Chapter 6
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91
this war sounds as if the French were
fighting the Indians. In fact, the English
were fighting the French for control of the
OhioRiver Valley. Then, it became awar to
drive the French out of North America.
Both the English and French paid Native
American tribes to help them fight.
Washington hurried back to his camp at
Great Meadows. He knew his troops would
be attacked by French soldiers from Fort
Duquesne. He ordered a round fort built in
the meadow. You can understand why he
called it
Fort Necessity
. Several weeks
later, 600 French and100NativeAmericans
attacked Washington’s fort. In an all-day
rain, his troops were shot at from soldiers
on higher ground. Many of Washington’s
troops were sick, injured, or dead.
Washington gave up the battle in defeat.
The French allowed Washington and his
men to return to Virginia without their
weapons. The French now controlled the
fur trading in theOhio River Valley.
In 1755, the English sent
General
Braddock
with a large army to capture
the French Fort Duquesne. Washington
traveled with Braddock’s army over the
rough road his men had made the year
before. Braddock’s army outnumbered the
French force three to one. In crossing the
Monongahela River, the French andNative
Americans attacked. General Braddock’s
armywas badly defeated.
How could this happen? When the
English fought, they considered you a
coward if you did not fight standing up.
The French and their friends hid behind
trees. They shot at the English’s bright red
coats. Washington had two horses shot
from under him. General Braddock was
shot in the chest. His army retreated.
Braddock died a few days later. His men
buriedhim in themiddle of the rough road
Washington’smenhad built earlier.
Three years later, English
General
Forbes
was sent with 8,000 soldiers to
capture Fort Duquesne. They took a
different route. This meant that the road
builders were busy again. Finally, the
English arrived at Fort Duquesne. However,
they found that the French had set fire to
the fort and fled the area. The English built
a stronger fort called
FortPitt
.Guesswhat
city is located there now?
The result of the French and IndianWar
was that the Englishwent on to defeat the
French Forces in Canada. It took twomore
years. By 1760, the Frenchwere driven out
of North America. However, many French
Colonists remained inCanada. The English
controlled the fur trade. Pennsylvania
remained an English colony.
Washington prepares his
troops at Great Meadows.
Why did he name this Fort
Necessity?
