Great Empires Collide
The Seven Years’ War involved almost all of the supreme nations of the time into a conflict that would reshape the world. The causes of this war are mainly tied to the outcome of an earlier war, The War of Austrian succession (Marston 7). The occurrences of battles mainly took place in Europe, North America, and India (Marston 33-47). The consequences and effects of the Seven Years War were far reaching and included: shaking up former alliances, leaving all of the participating countries with large debt, and establishing of a new world order (Rickard 1). The purpose of this paper is to define the causes, occurrences, and effects of the Seven Years War, as it became a war on a global scale.
The Main causes of the Seven Years War are tied to the outcome of an earlier war, The War of Austrian Succession (Marston 7). The treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (which ended the War of Austrian Succession) did not resolve Austria’s resentment over losing Silesia, a very wealthy province, to Prussia (Marston 13). And, it did not stop Britain and France from continuing there pushes for colonialism and their fights for territory especially in North America but also in India (Marston 13). The Seven Years War truly was on a global scale, and as a result much of each country’s resources were poured into fighting. If the nation lost this war it would be devastating.
Battles of the Seven Years War mainly occurred in Europe, North America, and India (Marston 33-47). Main players in the Seven Years War were: Austria (Queen Maria Theresa), Britain (George II and George III), France (Louis XV), Prussia (Fredrick the Great), and Russia (Empress Elizabeth) (Marston 8). “The fighting in the war can be divided into distinct theaters of operation” (Marston 29). The naval battles took place between Britain and France. Battles in North America and the Caribbean were fought between Britain, France, and Indian tribes. Britain and France also had conflicts a little bit closer...