Significant Historical Happenings By Year: 1742-44.

-1742-

§April, 1742: Another small trading vessel from Boston while just about ready to set sail for her return to Boston is plundered somewhere in Minas Basin. Mascarene charges the "Indians supported by the French," and intends to write "Mons'r De Loutre ... to ask him to use his influence with the Indians to recover the missing goods."
§December 27th, 1742: Alexander Cosby (1685-1742) dies suddenly at Annapolis Royal. Cosby, coming to Nova Scotia in 1721, was another one of those habitually quarrelsome Irishmen (Armstrong, his boss, was another). He was the brother-in-law to Governor Philipps, and, thus, was convinced that that was a sufficiently good enough reason for him to be in charge: he never was.

-1743-
§From a contemporaneous official report to Whithall we see that in 1743 there are but 360 British soldiers in Nova Scotia and can be found only at two places: Annapolis Royal and Canso: approximately 200 at Annapolis Royal and 160 at Canso ("for the defense of the fishery"). "... these two bodies are so far separated, that one of them cannot possibly support the other, nor can they even communicate their distresses for want of a small Vessel to carry Intelligence. Whereas ... the French at Cape Breton are very strong ... they have several Forts and Batteries ... [and] about 700 regular troops, besides Civil inhabitants. ... this province is entirely flanked on another side by Canada and the River of St. Lawrence, in all probability upon a Rupture with France, the French would be able to possess themselves of it, without any great Difficulty, unless some fortifications were built there in proper places, and a more powerful land & sea Force sent thither to protect the Country."
§Mascarene in a letter to the Duke of Newcastle writes about Annapolis Royal, in 1743: Annapolis Royal "consists of two streets, the one extending along the river side and the other along the neck of land the extremities whereof are of a quarter of a mile distant from the fort, has no defence against a surprise from the Indians."
§June 27th, 1743: The Battle of Dettington had the markings of a battle (like so many which we have all experienced) by which the winner gaged himself a winner, more from what was avoided than from what was gained. At Dettington the English and the Austrians avoided destruction due to "the impetuosity of the French horse and the dogged obstinacy with which the English held their ground. There was, however, what appeared at first only to be a bit of a gain: the French determined to recross a river over which they had came, and, felt obliged, for no good reason the English could think of, to keep on driving their men and horses until they had gained their own border. Though not a classy fight on the part of the English, the effect was that the French evacuated Germany." (Green, vol. IX, p. 203.)
§An English man-of-war captures a French vessel proceeding through the Strait of Canso on its way to Louisbourg from Isle St. Jean. The French at Louisbourg came to Canso and were successful in pleading for its release.

-1744-
§Trade at Louisbourg expanded between the years 1739-44 by nearly 50% this is undoubtedly due to the endeavors of Bigot. The number of ships from "British Acadia" and New England that berthed at Louisbourg - 49 in 1739, 78 in 1743 - when in the same years French ships numbered 56 and 58.
§March 18th, 1744, war declared between France and England, The War of the Austrian Succession, or in the simpler American nomenclature, "King George's War," or "Governor's Shirley's War."
§May 3rd, 1744, Louisbourg gets the news (a ship from St. Malo) that England and France are at war.
§May 13/24th, 1744: The French attack and take Canso.
§May, 1744: Rumours of attack at Annapolis River.
§May, 27th, 1744: Tyng, who had been sent up from Boston to Annapolis Royal with the news of the war declaration arrives back at Boston from Annapolis Royal with refugees aboard, 26 women and children.
§June 15th, 1744: George Anson, having sailed from England in 1740, and after having circumnavigated the world, arrives back at England, to the cheers of all Englishmen, with an immense load of captured Spanish treasure.
§July 1744: Indians attack Annapolis Royal.
§August 8th, 1744: Duvivier lands at Baie Verte.
§September 7th, 1744: Duvivier invests Fort Ann at Annapolis River.
§September , 1744: Tyng arrives at Annapolis Royal with re-enforcements.
§October 1st, 1744: Duvivier retires from the field.
§October 9th, 1744: Duquesnel dies and Du Chambon succeeds as Governor of Louisbourg.
§October 9th, 1744: Having marched back from Annapolis River, Duvivier arrives at Minas.
§October 19th, 1744: Duvivier arrives at Beaubassin.
§October 25th, 1744: Bonaventure arrives with his sea force from Louisbourg, too late; would appear that he made a little cruise south to pick up a little booty.
§"By October 1744, Louisbourg privateers had taken 28 vessels, mainly from New England ..."
§Winter of 1744/45 - New Englanders huddle around their tables and their fires with their charts and their plans: Louisbourg, this catholic nest of sea and land raiders, is the subject of their discussions.

[Backward In Time (1739-41)]
[Forward In Time (1745)]