

6678-414: The French refused to leave. Dinwiddie commissioned Washington a lieutenant colonel, and ordered him to begin raising a provincial regiment to hold the Forks of the Ohio , a site Washington had identified as a fine location for a fortress. The Governor also issued a captain's commission to Ohio Company employee William Trent , with instructions to raise a small force and immediately begin construction of

6804-429: The French. A British colonial force led by George Washington was sent to protect the fort under construction. The French Canadians sent Jumonville to warn Washington about encroaching on French-claimed territory. Washington was alerted to Jumonville's presence by Tanacharison, and they joined forces to ambush the French Canadian camp. Washington's force killed Jumonville and some of his men in the ambush and captured most of

6930-434: The Frenchmen. A third account was made by a private named John Shaw, who was in Washington's regiment but not present at the affair. His account, based on detailed accounts from others who were present, was made in a sworn statement on August 21; the details on Tanacharison's role in the affair are confirmed in a newspaper account printed on June 27. In his account, the French were surrounded while some still slept. Alerted by

7056-561: The Great Lakes area, a mission, Sainte-Marie among the Hurons , was established in 1639. Following the destruction of the Huron homeland in 1649 by the Iroquois , the French destroyed the mission themselves and left the area. In what are today Ontario and the eastern prairies, various trading posts and forts were built such as Fort Kaministiquia in 1679 (at modern Thunder Bay, Ontario ), Fort Frontenac in 1673 (today's Kingston, Ontario ), Fort Saint Pierre in 1731 (near modern Fort Frances , Ontario), Fort Saint Charles in 1732 (on Lake of

7182-426: The Great Meadows and pushed onward the construction of a fort, which was called Fort Necessity . The dead were left on the field or buried in shallow graves, where they were later found by the French. On June 28, 1754, a combined force of 600 French, French Canadian, and Indian soldiers, under the command of Jumonville's brother, Louis Coulon de Villiers , left Fort Duquesne. On July 3, they captured Fort Necessity in

7308-492: The Indian chief, "I tell you, down the river I will go. If the river is blocked up, I have the forces to burst it open and tread under my feet all that oppose me. I despise all the stupid things you have said." He then threw down some wampum that Tanacharison had offered as a goodwill gesture. Marin died not long after, when command of the operations was turned over to Jacques Legardeur de Saint-Pierre . Virginia Royal Governor Robert Dinwiddie sent Major George Washington to

7434-411: The Indians scalped the French, they sent a scalp to the Delawares and in essence offered them the opportunity to "take up the hatchet" with the British and against the French. A portion of the battlefield, along with the Great Meadows, where Fort Necessity was located, has been preserved as a part of Fort Necessity National Battlefield . Jumonville's name has been given to a Christian retreat center near

7560-412: The Indians to trade with them in preference to the Canadians, and the planned large-scale advance was not well received by all. In particular, Tanacharison , a Mingo chief also known as the "Half King," became decidedly anti-French as a consequence. In a meeting with Paul Marin de la Malgue , commander of the French and Canadian construction force, de la Malgue reportedly lost his temper, and shouted at

7686-399: The Name of Great Britain", and as such "Great Britain" was the official name of the state, as well as being used in titles such as "Parliament of Great Britain". . The term Great Britain had been in use in some official contexts for a century, such as at the proclamation of Charles I 's acession to the throne in 1625 as "King of Great Britain". The websites of the Scottish Parliament ,

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7812-409: The North American continent in many ways. Whether it was through by land distribution and clearing, the establishment of villages and towns, deploying a network of roads and paths or developing the territory with various constructions, the French colonists transformed and adapted the environments according to their needs. There are three major periods of expansion of the territory of Canada, mostly as

7938-451: The Ohio Country (a territory that was claimed by several of the British colonies, including Virginia) as an emissary in December 1753 to tell the French to leave. Saint-Pierre politely informed Washington that he was there pursuant to orders, that Washington's letter should have been addressed to his commanding officer in Canada and that he had no intention of leaving. Washington returned to Williamsburg and informed Governor Dinwiddie that

8064-497: The Ohio River Valley under the command of Claude-Pierre Pécaudy de Contrecœur , a Canadian who took over command from Saint-Pierre. When Contrecœur learned of Trent's activity, he led a force of about 500 men (consisting of troupes de la marine , militia, and Indians) to drive them off (rumors reaching Trent's men put its size at 1,000). On April 16, Contrecœur's force arrived at the forks. The next day, Trent's force of 36 men, led by Ensign Edward Ward in Trent's absence, agreed to leave

8190-448: The Philippines, and coastal Africa. The results were highly favourable for Britain, and a major disaster for France. Key decisions were largely in the hands of William Pitt the Elder . The war started poorly. Britain lost the island of Minorca in 1756 , and suffered a series of defeats in North America. After years of setbacks and mediocre results, British luck turned in the "miracle year" ("Annus Mirabilis") of 1759. The British had entered

8316-400: The Province of Quebec was separated into Lower Canada (now Quebec ) and Upper Canada (now Ontario ). Lower Canada and Upper Canada were fused into the Province of Canada in 1841, before separating again into the modern-day provinces of Quebec and Ontario during the Confederation of Canada in 1867. Because of the historical and geographical continuity, as well as the continued use of

8442-528: The Sabbath; evangelicals read the Bible every day. All souls were equal in God's view, but not all bodies, so evangelicals did not challenge the hierarchical structure of English society. The first British Empire was based largely in mainland North America and the West Indies, with a growing presence in India. Emigration from Britain went mostly to the Thirteen Colonies and the West Indies, with some to Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. Few permanent settlers went to British India , although many young men went there in

8568-452: The Scottish Enlightenment had a major impact on British, American, and European thinking. As a result of Poynings' Law of 1495, the Parliament of Ireland was subordinate to the Parliament of England , and after 1707 to the Parliament of Great Britain. The Westminster parliament's Declaratory Act 1719 (also called the Dependency of Ireland on Great Britain Act 1719) noted that the Irish House of Lords had recently "assumed to themselves

8694-426: The Spanish Succession (1702–14) England continued its policy of forming and funding alliances, especially with the Dutch Republic and the Holy Roman Empire against their common enemy, King Louis XIV of France. Queen Anne , who reigned 1702–1714, was the central decision maker, working closely with her advisers, especially her remarkably successful senior general, John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough . The war

8820-414: The Woods located on Magnusens Island on the Northwest Angle of Minnesota ) and Fort Rouillé in 1750 (today's Toronto ). The mission and trading post at Sault Ste. Marie (1688) would later be split by the Canada–US border . The French settlements in the Pays d'en Haut among and south of the Great Lakes were Fort Niagara (1678) (near modern Youngstown, New York ), Fort Crevecoeur (1680) (near

8946-455: The action that was based on two sources. Most of it came from a Canadian named Monceau, who escaped the action but apparently did not witness Jumonville's slaying: Contrecœur's second source was an Indian from Tanacharison's camp, who reported that "Mr. de Jumonville was killed by a Musket-Shot in the Head, whilst they were reading the Summons". The same Indian claimed that the Indians then rushed in to prevent Washington's men from slaughtering

9072-477: The arrival on the world scene of Britain as a major imperial, military and financial power. British historian G. M. Trevelyan argued: In the 18th century England, and after 1707 Great Britain, rose to become the world's dominant colonial power , with France as its main rival. The pre-1707 English overseas possessions became the nucleus of the First British Empire . "In 1714 the ruling class

9198-470: The coasts of the Saint Lawrence River , of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and of the Great Lakes , as well as southern Ontario and northern New England . Then, in the last period of 1673–1741, the Canada territory was composed of the coasts of the Saint Lawrence River , of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and of the Great Lakes , southern Ontario , southern Manitoba and the north-eastern Midwest . It

9324-429: The dead were French Canadians: Desroussel and Caron from Québec City, Charles Bois from Pointe-Claire, Jérôme from La Prairie, L'Enfant from Montréal, Paris from Mille-Isles, Languedoc and Martin from Boucherville, and LaBatterie from Trois-Rivières. Washington's accounts of the battle exist in several versions; they are consistent with one another, but the details are compressed, according to historian Fred Anderson, with

9450-476: The disproportionately large number of Scottish peers were permitted to send only sixteen Scottish representative peers , elected from amongst their number for the life of each parliament. Similarly, the members of the former English House of Commons continued as members of the British House of Commons, but as a reflection of the relative tax bases of the two countries the number of Scottish representatives

9576-489: The eastern limit of the seigneurie of Les Éboulements and Cape Cormorant. The territory had an area of more than 460,000km2. After the Conquest of New France , the territory's name was changed to Rupert's Land . A population survey was done in 1740 to estimate Canada's population. The survey of the Saint Lawrence River valley counted about 44,000 colonists in total. The majority of them were born in Canada and lived in

9702-622: The expulsion of the Tories from power; they remained in the political wilderness until his great-grandson George III came to power in 1760 and began to replace Whigs with Tories. George I has often been caricatured in the history books, but according to his biographer Ragnhild Hatton : ...on the whole he did well by Great Britain, guiding the country calmly and responsibly through the difficult postwar years and repeated invasions or threatened invasions... He liked efficiency and expertise, and had long experience of running an orderly state... He cared for

9828-633: The failure of the South Sea Company , an early joint-stock company . The campaigns of Jacobitism ended in defeat for the Stuarts' cause in 1746 . The Hanoverian line of monarchs gave their names to the Georgian era and the term " Georgian " is typically used in the contexts of social and political history for Georgian architecture . The term " Augustan literature " is often used for Augustan drama , Augustan poetry and Augustan prose in

9954-608: The fort. Dinwiddie issued these instructions on his own authority, without even asking for funding from the Virginia House of Burgesses until after the fact. Trent's company arrived on site in February 1754, and began construction of a storehouse and stockade with the assistance of Tanacharison and the Mingos. The same month, an 800-strong French Canadian militia, as well as French troupes de la marine , departed Montreal for

10080-747: The full amount of the loans. Many went bankrupt, and many more lost fortunes. Confidence in the entire national financial and political system collapsed. Parliament investigated and concluded that there had been widespread fraud by the company directors and corruption in the Cabinet. Among Cabinet members implicated were the Chancellor of the Exchequer , the Postmaster General , and a Secretary of State, as well as two other leading men, Lord Stanhope and Lord Sunderland . Walpole had dabbled in

10206-545: The heir to the English throne be a descendant of the Electress Sophia of Hanover and not a Roman Catholic; this brought about the Hanoverian succession of George I of Great Britain in 1714. Legislative power was vested in the Parliament of Great Britain , which replaced both the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland . In practice, it was a continuation of the English parliament, sitting at

10332-487: The hope of making money and returning home. Mercantilism was the basic policy imposed by Great Britain on its overseas possessions. Mercantilism meant that the government and the merchants became partners with the goal of increasing political power and private wealth, to the exclusion of other empires. The government protected its merchants—and kept others out—by trade barriers, regulations, and subsidies to domestic industries to maximise exports from and minimise imports to

10458-645: The increasing influence of the Commons. He was a Whig from the gentry class, who first arrived in Parliament in 1701, and held many senior positions. He was a country squire and looked to country gentlemen for his political base. Historian Frank O'Gorman said his leadership in Parliament reflected his "reasonable and persuasive oratory, his ability to move both the emotions as well as the minds of men, and, above all, his extraordinary self-confidence." Julian Hoppit has said Walpole's policies sought moderation: he worked for peace, lower taxes, growing exports, and allowed

10584-623: The intent to obscure post-battle atrocities. Washington wrote in his diary, "We were advanced pretty near to them ... when they discovered us; whereupon I ordered my company to fire ... [Wagonner's] Company ... received the whole Fire of the French, during the greatest Part of the Action, which only lasted a Quarter of an Hour, before the Enemy was routed. We killed Mr. de Jumonville, the commander ... also nine others; we wounded one, and made Twenty-one Prisoners". Contrecœur prepared an official report of

10710-544: The knowledge or direction of the British government in London , as "an invitation to start a war". Washington was ordered to gather up as many supplies and provincial troops as he could along the way. By the time he left for the frontier on April 2, he had recruited fewer than 160 men. Along their march through the forests of the frontier, Washington was joined by more men at Winchester . He then learned from Captain Trent of

10836-585: The leaders were executed, many others dispossessed of their lands, and some 700 prominent followers deported to forced labour on sugar plantations in the West Indies. A key decision was the refusal of the Pretender to change his religion from Roman Catholic to Anglican, which would have mobilised much more of the Tory element. The Whigs came to power, under the leadership of James Stanhope , Charles Townshend ,

10962-399: The margin of three votes he saved several key government officials from impeachment. Stanhope and Sunderland died of natural causes, leaving Walpole alone as the dominant figure in British politics. The public hailed him as the saviour of the financial system, and historians credit him with rescuing the Whig government, and indeed the Hanoverian dynasty, from total disgrace. Walpole was

11088-580: The militiamen, arriving on June 10, 1755. An exception was Michel Pépin, called "La Force," a skilled interpreter with whom Washington was previously acquainted. After the Battle of Fort Necessity, La Force was to held hostage in Williamsburg , as Captains Robert Stobo and Jacob Van Braam had been taken as hostages by the French. When news of the two battles reached England in August, the government of

11214-497: The national debt, dropping the interest rate from 4% p.a. to 3% p.a. Taxes had risen to pay for the war, but in 1752 he reduced the land tax from four shillings to two shillings in the pound: that is, from 20% to 10%. By avoiding wars, Walpole could lower taxes. He reduced the national debt with a sinking fund, and by negotiating lower interest rates. He reduced the land tax from four shillings in 1721, to 3s in 1728, 2s in 1731 and finally to only 1s (i.e. 5%) in 1732. His long-term goal

11340-490: The north, Acadia and Newfoundland to the east, and Louisiana far to the south. Canada became the most developed of the five colonies of New France. It was divided into three districts, Québec , Trois-Rivières , and Montreal , each with its own government. The governor of the District of Quebec also served as the governor-general for all of New France. The Seven Years' War of 1756–1763 saw Great Britain defeat

11466-584: The others. The exact circumstances of Jumonville's death are a subject of historical controversy and debate. Since Britain and France were not then at war, the event had international repercussions, and was a contributing factor in the start of the Seven Years' War in 1756, also known as the French and Indian War in the United States . After the action, Washington retreated to Fort Necessity , where Canadian forces from Fort Duquesne compelled his surrender . The terms of Washington's surrender included

11592-727: The period 1700–1740s. The term "Augustan" refers to the acknowledgement of the influence of classical Latin from the ancient Roman Empire . Victory in the Seven Years' War led to the dominance of the British Empire , which was to become the foremost global power for over a century. Great Britain dominated the Indian subcontinent through the trading and military expansion of the East India Company in colonial India . In wars against France , it gained control of both Upper and Lower Canada , and until suffering defeat in

11718-455: The political union. The early years of the newly united kingdom were marked by Jacobite risings , particularly the Jacobite rising of 1715 . The relative incapacity or ineptitude of the Hanoverian kings resulted in a growth in the powers of Parliament and a new role, that of " prime minister ", emerged in the heyday of Robert Walpole . The "South Sea Bubble" economic crisis was brought on by

11844-779: The present site of Creve Coeur, Illinois , a suburb of Peoria, Illinois ), Fort Saint Antoine (1686) (on Lake Pepin in Wisconsin ), Fort St. Joseph (1691) (on the southernmost point of St. Joseph Island , Ontario on Lake Huron ), Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit (1701) (today's Detroit , Michigan), Fort Michilimackinac (1715) (on the Straits of Mackinac at Mackinaw City, Michigan ), Fort Miami (1715) (modern Fort Wayne, Indiana ), Fort La Baye (1717) (today's Green Bay, Wisconsin ), and Fort Beauharnois (1727) (in Florence Township, Goodhue County, Minnesota ). Today,

11970-467: The principles of the Glorious Revolution (1688) ... He established a stable political supremacy for the Whig party and taught succeeding ministers how best to establish an effective working relationship between Crown and Parliament. The Seven Years' War , which began in 1756, was the first war waged on a global scale and saw British involvement in Europe, India , North America, the Caribbean,

12096-605: The process, which removed all 33 company directors and stripped them of, on average, 82% of their wealth. The money went to the victims. The government bought the stock of the South Sea Company for £33 and sold it to the Bank of England and the East India Company, the only other two corporations big enough to handle the challenge. Walpole made sure that King George and his mistresses were not embarrassed, and by

12222-470: The quality of his ministers and his officers, army and naval, and the strength of the navy in fast ships grew during his reign... He showed political vision and ability in the way in which he used British power in Europe. Robert Walpole (1676–1745) was a son of the landed gentry who rose to power in the House of Commons from 1721 to 1742. He became the first "prime minister", a term in use by 1727. In 1742, he

12348-516: The realm. The government had to fight smuggling—which became a favourite American technique in the 18th century to circumvent the restrictions on trading with the French, Spanish or Dutch. The goal of mercantilism was to run trade surpluses, so that gold and silver would pour into London. The government took its share through duties and taxes, with the remainder going to merchants in London and other British ports. The government spent much of its revenue on

12474-485: The reasons for Tanacharison's action in the killing and provides a possible explanation for one of Tanacharison's men reporting the event as a British killing of a Frenchman. Tanacharison had lost influence over some of the local tribes (specifically the Delawares) and may have thought that conflict between the British and French would bring them back under his influence as allies of the British. According to Parkman, after

12600-642: The revival experience. Wesley himself preached 52,000 times, calling on men and women to "redeem the time" and save their souls. Wesley always operated inside the Church of England, but at his death, it set up outside institutions that became the Methodist Church . It stood alongside the traditional nonconformist churches, Presbyterians, Congregationalist, Baptists, Unitarians and Quakers. The nonconformist churches, however, were less influenced by revivalism. The Church of England remained dominant, but it had

12726-578: The royal court, 50 in the government agencies, and the rest with sinecures or other handsome emoluments, often in the range of £500 – £1000 per year. Usually there was little or no work involved. Walpole also distributed highly attractive ecclesiastical appointments. When the Court in 1725 instituted a new order of chivalry, the Order of the Bath , Walpole immediately seized the opportunity. He made sure that most of

12852-565: The same location in Westminster, expanded to include representation from Scotland. As with the former Parliament of England and the modern Parliament of the United Kingdom , the Parliament of Great Britain was formally constituted of three elements: the House of Commons , the House of Lords , and the Crown . The right of the English peers to sit in the House of Lords remained unchanged, while

12978-624: The site. The French then began construction of the fort they called " Fort Duquesne ". In March 1754, Dinwiddie ordered Washington back to the frontier with instructions to "act on the [defensive], but in Case any Attempts are made to obstruct the Works or interrupt our [settlements] by any Persons whatsoever, You are to restrain all such Offenders, & in Case of resistance to make Prisoners of or kill & destroy them". Historian Fred Anderson describes Dinwiddie's instructions, which were issued without

13104-527: The site. The non-profit Braddock Road Preservation Association, named for the road General Braddock constructed to reach Fort Duquesne, sponsors research and promotes the French and Indian War history of the area. Kingdom of Great Britain The Kingdom of Great Britain , officially known as Great Britain , was a sovereign state in Western Europe from 1707 to the end of 1800. The state

13230-497: The speculation himself but was not a major player. He rose to the challenge, as the new First Lord of the Treasury , of resolving the financial and political disaster. The economy was basically healthy, and the panic ended. Working with the financiers he successfully restored confidence in the system. However, public opinion, as shaped by the many prominent men who had lost so much money so quickly, demanded revenge. Walpole supervised

13356-420: The state. The kingdoms of England and Scotland, both in existence from the 9th century (with England incorporating Wales in the 16th century), were separate states until 1707. However, they had come into a personal union in 1603, when James VI of Scotland became king of England under the name of James I . This Union of the Crowns under the House of Stuart meant that the whole of the island of Great Britain

13482-515: The term Les Pays-d'en-Haut refers to a regional county municipality in the Laurentides region of the present Province of Quebec , north of Montreal, while the former Pays d'en Haut was part of the District of Montreal. The Domaine du roy , established in 1652, was a vast region of New France , which stretched north from the St. Lawrence River to Hudson Bay . It was located between

13608-485: The two kingdoms into a kingdom called Great Britain. Anne became the first monarch to occupy the unified British throne, and in line with Article 22 of the Treaty of Union Scotland and England each sent members to the new House of Commons of Great Britain . The Scottish and English ruling classes retained power, and each country kept its legal and educational systems, as well as its established Church. United, they formed

13734-577: The upper watershed of the Ohio River in what is now western Pennsylvania . Authorities in New France became more aggressive in their efforts to expel British traders and colonists from the area and in 1753 began construction of a series of fortifications in the area. The French action drew the attention of the British but also the Indian tribes of the area. Despite good Franco-Indian relations, British traders had become highly successful in convincing

13860-435: The very term "patriot". The opposition Country Party attacked Walpole relentlessly, primarily targeting his patronage, which they denounced as corruption. In turn, Walpole imposed censorship on the London theatre and subsidised writers such as William Arnall and others who rejected the charge of political corruption by arguing that corruption is the universal human condition. Furthermore, they argued, political divisiveness

13986-666: The year anxious about a French invasion , but by the end of the year, they were victorious in all theatres. In the Americas, they captured Fort Ticonderoga (Carillon) , drove the French out of the Ohio Country , captured Quebec City in Canada as a result of the decisive Battle of the Plains of Abraham , and captured the rich sugar island of Guadeloupe in the West Indies. In India, the John Company repulsed French forces besieging Madras . In Europe, British troops partook in

14112-441: Was a financial drain, for Britain had to finance its allies and hire foreign soldiers. Stalemate on the battlefield and war weariness on the home front set in toward the end. The anti-war Tory politicians won control of Parliament in 1710 and forced a peace. The concluding Treaty of Utrecht was highly favourable for Britain. Spain lost its empire in Europe and faded away as a great power, while working to better manage its colonies in

14238-519: Was a foreign prince and had a small English standing army to support him, with military support from his native Hanover and from his allies in the Netherlands. In the Jacobite rising of 1715 , based in Scotland, the Earl of Mar led eighteen Jacobite peers and 10,000 men, with the aim of overthrowing the new king and restoring the Stuarts. Poorly organised, it was decisively defeated. Several of

14364-407: Was a key policy of Queen Anne , the last Stuart monarch of England and Scotland and the first monarch of Great Britain. A Treaty of Union was agreed in 1706, following negotiations between representatives of the parliaments of England and Scotland, and each parliament then passed separate Acts of Union to ratify it. The Acts came into effect on 1 May 1707, uniting the separate Parliaments and uniting

14490-511: Was a new phenomenon, not well understood, except for the strong gossip among financiers that fortunes could be made overnight. The South Sea Company, although originally set up to trade with the Spanish Empire, quickly turned most of its attention to very high risk financing, involving £30 million, some 60 per cent of the entire British national debt. It set up a scheme that invited stock owners to turn in their certificates for stock in

14616-595: Was also universal and inevitable because of selfish passions that were integral to human nature. Arnall argued that government must be strong enough to control conflict, and in that regard Walpole was quite successful. This style of "court" political rhetoric continued through the 18th century. Lord Cobham , a leading soldier, used his own connections to build up an opposition after 1733. Young William Pitt and George Grenville joined Cobham's faction —they were called "Cobham's Cubs". They became leading enemies of Walpole and both later became prime minister. By 1741, Walpole

14742-468: Was created Earl of Orford and was succeeded as prime minister by two of his followers, Henry Pelham (1743–1754) and Pelham's brother the Duke of Newcastle (1754–1762). Clayton Roberts summarizes Walpole's new functions: He monopolized the counsels of the King, he closely superintended the administration, he ruthlessly controlled patronage, and he led the predominant party in Parliament. Corporate stock

14868-722: Was created by the 1706 Treaty of Union and ratified by the Acts of Union 1707 , which united the kingdoms of England (including Wales ) and Scotland to form a single kingdom encompassing the whole island of Great Britain and its outlying islands, with the exception of the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands . The unitary state was governed by a single parliament at the Palace of Westminster , but distinct legal systems— English law and Scots law —remained in use. The formerly separate kingdoms had been in personal union since

14994-441: Was facing mounting criticism on foreign policy—he was accused of entangling Britain in a useless war with Spain—and mounting allegations of corruption. On 13 February 1741, Samuel Sandys , a former ally, called for his removal. He said: Such has been the conduct of Sir Robert Walpole, with regard to foreign affairs: he has deserted our allies, aggrandized our enemies, betrayed our commerce, and endangered our colonies; and yet this

15120-441: Was first used officially in 1474. The use of the word "Great" before "Britain" originates in the French language, which uses Bretagne for both Britain and Brittany . French therefore distinguishes between the two by calling Britain la Grande Bretagne , a distinction which was transferred into English. The Treaty of Union and the subsequent Acts of Union state that England and Scotland were to be "United into One Kingdom by

15246-694: Was fixed at 45. Newly created peers in the Peerage of Great Britain , and their successors, had the right to sit in the Lords. Despite the end of a separate parliament for Scotland, it retained its own laws and system of courts, as also its own established Presbyterian Church and control over its own schools. The social structure was highly hierarchical, and the same ruling class remained in control after 1707. Scotland continued to have its own universities, and with its intellectual community, especially in Edinburgh,

15372-440: Was highly dismissive of the accounts by Monceau and the Indian. French authorities assembled a dossier of documents to counter British accounts of the affair. Entitled "Mémoire contenant le précis des faits, avec leurs pièces justificatives, pour servir de réponse aux 'Observations' envoyées par les Ministres d'Angleterre, dans les cours de l'Europe", a copy was intercepted in 1756, translated, and published as "A memorial containing

15498-430: Was now ruled by a single monarch, who by virtue of holding the English crown also ruled over the Kingdom of Ireland . Each of the three kingdoms maintained its own parliament and laws. Various smaller islands were in the king's domain, including the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands . This disposition changed dramatically when the Acts of Union 1707 came into force, with a single unified Crown of Great Britain and

15624-556: Was so bitterly divided that many feared a civil war might break out on Queen Anne's death", wrote historian W. A. Speck . A few hundred of the richest ruling class and landed gentry families controlled parliament, but were deeply split, with Tories committed to the legitimacy of the Stuart "Old Pretender" , then in exile. The Whigs strongly supported the Hanoverians, in order to ensure a Protestant succession. The new king, George I

15750-599: Was successful in Parliament only because of the government's absolute control of the Scottish members in the Commons and the Bishops in the Lords. He gave point to the opposition's cry that Walpole's policy was against the wishes of the nation, a policy imposed by a corrupt use of pension and place. The opposition called for "patriotism" and looked at the Prince of Wales as the future "Patriot King". Walpole supporters ridiculed

15876-407: Was to replace the land tax, which was paid by the local gentry, with excise and customs taxes, which were paid by merchants and ultimately by consumers. Walpole joked that the landed gentry resembled hogs, which squealed loudly whenever anyone laid hands on them. By contrast, he said, merchants were like sheep, and yielded their wool without complaint. The joke backfired in 1733 when he was defeated in

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