Anglo-French War (1778–1783)
1778 CE to 1783 CE
The Anglo-French War is a military conflict fought between France and Great Britain with their respective allies between 1778 and 1783.
In 1778, France signs a treaty of friendship with the United States.
Great Britain is now at war with France, and in 1779 it is also at war with Spain.
As a consequence, Great Britain is forced to divert resources used to fight the war in North America to theaters in Europe, India and the West Indies, and to rely on what turns out to be the chimera of Loyalist support in its North American operations.[
From 1778 to 1783, with or without their allies, France and Britain fight over dominance in the English Channel, the Mediterranean, the Indian Ocean and the West Indies.
Within days of the news of Burgoyne's surrender reaching France, King Louis XVI decides to enter into negotiations with the Americans that result in a formal Franco-American alliance and the French entry into the war, moving the conflict onto a global stage.
Spain does not enter into the war until 1779, when it enters the war as an ally of France pursuant to the secret Treaty of Aranjuez.
Vergennes' diplomatic moves following the French war with Britain also have material impact on the later entry of the Dutch Republic into the war, and declarations of neutrality on the part of other important geopolitical players like Russia.
Opposition to the costly war is increasing, and in June 1780 contributes to disturbances in London known as the Gordon riots.
The two protagonists in the naval showdown in the Indian Ocean have as their objective the political dominance of the Indian subcontinent, and a series of battles fought by Admirals Edward Hughes and Pierre André de Suffren in 1782 and 1783 offer France a position to displace the British from its territories.
The opportunity only enda when Suffren and Hughes have to stop fighting upon learning of the provisional Anglo-French-Spanish peace treaties of 1783.
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Eastern West Indies (1768–1779 CE): Earthquakes, Warfare, and Revolutionary Tensions
Devastating Earthquakes and Their Aftermath
Between 1768 and 1779, severe natural disasters profoundly impacted the Eastern West Indies. A catastrophic earthquake struck Port-au-Prince on June 3, 1770, devastating the city and surrounding regions, including Lake Miragoâne and Petit-Goâve. The quake caused extensive soil liquefaction in the Plain of the Cul-de-Sac, leveling buildings and sinking the village of Croix des Bouquets below sea level. Approximately 200 people died in Port-au-Prince alone, with severe casualties elsewhere. The earthquake triggered a tsunami affecting the Gulf of Gonâve.
The quake's aftermath saw thousands of enslaved individuals fleeing in chaos, severely disrupting the local economy. Approximately 15,000 enslaved people died from subsequent famine, while another 15,000 succumbed to gastrointestinal anthrax contracted from tainted meat sold by Spanish traders.
Economic and Strategic Rivalries
In 1777, French botanist Nicolas-Joseph Thiéry de Menonville attempted to smuggle valuable cochineal insects from New Spain to Saint-Domingue. Although initially successful, this attempt ultimately failed, leaving Spain's monopoly on this lucrative dyestuff intact.
Grenada: Conflict and Reconstruction
The principal town of Grenada, St. George, faced destructive fires in 1771 and again in 1775, prompting reconstruction efforts in stone and brick. During the American War of Independence, French forces under Comte d'Estaing recaptured Grenada between July 2-4, 1779, with British naval forces defeated in the Battle of Grenada on July 6, 1779.
Sint Eustatius and the American Revolution
The small Dutch island of Sint Eustatius became pivotal during the American Revolutionary War. In 1776, it was the first foreign power to officially acknowledge American independence by saluting the brig Andrew Doria. Due to British blockades, Sint Eustatius became a crucial supply hub for the American forces, facilitated by Dutch, British colonial, and Jewish merchant networks.
French and British Conflicts
French and British forces clashed repeatedly throughout the Caribbean. The French captured Dominica in September 1778, led by Governor-General François Claude Amour, Marquis de Bouillé, capitalizing on weak British defenses. News of Dominica’s fall shocked Britain, leading to severe criticism of Admiral Samuel Barrington for inadequate naval defenses.
In response, Admiral William Hotham and Admiral Barrington launched an assault on French-held St. Lucia in December 1778, securing it as a strategic position. Reinforcements arrived for both sides in early 1779, shifting power dynamics. Admiral John Byron reinforced the British but departed in June 1779 to protect merchant convoys, leaving Admiral d'Estaing free to act.
D'Estaing and Bouillé captured Saint Vincent on June 18, 1779, and subsequently targeted Grenada, capturing it after fierce fighting on July 4, 1779.
Severe Weather Events
A devastating hurricane hit Guadeloupe on September 6, 1776, resulting in over 6,000 fatalities, highlighting the ongoing vulnerability of Caribbean islands to extreme weather events.
Conclusion
The period 1768–1779 witnessed significant upheaval in the Eastern West Indies, shaped by destructive earthquakes, the tumult of the American Revolutionary War, and severe weather disasters. The era demonstrated both the volatility and strategic significance of these colonial territories, setting the stage for continued geopolitical complexities.
An eleven gun response from Fort Orange salutes the Andrew Doria.
The Andrew Doria has arrived to purchase military supplies on St. Eustatius and to present to the Dutch governor a copy of the United States Declaration of Independence.
An earlier copy of the Declaration had been captured by a British naval ship.
The British are confused by the papers wrapped around the declaration, which they think is a secret cypher.
The papers are written in Yiddish for a merchant in Holland.
The Dutch-controlled island in the West Indies is an entrepôt that operates as a major trading center despite its relatively small size.
During the American War of Independence Sint Eustatius becomes a crucial source of supplies, and its harbor is filled with American trading ships.
Its merchant networks—Dutch, but also British via Saint Kitts and especially Bermuda and also Jewish, many of whom are St. Eustatius residents—are key to the military supplies and goods being shipped to the revolutionary forces.
United States-European communications are directed through Sint Eustatius.
The superimposition of a global struggle between European powers upon several localized Indian wars does unnerve the Company and seriously embarrass its presidencies.
Furthermore, the war exposes the rival geo-political ambitions of the French and these in turn provoke the more stolid, unreflecting British to formulate their own logic of empire.
When word reaches India in 1778 that France has entered the war, the British East India Company moves quickly to capture French colonial outposts there, notably capturing Pondicherry after two months of siege.
The British invoke a number of old treaties (1678, 1689, 1716) to have the Republic support them militarily, but as in the Seven Years' War the Dutch government refuses.
Prominent Loyalists with great influence in London have convinced the British that Loyalist support is high in the South, and that a campaign there will inspire a popular Loyalist uprising.
The British center their strategy upon this thinking.
A southern campaign also has the advantage of keeping the Royal Navy closer to the Caribbean, where it will be needed to defend lucrative colonies against the Franco-Spanish fleets.
This month, a large American naval operation to retake Maine results in the worst American naval defeat until Pearl Harbor in 1941.
In the summer of 1779, the Americans capture British posts at Stony Point and Paulus Hook.
With few losses of their own, the British take five thousand two hundred and sixty-six prisoners, effectively destroying the Continental Army in the south.
Organized American resistance in the region collapses when Banastre Tarleton defeats the withdrawing Americans at Waxhaws on May 29.
British troops now move inland to recruit Loyalist support.