maggie canada

1. Before European Contact & First Contact

Indigenous Peoples Before Europe

  • Had many similarities and differences

  • Experienced conflict and warfare

  • Causes of conflict:

    • Personal prestige – young men earned status

    • Economic gain – wealth and slaves

    • Political/territorial gain – resources and trade routes

    • "Morning Wars" – captured people to replace lost loved ones; revenge could last decades

First Contact – Vikings (c. 1000 CE)

  • Landed in present-day Newfoundland

  • Initially traded with Indigenous peoples

  • Trade broke down when Vikings stopped trading weapons (which Indigenous peoples valued)

  • Distance from home made settlement unsustainable

2. The Age of Discovery (15th Century)

Context

  • European nations (Spain, Portugal, France, Britain) were searching for Asia

  • They accidentally stumbled upon the "New World"

Doctrine of Discovery

  • A legal and religious concept used to justify Christian colonial conquest

  • Claimed European peoples, culture, and religion were superior

  • Allowed Christian empires to take land and resources from non-Christian inhabitants

3. Jacques Cartier’s Voyages (1534–1542)

First Voyage (1534)

  • Sailed to Newfoundland, Labrador, PEI, New Brunswick, and the Gaspé Peninsula

  • Claimed the land for France, calling it "New France"

  • Kidnapped two sons of a Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) chief, Donnacona, to use as guides

Later Voyages

  • Returned to the St. Lawrence region, reaching Stadacona (now Quebec City) and Hochelaga (now Montreal)

  • Kidnapped Donnacona and 9 other Indigenous people

  • Searched for the mythical "Kingdom of Saguenay"

  • Failed to establish a colony; no kingdom found

  • Successfully established contact for the fur trade

Legacy

  • Laid the foundation for Samuel de Champlain to continue French colonization

4. New France & Samuel de Champlain

Champlain’s Early Efforts (1600s)

  • 1605 – Tried to establish a colony at Port Royal (Nova Scotia)

  • Some settlers stayed and became farmers; this eventually became Acadia

Champlain’s Alliance (1609)

  • The Haudenosaunee and Wendat were at war over St. Lawrence trade routes

  • Champlain allied with the Wendat

  • French got: exclusive fur trade rights

  • Wendat got: military help

  • Champlain used the arquebus (early gun) to kill 3 Haudenosaunee chiefs

  • Outcome: French/Wendat won; French gained monopoly over the fur trade

5. The Story of Us: Episode 1 Key Events

  • Samuel de Champlain rushed to establish a settlement before winter (3 months to prepare)

  • Jean Duval plotted to assassinate Champlain; was hanged for treason

  • Of the original crew, only 7 survived the first winter; settlement became Quebec City

  • Filles du Roi ("King's Daughters") – orphaned/poor women sent to New France to marry and start families

  • British population outnumbered French 16:1 or 18:1

  • Radisson & Groseilliers discovered better fur (thicker pelts) with the Cree; funded by King Charles II (British), leading to Hudson’s Bay Company monopoly

  • Battle of the Plains of Abraham – British (James Wolfe) vs French (Louis Joseph Montcalm); both died; Montcalm surrendered New France to Britain

  • Indigenous snipers helped the French

6. Official Colony: New France

  • King Louis XIV sent soldiers and the Filles du Roi – shift from imperialism to colonialism

Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC)

  • Established trading posts at river mouths flowing into Hudson and James Bay

  • 1670 – King Charles II claimed the drainage basin as "Rupert’s Land"

  • Rise of Mercantilism – economic theory (16th–18th centuries) that a nation’s wealth and power came from increasing exports and trade

7. The Fall of New France & The Seven Years’ War

Causes of the Seven Years’ War

  • European rivalries – Britain and France competing for colonies, trade, and military supremacy

  • Strategic locations – both wanted control of the St. Lawrence and Mississippi Rivers

  • Competition for land/resources – control of the fur trade and the Ohio River Valley

  • British colonies pushed westward into French territory

Key Military Events

  • Britain captured Louisbourg, Quebec (Plains of Abraham), and Montreal

Treaty of Paris (1763)

  • Britain gained: French territory in North America + Florida (from Spain)

  • France kept: a few small islands in the Atlantic and Caribbean

  • Spain received: Louisiana

Immediate Aftermath

  • British dominance in North America

  • French Canadians under British rule – allowed to keep language, Roman Catholic religion, and civil laws (to avoid rebellions)

  • Indigenous peoples lost a crucial ally (the French)

8. Indigenous Frustrations with the British (Post-1763)

  • End of gift-giving (foundation of Indigenous-European relations)

  • Strict trade restrictions, especially on weapons and ammunition

  • Expansion of British settlements (Ohio Valley, Great Lakes)

  • British occupation of former French forts – became symbols of control rather than diplomacy

9. Pontiac’s Rebellion (1763–1766)

Who Was Pontiac?

  • Odawa war chief

  • Gained experience fighting alongside the French in the Seven Years’ War

  • Strong oratory skills – united diverse Indigenous nations

  • Spiritual influence, not just military

  • The Odawa were at the centre of Great Lakes trade networks

Promises Pontiac Made to Gain Support

  • A return to French support

  • Restoration of traditional land and power

  • Wealth from captured British forts

How He Gathered Support

  • Held councils explaining dangers of British rule

  • Appealed to shared frustrations

  • Promised coordinated attacks on British forts

  • April 1763 – war council near Detroit convinced leaders to join

Why He Needed Allies

  • British were too numerous and fortified

  • Limited number of Odawa warriors

  • Geographic challenges – needed allies near British forts in Ohio Valley and Pennsylvania

Key Battles

  • Siege of Fort Detroit (May 1763) – Pontiac led hundreds of warriors; never captured the fort

  • Battle of Bloody Run (July 1763) – British fought off Pontiac but retreated

  • Battle of Bushy Run (August 1763) – British lured warriors into a trap; heavy Indigenous defeat – turning point for the British

  • Biological warfare – British intentionally spread smallpox (blankets from smallpox hospital)

End of the Rebellion (1764–1766)

  • Pontiac met British officials; peace treaty signed

Pontiac’s Legacy

  • His influence faded; he was assassinated

  • Left an impression that Indigenous nations were powerful political forces – Britain needed to negotiate

10. French-Indian Wars Summary Charts

War: Seven Years’ War (French and Indian War)

  • European War: Seven Years’ War

  • French Allies: Many Western Great Lakes nations, Wendat (Huron)

  • British Allies: Iroquois Confederacy

  • Causes: Colonies, trade, military power

  • Outcome: Treaty of Paris – British control of New France + Acadia; France kept only small islands

War: King George’s War

  • European War: War of Austrian Succession

  • French Allies: Mi’kmaq, Maliseet, Wabanaki

  • British Allies: Mohawk

  • Key events: French raided British; British captured Fortress Louisbourg

  • Outcome: Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748) – Britain returned Louisbourg to France in exchange for a city in India