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Seven Years' War

The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict involving most of the European great powers, fought primarily in Europe and the Americas. One of the opposing alliances was led by Great Britain and Prussia. The other alliance was led by France, backed by Spain, Saxony, Sweden, and Russia. Related conflicts include the 1754 to 1763 French and Indian War, and 1762 to 1763 Anglo-Spanish War.

This article is about the mid-18th century war. For other wars of the same name, see Seven Year War.

The War of the Austrian Succession ended in 1748, but failed to resolve ongoing tensions between the European powers. Continuing colonial disputes between Britain and France in North America resulted in the outbreak of the French and Indian War in 1754. Following the realignment of traditional alliances in the so-called 1756 Diplomatic Revolution, Prussia allied with Britain, while the long running French–Habsburg rivalry ended when Austria signed a treaty with France.


Spain entered the war on the French side in 1762, unsuccessfully attempting to invade Britain's ally Portugal in what became known as the Fantastic War. Spain lost Havana in Cuba and Manila in the Philippines to Britain, but they were returned in the 1763 Treaty of Paris.


In Europe, the large-scale conflict that drew in most of the European powers was centred on the desire of Austria to recover Silesia from Prussia. The Treaty of Hubertusburg ended the war between Saxony, Austria and Prussia, in 1763. France's supremacy in Europe was halted, while Prussia confirmed its status as a great power, challenging Austria for dominance within the Holy Roman Empire, thus altering the European balance of power.

Nomenclature[edit]

In the historiography of some countries, the war is named after combatants in its respective theatres. In the present-day United States, the conflict is known as the French and Indian War (1754–1763). In English-speaking Canada—the balance of Britain's former North American colonies—it is called the Seven Years' War (1756–1763). In French-speaking Canada, it is known as La guerre de la Conquête (the War of the Conquest). Swedish historiography uses the name Pommerska kriget (the Pomeranian War), as the Sweden–Prussia conflict between 1757 and 1762 was limited to Pomerania in northern central Germany.[5] The Third Silesian War involved Prussia and Austria (1756–1763). On the Indian subcontinent, the conflict is called the Third Carnatic War (1757–1763).


The term "Second Hundred Years' War" has been used in order to describe the almost continuous level of worldwide conflict between France and Great Britain during the entire 18th century, reminiscent of the Hundred Years' War of the 14th and 15th centuries.[6]

Neutral nations during the Seven Years' War[edit]

Ottoman Empire[edit]

Despite being one of the major European powers during this time, the Ottoman Empire was notably neutral during the Seven Years' War. Following their military stalemate with the Russian Empire and their subsequent victory over the Holy Roman Empire (and Austria to an extent), during the Austro-Russian-Turkish War (1735–1739), and the signing of the Treaty of Belgrade, the Ottoman Empire enjoyed a generation of peace due to Austria and Russia contending with the rise of Prussia in Eastern Europe. During the war, King Frederick II of Prussia, better known to history as Frederick the Great, had made diplomatic overtures with the Ottoman Sultan, Mustafa III for years, up to the outbreak of war, to bring the empire into the war on the side of Prussia, Great Britain, and their other allies but he was unsuccessful. However, the Sultan was persuaded by his court not to join the war, primarily by his Grand Vizier, Koca Ragıb Pasha, who was quoted as saying.


"Our state looks like a majestic and mighty lion from afar. However, a closer look at this lion reveals that it has aged—its teeth have fallen out—its claws have fallen. So, let's leave this old lion to rest for a while."


Therefore, the Ottoman Empire avoided the major wars that would follow, including the Seven Years' War. The Ottoman Empire, or more accurately its leaders, recognised its internal problems. The previous wars had cost the empire greatly, both in terms of resources and finance, they were facing rebellions from nationalistic uprisings, notably from the Beyliks, and Persia had been reunited under Karim Khan Zand. That said, the Ottoman Empire would launch an abortive invasion of Hungary with 100,000 troops in 1763, contributing to the end of the war.[120]

Persia[edit]

Persia ended up under the rule of the Zand dynasty during the period of the Seven Years' War. Like the Ottoman Empire, they were also neutral during the war. They had more pressing matters to attend to. Karim Khan Zand, was busy playing politics and was in the process of legitimising his claim to the Persian throne by placing a puppet king on the throne, Ismail III, the grandson of the last Safavid king, in 1757.[121] However, by 1760, he had managed to eliminate all other potential claimants to the throne as well as Ismail III and had established himself as the head of his own dynasty, the aforementioned Zand dynasty.[122]

The novel (1844) by William Makepeace Thackeray is set against the Seven Years' War. This is a quote about the war from the novel:

The Luck of Barry Lyndon

France in the Seven Years' War

French India

List of wars

Rule of 1756

Wars and battles involving Prussia

The French Army 1600–1900

Events and the participants in the Seven Years' War

Archived 21 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine

Seven Years' War timeline

Memorial University of Newfoundland's page about the war

Kronoskaf.com: Seven Years' War Knowledge Base

1759: From the Warpath to the Plains of Abraham Virtual Exhibition.

The Seven Years' War in Canada

Clash of Empires and The Battle of the Plains of Abraham – The Canadian War Museum

. Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 24 (11th ed.). 1911. pp. 715–723. Includes several battle maps.

"Seven Years' War"