French and Indian War

Juana Quino DBQ #2

      The French and Indian war alters the political; economic and ideological relations between Britain and its colonies.
        The French and Indian War, a colonial manifestation of the same forces and tensions that erupted in the European Seven Years' War, was, quite simply, a war about imperialism. The French and the English were competing for land and trading rights in North America; these strivings resulted in a great deal of disputed land, particularly that of the rich Ohio valley. After the French and Indian War, the countries colonizing North America shifted. After, English colonies dominated the new world. This took a toll on the political relationship between Britain and the American colonists because it leads to the Proclamation of 1763. The Native Americans believed "they had no right to settle." The Proclamation was Britain's idea of preventing further conflict. However, the colonists were angered, and they believed they were being deprived of their right to be free.
      Other political changes included Britain's abandonment of their salutary neglect policy. After the French and Indian War, England was left with the deep debt they had acquired during the previous years. In turn, they began to strictly regulate trade, and they impose taxes on commonly used items. Britain attributed these changes to their "virtual increase in territory," the colonists were infuriated. They felt this was unjust taxation.
        All this sudden taxation and regulation took a toll on the economic relationship between the colonists and their mother country. Prior to the French and Indian War, the Wool, Hat, and Iron Acts forced the Americans to ship their raw the material to Britain, only to later buy the finished products from them. However, with the heavy British taxation, mercantilism was soon abandoned when the colonists decided to fight back. The Stamp Act enraged many of the elite colonists, and as Benjamin Franklin states, they wanted... [continues]

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