Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
By the mid-18th century, the longstanding rivalry between Great Britain and France had ex-
tended from Europe to North America, as each country sought to colonise swathes of the
new world. In the autumn of 1753, Robert Dinwiddie, the British lieutenant governor of Vir-
ginia, was alarmed by reports of French advances southward from Lake Erie to the Ohio
Valley. Anxious to assert British claims to the territory covered by this map - which corres-
ponds roughly to the western fringes of modern-day Pennsylvania - he wrote a formal letter
demanding the withdrawal of French troops from the region. He appointed the 22-year-old
Washington, then a major in the Virginia militia, to deliver it.
Washington's party crossed the Allegheny Mountains in mid November and proceeded
north-west to the Forks of the Ohio. This point (near the centre of this map) is the confluence
of the Monongahela and Allegheny Rivers; the latter is labelled here as the Ohio River.
He then spent several days at nearby Logstown, in discussions with two Native American
leaders, the Seneca Tanaghrisson (known to colonists as 'the Half-King') and the Oneida
Monacatoocha. Both men shared British concerns about French expansion. Delayed by bad
weather, Washington eventually reached Fort Le Boeuf (shown at upper right at the head of
French Creek) on 11 December. His meeting with the French commander, Jacques Legardeur,
was cordial but not a success. Neither side was willing to give up any claim to the region.
Legardeur also disavowed any authority to negotiate on behalf of his superiors, who were
based in faraway Quebec City.
On his return to Virginia the following January, Washington submitted a detailed report
about his activities to Dinwiddie, who decided to send a copy of it to London (along with this
map) and to have it published. These actions by the governor brought Washington to wider
public notice for the first time. This initial taste of fame, along with the experience gained
during his spell in the British militia, would stand him in good stead when he came to lead
the fight for American independence.
Before receiving his commission in the militia, Washington had worked as a land surveyor.
He was therefore a competent draughtsman and is believed to have drawn this map himself.
A note on it records his recommendation to build a British fort just east of the Forks of the
Ohio, to guard against further French settlement in the area. Work on the new Fort Prince Ge-
orge began early in 1754, but it was overrun a few months later by the French, who replaced
the unfinished British construction with the larger Fort Duquesne. This in turn was destroyed
by the British in 1758, and replaced with Fort Pitt. The site is currently occupied by Point
State Park in downtown Pittsburgh.
