Editing New France (section)

===French and Indian War===
{{Main|French and Indian War|Expulsion of the Acadians}}
[[File:Nouvelle-France map-en.svg|thumb|Map of territorial claims in [[North America]] by 1750, before the [[French and Indian War]], which was part of the greater worldwide conflict known as the [[Seven Years' War]] (1756 to 1763). Possessions of Britain (pink), France (blue), and Spain. (White border lines mark later Canadian Provinces and US States for reference)]]

[[Fort Duquesne]], located at the confluence of the [[Allegheny River|Allegheny]] and [[Monongahela River]]s at the site of present-day [[Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania]], guarded the most important strategic location in the west at the time of the Seven Years' War. It was built to ensure that the [[Ohio River]] valley remained under French control. A small colonial force from Virginia began a fort here, but a French force under [[Claude-Pierre Pécaudy de Contrecœur]] drove them off in April 1754. New France claimed this as part of their colony, and the French were anxious to keep the British from encroaching on it. The French built Fort Duquesne here to serve as a military stronghold and as a base for developing trade and strengthening military alliances with the indigenous peoples of the area.

In 1755, General [[Edward Braddock]] led [[Braddock Expedition|an expedition]] against Fort Duquesne, and although they were numerically superior to the French militia and their Indian allies, Braddock's army was routed and Braddock was killed.<ref name="WDL">{{cite web |url=http://www.wdl.org/en/item/9580/ |title=The Battle of the Monongahela |website=[[World Digital Library]] |date=1755 |access-date=22 February 2016}}</ref> Later that same year at the Battle of Lake George, the British General William Johnson with a force of 1700 American and Iroquois troops defeated a French force of 2800 French and Canadians and 700 [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native Americans]] led by Baron Dieskau (Military commander of New France).

The fight for control over Ohio Country led to the [[French and Indian War]], which began as the North American phase of the [[Seven Years' War]] (which did not technically begin in Europe until 1756). The war began with the defeat of a Virginia militia contingent led by Colonel [[George Washington]] by the French [[troupes de la marine]] in the [[Ohio Country|Ohio valley]]. As a result of that defeat, the British decided to prepare the conquest of Quebec City, the capital of New France. The British defeated France in Acadia in the [[Battle of Fort Beausejour]] (1755) and then [[Île Royale (New France)|Île Royale]] ([[Cape Breton Island]]) (which also administered Île Saint-Jean ([[Prince Edward Island]]) with the [[Siege of Louisbourg (1758)]].

Throughout the war, the British deported the Acadians to the Thirteen Colonies and Europe, which the Acadian militias resisted with assistance from Mi'kmaq and Malisteet forces. The [[Expulsion of the Acadians|Great Upheaval]] continued from 1755 to 1764. In 1756, a large force of French, Canadians, and their Native American allies led by the Marquis de Montcalm launched an attack against the key British post at Fort Oswego on Lake Ontario from Fort Frontenac and forced the garrison to surrender. The following year Montcalm with a huge force of 7,200 French and Canadian troops and 2,400 Native Americans laid siege to Fort William Henry on the southern shores of Lake George, and after three weeks of fighting the British commander Monroe surrendered. Montcalm gave him honorable terms to return to England and not to fight for 18 months. And yet, when the British force with civilians was three miles from the fort, the Native American allies massacred about 1,100 of the 1,500 strong force.

In 1758, the French suffered a defeat when the British captured the fortress city of Louisborg in July, while gaining a victory at  [[Fort Carillon]] in July.  The [[Battle of Carillon]] was fought at the fortress of the same name, which is located on a strip of land between Lake Champlain and Lake George, and which was defended by 3,400 French regular troops and marines, with minimal support from militia and indigenous peoples.  The battle was the largest seen in North America up to that time, as General James Abercrombie assembled a force of 16,200 British, American, and Iroquois troops.  A spirited French defense led the British to withdraw after a fierce battle on the 8th of July, 1758.  During the battle, the British suffered 2,200 casualties and lost several artillery pieces, while the French received roughly 104 killed and 273 wounded.

While the British [[Siege of Port Royal (1710)|Conquest of Acadia]] happened in 1710, the French continued to remain a significant force in the region with [[Fort Beausejour]] and [[Fortress Louisbourg]]. The dominant population in the region remained Acadian, that is to say, not British. In 1755, the British were successful in the [[Battle of Beausejour]] and immediately after began the [[expulsion of the Acadians]].

In the meantime the French continued to explore westwards and expand their trade alliances with indigenous peoples. [[Fort de la Corne]] was built in 1753, by [[Louis de la Corne, Chevalier de la Corne]] just east of the [[Saskatchewan River Forks]] in what is today the Canadian province of [[Saskatchewan]]. This was the furthest westward outpost of the French Empire in North America to be established before its fall.