Battle of Fort Beausejour

Battle of Fort Beauséjour
Part of the French and Indian War
Robert Monckton by Benjamin West
Date June 3–16, 1755 Location Near present-day Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada 45°51′55.83″N 64°17′26.85″W / 45.8655083°N 64.2907917°W / 45.8655083; -64.2907917Coordinates: 45°51′55.83″N 64°17′26.85″W / 45.8655083°N 64.2907917°W / 45.8655083; -64.2907917 Result British victory
Belligerents
France Mi'kmaq militia Acadian militia	Great Britain
Commanders and leaders
Louis Du Pont Duchambon de Vergor	Robert Monckton George Scott Naval Captain John Rous John Winslow Jedidiah Preble Benjamin Goldthwait
Strength
162 troupes de la Marine 300 Acadian militia	270 British army troops 2,000 New England militia
Casualties and losses
8 killed, 6 wounded	4 killed, 16 wounded

The Battle of Fort Beauséjour was fought on the Isthmus of Chignecto and marked the end of Father Le Loutre's War and the opening of a British offensive in the Acadia/ Nova Scotia theatre of the Seven Years' War, which would eventually lead to the end of the French Empire in North America. The battle also reshaped the settlement patterns of the Atlantic region, and laid the groundwork for the modern province of New Brunswick.

Beginning June 3, 1755, a British army under Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Monckton staged out of nearby Fort Lawrence, besieged the small French garrison at Fort Beauséjour with the goal of opening the Isthmus of Chignecto to British control. Control of the isthmus was crucial to the French because it was the only gateway between Quebec and Louisbourg during the winter months. After two weeks of siege, Louis Du Pont Duchambon de Vergor, the fort's commander, capitulated on June 16.

Tensions between the English and the French concerning the Acadian territory date to the seventeenth century, when France established its Acadian colony, which made them neighbors with the Puritans in New England. One of the main reasons for tensions was the question of jurisdiction, especially after the conquest of Acadia (1710). The isthmus of Chignecto was claimed by both the French and English whereas present day Nova Scotia was claimed by the English. The border differentiating the two was the Missaguash River; however, Acadians settled on both sides of the river. English claim to present day New Brunswick, and Northern Maine conflicted with small French presence and Acadian settlement on the area. Despite this, France's Louis XV encouraged Acadians to migrate to the land west of the Missaguash, and toward Fort Beauséjour.

In the 1750s, New Englanders were subject to drought, depression, high taxes and violence, all of which were further manipulated by Puritan and Protestant priests to garner support for an impending attack on the Catholic French. Furthermore, the close relationship between the French and the Mikmaq in the area angered the English. Acadians often married the Mikmaq people, leading to an ethnic accord and the creation of a unique local population. The English especially resented the Acadians for holding the best land and for the support they had from the Mikmaq, which prevented the establishment of a Protestant settlement. A major problem for the New Englanders was the close relationship between the Acadians, the French, and the Mikmaq.

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