Secondary II • 2yr.
Bonjour, Hello,
I have a few questions,
Jeffery Amherst did something that the first nations thought was a sign of peace, then he did all of those bad things to the first nations. If he was faking peace, how did the first nations know that he did all that bad stuff to them?
Is it because the British were the only ones that had the power to do those things?
What did Jeffery Amherst do with the first nations before he massacred them?
Thank you
Explanation from Alloprof
This Explanation was submitted by a member of the Alloprof team.
Hello DauphinSociable,
Thank you for using the HelpZone! :)
Here is what I found on Jeffery Amherst:
Jeffery Amherst was commanding general of British forces in North America during the final battles of the so-called French & Indian war (1754-1763). He won victories against the French to acquire Canada for England.
Jeffery Amherst was blamed for having proposed, in 1763, to deliberately infect the First nations with smallpox during the Pontiac revolt.
The latter had said the following sentence: “You would do well to try to inoculate the Indians by means of blankets, as well as to try all the other methods which could serve to eradicate this execrable race..".
Some opposed the idea of giving diseases to the Natives. They believed that a generous policy with them would ease tensions.
However, following Jeffery's words, the British defenders at Fort Pitt had already sent infected handkerchiefs and blankets to the Native forces besieging the fort.
Hope that answers your question! Let us know if we can help you with anything else! :)
-Marilee