THE FRONTIER

Though a treaty had been signed between France and England , the hatred between the two nations had only enhanced. By 1754 France had laid claim over the majority of the North American territories. It controlled a big part of what is now Canada as well as the majority of the Mississippi and Ohio River valleys all the way down to Louisiana . The land had remained a watershed for trappers leading to an abundance of trapping as well as trading with the Native population. As a result the French became allies with principal occupants of the region, the Native Americans, who would eventually ally with the French during the conflict.

The English, destined to expand their own territories along the American East coast, often times found themselves migrating west onto French held land. As a result of the intrusions, the French built a series of forts along the eastern expanse of their frontier. In 1750 both British and French leaders met in Paris in an attempt to try and avoid a costly war over the disputed territories.

However, no real solution was ever agreed upon and in 1752, Marquis Duquesne, the governor general of New France, was given orders to remove the British presence in the Ohio Valley and reclaim the area for itself. Conversely Robert Dinwiddie, the Governor of Virginia, was granting land to British colonists in the Ohio River Valley . These two divergent actions are what initially set off the French and Indian War.