The Acadian who were the first French settlers from the southeast of France settled in today known as New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. The Acadian had a great mutually and effective trading relationship with “British’s New England colonies to south” and “ their motherland’s New France to the north” . Along with that, they were trading “boatloads of surplus livestock to the French bastion” . From the 1713 to 1748, the Acadians’ family sizes increased, as well life expectancies. Further, they were not involved in wars and affected by the epidemics. Moreover, the Treaty of Utretcht which ceded the War of Spanish Succession between France and Britain brought the Acadia under the British rule. The Acadian, British and French bear the responsibility of Acadian dilemma. However, Britain is more to be blamed for it than Acadian and France.
The Acadian are responsible for their dilemma as they made decisions that placed them into that situations. After the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, the Acadian did not take the side of French when French offered them. Since, the Acadian were close to French in religious, history, and language, they should have taken French side. In addition, the France was not going to force them to leave their land. Moreover, the neutrality of Acadian with British and France increased their dilemma. Both the French and English were at war with each other over Acadia and the Acadian wanted to trade with both to keep up their commerce. Additionally, neutrality would have kept the Acadian on either side after an official ownership. The Acadian were not looking beyond the benefits of neutrality. Although they did not wanted to be involved in war against neither French nor British they were supporting France in military forces against British.
Another reason that Acadian was responsible for their own dilemma was their false sense of independence and autonomy. Their belief of staying out of battlefield through neutrality was delusion as they were geographically located between the two colonies which were against each other for long. In addition, such location “tend to hold strategic value and often end up as geo-political flash points” .
The British are most blamed for the Acadian dilemma because they were the one that deported Acadian from their colonies. The expulsion of Acadian was decided by the Governor Lawrence as he and other British believed that Acadian were royal to Britain as they supported “French military efforts” . Furthermore, even British and Acadian had an agreement on Acadian’s stay from military services against French and Indians, the Britain violated the proviso. By 1754, the France and Britain was ready for another war, placing Acadian to decide to choose between them. The Acadian were asked to take oath of allegiance to British Crown which many Acadian declined. This escalated the tension between the British and Acadian. As a result, the British’s governance decided to deport all Acadian from their lands onto other British colonies where they would become distinct. The expulsion lasted for eight years and many Acadian died from epidemics, and hunger. Besides, the British also burned their lands and occupied those lands with the New England immigrants. Consequently, Acadian who survived were not entitled to their own lands.
In the beginning when Acadia came under the rule of British, they used the Acadian for their purpose. The Britain perceived Acadian as threat and favourable. After benefits of keeping Acadian outweighed the cost of threats, the British allowed them to remain neutral subject. The Britain kept alliance with the Acadia, as long as they were benefiting from the trade with the Acadian. Their alliance also allowed Acadian to not join the French as well. After the Britain felt threaten by Acadian’s refusal to oath, Lawrence took drastic step to finish Acadian by relocating them to “the British colonies to the south, to France, to Louisiana” Consequently, Britain was responsible for the expulsion of Acadian.
Along with Acadian and English, French had a little responsibility for Acadian dilemma. Even though, the Acadia was the colony of French settlers, the French did not care much about Acadian and “consider Acadia less important than New France on St. Lawrence River” before 1713. The France should have acknowledged the Acadian well to avoid the dilemma. Since, the French did not care about Acadia, Acadian declined the French offer after the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle.
Ultimately, Acadian, British and French are responsible for Acadian dilemma. The Acadian who wanted to trade and maintain their relationship with both British and French caused the dilemma as English and French were enemies. Additionally, they were under the false impression that neutrality was going to keep them away from battlefields. Moreover, the British are mostly responsibility for the expulsion of Acadian because they started it when the Acadian refused to take the oath of allegiance to British’s Crown. Furthermore, French’s negligence of Acadia before 1713 led Acadian to trade with New England.