"...they said they would go speak to their Chiefs and come and tell us what they said, they returned and said they would hold fast of the Chain of friendship. Out of our regard to them we gave them two Blankets and a Handkerchief out of the Small Pox Hospital. I hope it will have the desired effect."-- William Trent's Journal, 1763
In 1754, when George Washington unknowingly granted possession of the Ohio River Valley to the French, he set in motion a series of military events that would come to be known as the French and Indian War among British colonists and would grow into the Seven Years War around the world. Although the British war effort began slowly, the strategies of William Pitt beginning in 1757 to wage a full-fledged war in the western territories of Pennsylvania would come to define Britain’s imperial policy. In the middle of these proceedings, the Native American tribes inhabiting the contested areas denied both the French and British “right” to occupy the land. The myriad of players in this war offer contrasting perspectives used by historians to analyze these events. This unit offers students the opportunity to historically analyze the war from these perspectives, informing their understanding of how wars are remembered as well as the important role primary sources play in historical research.