How George Washington Started the French and Indian War, U.S. Army Museum

In the vast frontier woods of the Ohio Country, a young, inexperienced Virginia provincial officer named George Washington set off a series of events in 1754. Those events would soon ignite the wide-scale conflict called the French and Indian War in America, and the Seven Years' War in Europe.

Based at Fort Necessity—a crude log fort—located in what is today western Pennsylvania, Col. Washington led a small detachment of soldiers in search of suspected French spies. The ensuing skirmish pitted the Virginians and their Indian allies against colonial French troops. It ended in bloodshed, further violence that summer, and eventually to an all-out imperial war engulfing Great Britain, France, Spain, the American colonies, and Native Americans.

Elizabeth L. Maurer, the Museum’s Chief of Programs and Education, explores George Washington's first command, his initiation into warfare, and his decisions that sparked a world war. Prior to joining the Museum, Maurer held positions at Colonial Williamsburg and George Washington’s Mount Vernon where she developed historical programs about the Washingtons.

This program originally aired on July 6, 2021.

Every month, Battle Briefs explore a specific battle, campaign, or other event from the U.S. Army’s remarkable past, using maps and period images.

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