97. George Washington.--Of an old Virginia family, George Washington grew up with the idea that he must earn his own living. His father was a well-to-do planter. But Augustine Washington was the eldest son, and, as was the custom then in Virginia, he inherited most of the property. Augustine Washington was very kind to his younger brother, and gave him a good practical education as a land surveyor. The younger man was a bold athlete and fond of studying military campaigns. He was full of courage, industrious, honest, and of great common sense. Before he was twenty he had surveyed large tracts of wilderness, and had done his work well amidst great difficulties. When Dinwiddie wanted a messenger to take his letter to the French commander on the Ohio, George Washington's employer at once suggested him as the best person to send on the dangerous journey.
The French build Fort Duquesne.
Washington's first military expedition, 1754.
98. Fort Duquesne.--Instead of heeding Dinwiddie's warning, the French set to work to build Fort Duquesne (Dü-kan') at the spot where the Alleghany and Monongahela join to form the Ohio,--on the site of the present city of Pittsburg. Dinwiddie therefore sent Washington with a small force of soldiers to drive them away. But the French were too strong for Washington. They besieged him in Fort Necessity and compelled him to surrender (July 4, 1754).
[Illustration: BRADDOCK'S CAMPAIGN.]
Braddock's expedition, 1755. Higginson, 152-154; Eggleston, 129-131; Source-book, 103-105.
99. Braddock's Defeat, 1755.--The English government now sent General Braddock with a small army of regular soldiers to Virginia. Slowly and painfully Braddock marched westward. Learning of his approach, the French and Indians left Fort Duquesne to draw him into ambush. But the two forces came together before either party was prepared for battle. For some time the contest was even, then the regulars broke and fled. Braddock was fatally wounded. With great skill, Washington saved the survivors,--but not until four shots had pierced his coat and only thirty of his three companies of Virginians were left alive.
The French and Indian War.
William Pitt, war minister, 1757.
100. The War to 1759.--All the earlier French and Indian wars had begun in Europe and had spread to America. This war began in America and soon spread to Europe. At first affairs went very ill. But in 1757 William Pitt became the British war minister, and the war began to be waged with vigor and success. The old generals were called home, and new men placed in command. In 1758 Amherst and Wolfe captured Louisburg, and Forbes, greatly aided by Washington, seized Fort Duquesne. Bradstreet captured Fort Frontenac, on Lake Ontario. There was only one bad failure, that of Abercrombie at Ticonderoga. But the next year Amherst captured Ticonderoga and Crown Point and opened the way to Canada by Lake Champlain.
[Illustration: WOLFE'S RAVINE. This shows the gradual ascent of the path from the river to the top of the bluff.]
Capture of Quebec, 1759. Higginson, 154-156; Eggleston, 137-139; Source-Book, 105-107.
Battle of Quebec.