What Native Americans fought in the French and Indian War, and how did the wars ' outcome affect them? What about Native Americans who did not participate in the war?
Even before the war began, both the English and the French acknowledged that the conflict would be highly influenced by alliance with the Native Americans. The English had an advanced commercial economy that allowed them to offer the Indians material goods, but the French were favored by the natives because, unlike the English, the French were tolerant enough to coexist with the natives and had thus built closer relations with them. Thus, when the time for war came, most native tribes allied with the French. The only exception to this was the Iroquois Confederacy, which was composed of five Indian nations, had been the most powerful Native American presence in the Ohio Valley since the 1640s, and chose to remain neutral in the conflict by trading successfully with both sides.
The English won the conflict in the end, and because the Native Americans had allied with the losing side, they faced disastrous consequences. The vast majority of native tribes had allied with France, so they gained hostility from the victorious English. The English considered the Iroquois Confederacy 's neutral stance in the …show more content…
The French were forced to cede control of most of their North American territory, but the consequences faced by their Indian allies may have been even more disastrous. Those who openly allied with the French earned English enmity, which was significant because the English were not tolerant with them before they were enemies, so they would face even more hardships now that they had blatantly opposed England. Even the Iroquois Confederacy, who had remained neutral throughout the war, was treated nearly as harshly as those who fought against the English
Even before the war began, both the English and the French acknowledged that the conflict would be highly influenced by alliance with the Native Americans. The English had an advanced commercial economy that allowed them to offer the Indians material goods, but the French were favored by the natives because, unlike the English, the French were tolerant enough to coexist with the natives and had thus built closer relations with them. Thus, when the time for war came, most native tribes allied with the French. The only exception to this was the Iroquois Confederacy, which was composed of five Indian nations, had been the most powerful Native American presence in the Ohio Valley since the 1640s, and chose to remain neutral in the conflict by trading successfully with both sides.
The English won the conflict in the end, and because the Native Americans had allied with the losing side, they faced disastrous consequences. The vast majority of native tribes had allied with France, so they gained hostility from the victorious English. The English considered the Iroquois Confederacy 's neutral stance in the …show more content…
The French were forced to cede control of most of their North American territory, but the consequences faced by their Indian allies may have been even more disastrous. Those who openly allied with the French earned English enmity, which was significant because the English were not tolerant with them before they were enemies, so they would face even more hardships now that they had blatantly opposed England. Even the Iroquois Confederacy, who had remained neutral throughout the war, was treated nearly as harshly as those who fought against the English