King William's War
King William's War
From 1689 to 1763, England and France fought four wars for dominance in the New World. The wars are known collectively in English history as the French and Indian Wars. In American history, the French and Indian War name applies to the last of the four wars, fought from 1754 to 1763.
The first of the French and Indian Wars was King William's War (1689–97), named for King William III (1650–1702). The European powers regarded King William's War as the New World theater for a larger war being fought in Europe called the War of the Grand Alliance.
First Fallen
A record of King William's War indicates that the first person to fall in combat in Massachusetts was an African American. The record refers to him simply as a “Naygro of Colo. Tyng,” and says he was killed at Falmouth.
In each of the French and Indian Wars, Native American tribes fought either for France or England. During King William's War, the Iroquois Confederacy fought for England and continued fighting France after England's peace with France in 1697. War casualties reduced the Iroquois population by half. In 1701, the Iroquois made peace with France and decided to remain neutral in future colonial conflicts.
When King William's War ended in 1697, European control of New World land remained as it had been when war began in 1689.