Crucible of War: The Seven Years' War and the Fate of Empire in British North America, 1754-1766

In Fred Anderson's vivid and compelling narrative, the Seven Years' War takes on a new and profound significance. Far from being a mere backdrop to the American Revolution, the Seven Years' War eliminated French power north of the Caribbean, destroyed an American diplomatic system in which Native Americans had long played a balancing role, and hardened the attitudes of both the colonists and the British--forging the tensions that would lead to the disintegration of the British empire in North Am…