New Battles

 This cloak belonged to British General James Wolfe, and now resides here. Wolfe was the commanding general at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham, which would decide the fate of the continent during the French and Indian War.

The French and Indian War was otherwise known as the Seven Years War, a conflict between Britain and France around the world from 1756-63. In North America, both of the powers had their indigenous allies and colonial militias involved.  

It was in 1759 that both sides met at Quebec City at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham. This is Portrait Of James Wolfe At Quebec, by J.C.S. Schaak.

A display case of weapons of that war. The powder horn, as noted above, is inscribed with memories of the war. A replica you can touch is outside the display case.

Louis-Joseph de Montcalm was the commanding French general at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham. This portrait of him hangs here. The British would win the battle, and both Wolfe and Montcalm would die of wounds sustained. It would be the beginning of the end of New France.

France would lose nearly all of its possessions in the New World. The British would have to come to terms with the French-speaking settlers.

The next gallery examines Canada from the aftermath of that war through to the early years of the 20th century. We begin with this painting. Catherine Read painted Portrait of Frances Brooke around 1771. Brooke was a novelist whose husband was in the British military.

The British would find themselves trying to come to terms with the former allies of their conquered foe, as those indigenous tribes once aligned with the French did not deem themselves conquered.

Clothing in this display case features a mix of First Nations and European influences.

A new conflict rose up a few years after the French and Indian War. American colonists rose up in revolution against the British. Indigenous peoples north and south of what's now the border tended to support the British crown.