Seige Of Louisbourg 1745
...French forces at Louisbourg surrendered to a force of New England colonists after forty-six days of siege and blockade. The siege of Louisbourg was a brilliant achievement for the Colonial Army. They had defeated one of the world’s strongest fortresses with an ill-trained and ill-equipped Colonial Army and an untested Colonial Naval contingent. The Colonial Navy convoyed the army and in conjunction with the British Fleet imposed a successful blockade of Louisbourg. The Colonial victory reflects the importance of the battle of Louisbourg 1745 and the seeds it planted in the colonists that would be crucial to the rise of revolutionary America.
In 1713, the French established a colony on the eastern side of Cape Breton Island in northern Nova Scotia. The administrative center was called Louisbourg in honor of King Louis XIV. The location of this fortress had the great advantage of being located on an ice-free harbor. Ships could import and export goods and supplies plus fish at anytime during the year. Also the fortress’ layout was acknowledged as having superior seaward defenses, but its landward defenses were vulnerable to siege because the land was overlooked by a series of low rises. Fortress Louisbourg was built to protect France's interests in the new world and to serve as the center of its massive seasonal fishing industry.
By 1739, Britain had declared war on Spain known as the War of Jenkins’ Ear, which three years later would merge into the larger War of the Austrian Succession. The War of the Austrian Succession involved Austria and France along with many other European nations. Austria was supported of course by Britain and by the Dutch Republic, the traditional enemies of France, leading to Britain and France pitted against each other on the world stage. The Anglo-French colonial conflicts in North America were preceded by an outbreak of...
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