King William's War: The First Contest for North America (1689-1697) | Historical Book on Colonial Conflicts | Perfect for History Students & American Revolution Enthusiasts

Being something of a military history buff, I took a chance on an obscure and small war that is virtually forgotten like most of the inter-colonial conflicts.I was not disappointed.Of the four inter-colonial wars between the English and the French North American colonies, it was only the first one in the 1680s to 1690s that the French can be considered to have won ( King William’s War named after William of Orange).A few things stood out to me. First, the French proved to be bolder and more audacious despite limited resources. They could be quite nasty but did not have the luxury of staying pat. Quebec is attacked for the first of 5 attempts, for instance.Second, the English were stymied by the split nature and governance of the diverse colonies. They would realize this and this gave birth in the near future to a more coordinated strategy, which will have massive repercussions down the road for the French and British.Third, the timing for the English was bad because it corresponded with the turmoil of the Glorious Revolution. This did cause leadership issues and even near civil war amongst the English. This affected their ability to coordinate.Fourth, due to the lack of manpower and large open spaces, both sides relied heavily on their Native Allies. The French especially used the Natives as more than half of their units.Fifth, the myth of the Noble Savage can be dispensed with. The Natives - especially the Iroquois Five Nations and the Wabnaki - were often very brutal in their massacres (of course with encouragement from their European Allies) but also against each other.There were several massacres during this time period of over 100 settlers with Schenectady being the one that is most memorable.Finally, there were three low-level wars that dovetailed into this one. There was the economic-related Beaver Wars, the Conflict over Arcadia between England and France and the conflict over Hudson Bay.Reading about the visceral hatred between the English and the French that would continue for another 120 years ( A Second Hundred Years War), it is a miracle that these two would fight side by side in the 20th century.