91. Character of the Period.—During the first quarter, or indeed the first half of the eighteenth century, colonial history contains few salient features apart from boundary disputes, quarrels with royal governors, and struggles with the French and Indians. There was a steady growth in numbers, which may be measured by the fact that from the first to the middle of the century New England increased fourfold, the Middle colonies sixfold, and the Southern colonies sevenfold in population. Wealth and general prosperity increased in fair proportion also. During such a period of development historians rarely find events of a startling or romantic nature to chronicle.

92. Charters in Danger.—The people of the various colonies were, however, disturbed from time to time by political events that were of considerable importance to them, as, for instance, by the attacks made in England upon their charters. These were in the main successfully warded off by the colonial agents in London, but they sometimes became serious. For example, it was proposed in 1715 to annex Rhode Island and Connecticut, which had liberal charters, to the royal colony of New Hampshire, which had no charter at all. In the case of the Carolinas, the proprietors, when threatened with a writ of quo warranto on account of popular disturbances in their territories, surrendered their charters to the Crown for a compensation. Thereafter royal governors were sent to both South and North Carolina, the latter province having to that time been under a deputy of the governor of the former.

93. Boundary Disputes.—Boundary disputes were very bitter between the colonies and continued, after they became states, into the nineteenth century. Connecticut especially was involved in frequent quarrels with her neighbors. New York and New Hampshire also had disputes with regard to the territory adjoining Lake Champlain. Some of the settlers of this region revolted just before the Revolution, in order to establish an independent government, which was recognized in 1777 as the state of Vermont. Pennsylvania and Maryland likewise had a dispute, which was settled by the drawing of the famous Mason and Dixon Line (1763–1767). To the south there were boundary disputes with Spain and to the west with France. The latter were to lead to serious results.

94. Quarrels with Governors.—The disputes between the colonies and their governors were numerous and bitter. Frequently the point at issue touched upon the payment of a regular salary to the governor by the colony, the colonists preferring to keep him dependent upon them by voting him supplies at irregular intervals. They argued correctly that fixed payments would be equivalent to a tax levied by the Crown, and they held out bravely, especially in Massachusetts, against all efforts on the part of the English government to force them to submit. We have already seen that some disagreements were based upon the corruption of governors, their dealings with pirates, and their general tendency to tyranny. Sometimes, as in South Carolina after the middle of the century, the governor would oppose a pernicious policy like the rash issuing of paper money, and would thus incur popular displeasure. Or he would become unpopular merely as the instrument through which the English government or the proprietors endeavored to carry out some obnoxious measure. Religious persecution of dissenters, when attempted by the governor, was sure to earn him hatred in all quarters, as in the case of Lord Cornbury in New York and New Jersey (1702–1708). Probably the disputes carried on by the Pennsylvanians against their executives over questions of taxation, etc., were more heated than those of any other colony.

VIRGINIA AND GEORGIA.

95. A Successful Governor.—There was, however, at least one thoroughly honest and efficient governor. This was Alexander Spotswood, who came out in 1710 to Virginia. He was a bluff, energetic soldier, who had been wounded at Blenheim. His coming was especially gratifying to the Virginians, since he brought them the long-craved privileges of the writ of habeas corpus. But even Spotswood found it difficult to extort money from the Burgesses in order to prepare for defenses against an expected French invasion. He did not, however, allow this opposition to render him indifferent to the interests of the colony. He sought especially to develop its mineral resources, and caused blast furnaces to be erected,—the first in the colonies. He also imported Germans to develop the vineyards, which were necessary to his scheme for making Virginia a wine-producing country. He furthermore showed his interest in the Indians by establishing a school mission.

96. The Crossing of the Blue Ridge Mountains.—The most memorable event connected with Governor Spotswood’s administration is his romantic expedition across the Blue Ridge. Little or nothing was known of the beautiful valley beyond these mountains. Spotswood set out in August, 1716, with a large cavalcade, well furnished with hunting equipments, and, according to the fashion of the times, with a quantity and variety of liquors that would now be thought excessive. It was a good deal of a frolic; but it resulted in the discovery of the splendid valley of the Shenandoah, to which river the governor gave the rather inappropriate name of the Euphrates. This region was destined soon to be settled by thrifty German colonists, and it has ever since been considered the garden spot of Virginia.^[45] Spotswood commemorated his expedition by presenting his companions with small golden horseshoes set with jewels. He had to pay for these himself, since King George I. was probably not anxious to encourage even such worthy colonial orders of knighthood as the “Knights of the Golden Horseshoe.” The king thought, perhaps, that his trusty servant did him a better service when two years later he sent out two armed ships, which conquered and rid the colonies of the notorious pirate John Theach, otherwise known as “Blackbeard.”

97. The Colonization of Georgia.—The country between the Savannah River and the St. John’s River in Florida, was claimed by the English; and when the Carolinas became royal provinces, this region was reserved as crown land. It soon attracted the attention of a noble-minded Englishman, James Oglethorpe.^[46] He conceived the idea that it would be an excellent place in which to establish a colony to be composed of such persons as needed a new chance in life after having been released from the then crowded debtor prisons of England. He secured the aid of a company in establishing his proposed colony, which was also intended to serve as a bulwark against the Spanish colony of St. Augustine and as an important outpost of the fur trade. The colony was styled Georgia, in honor of King George II. The company of proprietors were very liberal; they prohibited slavery and religious persecution, and provided that none of their own number should hold a salaried office. Oglethorpe came out in November, 1732, and early in the following year founded the town of Savannah. He treated the Indians well and made a firm alliance with them. In 1734 a number of German settlers arrived and added much stability to the colony. This same year Augusta was founded as an armed trading-post, and soon became the center of a large fur traffic. The English debtors, however, were not the best of colonists, and the company was wise enough to induce more Germans and some Scotch Highlanders to seek the colony. After this the growth of Georgia was certain, but very slow; for even so benevolent an enterprise could not escape internal discontent and friction, due largely to the thriftless character of the English beneficiaries.

FRENCH DISCOVERIES AND CLAIMS.

98. French Exploration of the Mississippi Valley.—From the beginning, the French colonists settled in Acadia^[47] and New France^[48] succeeded in making friends with the Indians, to an extent rarely equaled by the English. But friendship with the Hurons and Algonquins involved enmity with the enemies of the latter, the Iroquois. This in turn meant that the French would have great difficulty in penetrating New York. It also meant that their explorations would at first penetrate the western region bordered by Lake Superior and Lake Michigan. In this region they heard rumors of the Mississippi River, and in 1673 a Jesuit priest, PÈre Marquette, and Louis Joliet, a trader, undertook to look for it. With incomparable resolution Marquette surmounted every difficulty, and finally with his companions floated down the Wisconsin River into the mighty Mississippi, which they followed to a point below the Arkansas. Then they made their arduous way back, having accomplished one of the most magnificent voyages of exploration known in history.

99. The Explorations of La Salle.—Their work was finished ten years later by Robert de la Salle,^[49] who with his companions crossed from Lake Erie to the Illinois River and, after enduring many hardships, tracked the Mississippi southward to the Gulf of Mexico. There, taking possession of the region for Louis XIV. of France, La Salle named it Louisiana in his honor. He had been about four years at his work, in which he had shown a courage that has made him memorable. Two years later, in 1684, he sailed from France to plant a colony on the Mississippi; but, missing its mouth, landed on the coast of Texas. Here a fort was built, and from its occupation France got her claim to the territory as far as the Rio Grande. La Salle and his party, after suffering many hardships, determined to separate into two bands. The party led by La Salle murdered their brave commander, and finally reached the Illinois River.

100. French and English Claims.—Thus France, through the labors of her loyal subjects, had established a claim to an enormous region stretching from the mouth of the St. Lawrence, around the English colonies, to the mouth of the Mississippi, and thence to the Rio Grande. East and west the boundaries were practically the Alleghany and the Rocky mountains. But these claims were sure to be resisted, for the charters of the English colonies gave them almost indefinite rights to the westward, and they were growing too fast to be long cooped up between the Alleghanies and the Atlantic. Before the close of the seventeenth century, the struggle for predominance in the Mississippi Valley had begun, and in about seventy-five years France had been stripped of all the possessions which had been secured for her by the intrepidity and foresight of leaders who had often been but ill-supported by their king and government.

WARS WITH THE FRENCH.

101. King William’s War (1690–1697).—The colonial wars against the French for the possession of the region west of the Alleghanies are known by the names of the English sovereigns reigning at the time of hostilities; but they practically coincide with important European wars. For example, the first break in the American struggle corresponded with the famous Peace of Ryswick (1697). Indeed, throughout the eighteenth century colonial questions formed a most important factor in the numerous and destructive wars waged in Europe. The French early began to see that war must soon arise between the English colonists and their own, and about the time of the revolution which brought in William and Mary (1689), they sent over the able Count Frontenac with instructions to overrun New York. At first he had to beat off the Iroquois; but in 1690 he began that long series of horrible raids, conducted by mixed bands of French and Indians, which gives such a bloody tinge to the annals of the times and accounts for the hatred cherished for both their Christian and their savage enemies by the English colonists. First it was Schenectady, New York, that was burned and laid waste; then Salmon Falls, New Hampshire; then Fort Loyal (now Portland, Maine); then Exeter, New Hampshire. No one knew where the blow might fall next. Panic reigned among the colonies, and a meeting of delegates from several of them was held at Albany, in February, 1690, to discuss the situation (§ 66). A threefold attack on the French possessions was planned, but only that against Port Royal in Acadia, led by Sir William Phips, governor of Massachusetts, was successful. Having destroyed Port Royal, he attempted to take Quebec, while another body of troops attacked Montreal. Both expeditions were failures, and, as a result, the French ravages continued until the Peace of Ryswick, in 1697. Neither side had gained ground, but the English had suffered terribly. Massacres of the inhabitants of frontier towns made life a terror to the pioneers, and in 1697 the invaders actually sacked Haverhill, not thirty miles from Boston.

102. Queen Anne’s War (1702–1713).—Peace did not last long, for William III. was resolute in opposing the aggressions of Louis XIV. His policy was carried on after his death (in 1702) by the advisers of his successor, Queen Anne, chief among whom was the famous Duke of Marlborough, the victor of Blenheim. Massacres soon began again in New England. Port Royal was attacked unsuccessfully in 1707 and successfully in 1710, and another expedition to Quebec came to nothing. The Treaty of Utrecht, in 1713, put a stop to hostilities, and this time the English diplomats were sufficiently resolute to retain Acadia. Thenceforth Port Royal, or Annapolis, as it was now named in honor of the queen, was held by the English.

103. Colonies at Peace: the “Great Awakening.”—Peace was to last for thirty years, a period which the French improved by exploring expeditions and by the building of forts to secure the great region watered by the Mississippi. Nor did the English lose sight of the vast interests at stake. They did perhaps the best thing to be done under the circumstances—they waited and grew strong in numbers and wealth, filling out as well as possible their more compact territory. They experienced also a spiritual awakening that must have strengthened the popular character in many ways. This was the “Great Awakening” which, beginning early in the century, became especially potent in 1734 under the preaching of the famous Jonathan Edwards^[50] at Northampton, Massachusetts. The religious enthusiasm spread far and wide, and after a short lull, began, in 1739–1740, to flame out afresh under the inspiration of the great revivalist, George Whitefield. This eloquent English preacher went to Georgia to join John and Charles Wesley, and there carried on the religious work which the brothers had begun. Whitefield preached throughout the colonies, stirring men everywhere, and undoubtedly producing many good results in spite of the evil consequences which a period of excitement always leaves behind it.

104. Establishment of French Forts.—After the Peace of Ryswick, Pierre le Moyne, Sieur d’Iberville, established a French settlement at Biloxi, in the present state of Mississippi. La Salle had previously built Fort St. Louis on the Illinois River, and it was now the French policy to fill up the territory between these two points with a chain of forts and settlements. Mobile was founded in 1702, New Orleans in 1718. The founder of New Orleans was Iberville’s brother, Bienville. At the other end of the line Detroit was founded in 1701, Fort Niagara was built in 1726, and Crown Point was erected on Lake Champlain in 1731. In order that Acadia might be won back if possible, the strong fortress of Louisburg was erected on Cape Breton Island.

105. King George’s War (1744–1748).—In 1744 the war known in Europe as the War of the Austrian Succession, and in America as King George’s War, was begun by a successful French attack on an English post in Nova Scotia, and by an unsuccessful attempt to take Annapolis. Great efforts were now made by Governor Shirley of Massachusetts to save Nova Scotia. He applied to the English king, but his main reliance was upon Massachusetts and her sister colonies of New England. In the spring of 1745, just one year after the commencement of hostilities, a large expedition set out to capture Louisburg, and after a siege of six weeks took that redoubtable fortress. The victory was celebrated in many long and sincere prayers of thanksgiving and in some remarkably bad poetry. But the English government was so blind to the importance of the interest at stake as to restore Louisburg to the French at the close of the war, in 1748.

106. The French in the Ohio Valley.—The French now turned their attention to the task of securing the region watered by the Ohio River. In 1749 CÉloron de Bienville, under orders of the governor of Canada, by means of canoe voyages and portages, reached Chautauqua Lake and thence the Allegheny River, where formal possession of the country was taken in the name of Louis XV. of France. Leaden plates with inscriptions asserting the French claim were interred at various points along the Ohio and its tributaries. Three years later a chain of forts was begun along the route taken by Bienville, the first erected being that of Presque Isle, near the present city of Erie. These movements of the French alarmed the English colonists greatly, and, most of all, Governor Dinwiddie of Virginia. This executive was interested in an American scheme for settling the Ohio region, through the agency of the so-called Ohio Company, and his colony claimed the country now threatened by the French. As soon as he heard of the new fort, he dispatched George Washington to demand the withdrawal of the French. Washington was just twenty-one years old, but he had seen life as a surveyor in the frontier counties of Virginia, and had learned to command men and to understand Indian character.

107. Washington in the West.—Washington, who was already an adjutant general, took with him only a few companions on his winter journey of seven hundred and fifty miles through the perilous wilderness. He braved numerous dangers, which he set down modestly in a journal that is still preserved. His training as a surveyor enabled him to pick out as a proper site for a fort the spot at the junction of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers where Fort Duquesne was shortly afterward built by the French, and where Pittsburg now stands. He reached Fort Le Boeuf (near the present Waterford, Pennsylvania) and gave his letter to the French commandant. The latter promised to send it on to the governor of Canada, but continued to occupy the fort. On his return journey Washington nearly lost his life while attempting to cross the Monongahela on a raft; but he finally reached Williamsburg in safety, having been absent only eleven weeks.

108. Founding of Fort Duquesne.—Dinwiddie determined to take possession of the Forks of the Ohio at once. William Trent, a trader, and some militia were hurried forward and began the erection of a fort. While the Virginians were thus occupied, and in the absence of their leader, a party of Frenchmen and Indians descended upon them and they were forced to surrender, their conquerors finishing the fort and naming it after Duquesne, the governor of Canada.

109. Washington at Fort Necessity.—Meanwhile great preparations had been made in Virginia. Washington, now lieutenant colonel, set out with a few troops to aid Trent, but heard of the surrender shortly after starting. He would not go back, but pushed on into southwestern Pennsylvania, and there at a place called Great Meadows began a fort. Having been warned of the approach of a party of French, he attacked them suddenly and completely routed them. Then he pushed on to the Ohio, but on learning that the French were advancing in numbers, finally fell back on his stockade, which he had called Fort Necessity. Here the French and Indians attacked him vigorously, and after a brave struggle he surrendered honorably on July 4, 1754.

110. The French and Indian War (1754–1763).—This was practically the beginning of what is generally called the French and Indian War, which nearly coincides with the Seven Years’ War in Europe. Both sides made extensive preparations, for the fate of a continent was now plainly seen to be in the balance. A congress of delegates from the colonies met at Albany to make a treaty with the Iroquois, and here (1754) Benjamin Franklin secured the adoption of a plan for a union of the colonies. The scheme was not approved, however, when submitted to the individual colonies, which were more or less jealous of their privileges. But if the colonists would not join to repel the foe, the English under Pitt were determined to do their best to drive out the French, not foreseeing that as a result the colonists, freed from danger at home, would be likely in a short time to form a union to secure independence. They sent out one of their ablest officers, Major General Edward Braddock, and an elaborate plan of campaign was determined on at a conference of the colonial governors assembled by him at Alexandria, Virginia. Four expeditions were to be made: one to be directed against Fort Crown Point in New York, and thence against Quebec; another, from New England, by water, against the French possessions in the northeast; the third, from Albany against Niagara; the fourth, from Fort Cumberland in Maryland against Fort Duquesne.

111. Braddock’s Defeat.—General Braddock decided to take charge of the last-named expedition. His European training had not qualified him to command in an unsettled country, and in spite of his personal efforts he found great difficulty in moving regular troops and artillery through the wilderness. He could hardly have moved at all if Franklin had not persuaded the Pennsylvania farmers to hire out their horses and wagons. In June, 1755, the army began to cut its way through the forest. All went well, though slowly, until the fort was nearly reached, when suddenly (July 9, 1755) the advanced guard came upon a large body of French and Indians. These wily foes immediately adopted border habits of warfare, and picked off their enemies from behind trees. Braddock, who had all an Englishman’s contempt for colonial ways, pronounced this method of fighting barbarous, and would not allow his men to imitate it. He insisted on using the same tactics in the backwoods of America that he had been accustomed to employ on the battlefields of Europe. There could be but one result. His men offered themselves as targets until so many were killed that a retreat had to be sounded. Even this would have been unavailing but for the fact that Washington, who was present as an aid-de-camp and had vigorously protested against his superior’s hard-headedness, used his Virginians, who had fought their enemies in backwoods fashion, to cover the retreat of the regulars. Washington performed many feats of valor throughout the day, and had several narrow escapes. Braddock, quite as brave, but entirely out of place in such a situation, was wounded just before the retreat, and died a few days later. Thus the most important of the four expeditions was a failure.

112. Acadia, Crown Point, and Niagara.—The second expedition succeeded in dispersing several thousands of the poor inhabitants of Acadia among the colonies;^[52] that against Crown Point resulted in a victory over the French on the shores of Lake George, but that against Niagara did not even reach its destination.

113. Effects of Pitt’s Policy.—Although there had been plenty of fighting along the American frontier, war was not formally declared between Great Britain and France until May, 1756. The French sent over a very able soldier, the Marquis of Montcalm,^[53] who was quite successful for about two years, and might have been altogether so but for the energy and foresight of that great English statesman, William Pitt.^[54] Pitt saw more clearly than any other man of his time how important her colonial empire was to Great Britain, and how it could best be maintained and extended. He supported Frederick the Great on the Continent, and caused renewed efforts to be made in America against the French. The fourfold attack of a few years before was again tried, with almost complete success. In 1758 Louisburg was forced to surrender; Washington captured Fort Duquesne (afterward Fort Pitt), and Fort Frontenac on Lake Ontario was destroyed. Thus the Ohio region was cut off from Quebec; but by resisting an attack on Ticonderoga, Montcalm managed to keep the French forces wedged into New York.

114. The Fall of Quebec.—The next year saw the practical conclusion of the struggle, in the fall of Quebec. This again was due indirectly to Pitt. He put James Wolfe^[56] in command of an expedition against Quebec, by way of the St. Lawrence. Wolfe landed with his troops below the city, which, rising from the summit of its precipitous hill, seemed to be impregnable. But the young general was dauntless. He performed the extraordinary feat of passing up the river under the guns of Montcalm, and landing his troops. During the night they climbed the cliffs, and by dawn were ready to offer battle on the Plains of Abraham (September 13, 1759). The conflict was hotly waged, the British eventually securing the victory, at the cost of their brave general, whose equally brave rival, Montcalm, was also killed. It would be hard to estimate the consequences of this battle.

115. The Treaty of Paris (1763).—The fall of Quebec had been preceded by the capture of the posts of Crown Point and Ticonderoga held by the French within New York. It was followed the next year by the taking of Montreal. This practically closed the war in America, but peace was not declared until 1763, when the Treaty of Paris was signed. By these victories and the peace which followed them, Great Britain obtained Canada and Cape Breton, nearly all the islands of the St. Lawrence, and all the territory east of a line running down the middle of the Mississippi River to a point just above New Orleans. Spain received all the French possessions west of this line, together with New Orleans. In return for Havana, which had been taken by the English, Spain gave up Florida to Great Britain.

116. The New Provinces.—The newly acquired territory was divided into three provinces. Canada became the Province of Quebec, part of its southern boundary line limiting the present states of New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. Florida was divided into two provinces, East and West Florida. A line was also drawn around the head waters of all the Atlantic-flowing rivers in the colonies, and the colonists were forbidden to settle in the reserved territory, which was set apart for the Indians. To defend these new provinces it was resolved to maintain within their borders a force of ten thousand men, who were to be supported partly by the Crown and partly by the colonies. That troops were needed was proved by the harassing though unsuccessful siege of Detroit by the Indians, led by Pontiac, chief of the Ottawas, in the spring and summer of 1763.