The French and Indian war is also called the seven years war. The war started because Britain felt that they needed to prevent the french from gaining control over trade and territories that the British thought were theirs. The war in America took place in Canada, throughout Western Pennsylvania, and all the way to the Mississippi River. This war was one of George Washington’s first major experiences in combat.
At the beginning of the war, the French controlled Canada and Louisiana territory and Britain controlled most of the east coast in North America. Washington and his Virginia troops were fighting for Britain. In one of the first battles Washington and his troops were sent to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to remove the French from their new fort. The French won that battle. The French soon started to control the entire region.
In 1756, the British started to beat the French. General James Wolfe’s defeated the French. When the french lost the war, and the treaty of Paris was signed on February 10, 1763. Britain controlled Canada and the French areas east of the Mississippi river. Spain decided to give part of Florida to Britain, and received the former French areas west of the Mississippi river.
The English colonists no longer needed the protection of the British against the French army but the British issued the proclamation of 1763 in order to prevent settlement west of the mountains that might trigger war with the natives.
How did this war lead to the American Revolution?
The proclamation of 1763 did not let the colonists settle west when they won that territory. The King of England made the colonists pay more taxes for the damage of the war and paying for the protection. This angered many colonists who came to be called patriots because they wanted more freedom and independent government.
How did the colonists actually benefit from this war?
The colonists became more united. The colonists gained more experience with war and gained more territory to the Mississippi.
http://thesocialstudies.org/how-essential-was-the-french–indian-war-to-the-american-revolution.html
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/history/us/colonial/fiwar/