King William's War, ended in 1697, but a second war (Queen Anne's War) broke out in 1702. Québec survived the English invasions of both these wars, but Port Royal and Acadia fell in 1690. In 1713, peace came to New France with the Treaty of Utrecht. Although the treaty turned Newfoundland and part of Acadia (peninsular Nova Scotia) over to Britain, France remained in control of Île Royale (Cape Breton Island) and Fortress Louisbourg, as well as Île Saint-Jean (Prince Edward Island) and part of what is today New Brunswick.
In 1753, France began building a series of forts in the Ohio Country, a region also claimed by the British colony of Virginia, though now part of what is today's West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. The war erupted in earnest in Europe as well on May 15, 1756, when the Diplomatic Revolution had been finalized and Great Britain declared war on France. In accordance with his military doctrines, King Frederick determined to strike first. On August 29, his well-prepared army crossed the frontier of Saxony. The British battled French across India, North America, Europe, the Caribbean isles, the Philippines and coastal Africa. During the 1750s up to 1763, Britain gained enormous areas of land and influence at the expense of the French. Towards the very end of the war, in 1762, French forces attacked St. John's, Newfoundland. Though the French initially colonised the area, various treaties traded possession of the region between the British and French through the 1600s and beyond. In 1754, with hostilities growing in the lead-up to the Seven Years' War (known as the French and Indian War in the U.S.), the Acadians were ordered to renew their oath — but this time, without including any reservation against fighting the French or their Mi'kmaq neighbours. The majority of Acadians refused. The British responded by forcing thousands of the French-speaking inhabitants to board ships and sending them south, with most being distributed among the British American colonies, sent back to France, or shipped to British prisons. Some were shipped as far as the Falkland Islands. The largest single group returned to France where they were poorly treated and ostracized by French society.
A large number of Acadians fled overland, aided by their Mi'kmaq allies, and resettled in the colonies of New France, present-day Québec. Over the next several decades, many Acadians moved to Louisiana, bordering Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi, then controlled by Spain. The underlying strata of the state are of Cretaceous age and are covered by alluvial deposits of Tertiary and post-Tertiary origin. A large part of Louisiana is the creation and product of the Mississippi River. It was originally covered by an arm of the sea, and has been built up by the silt carried down the valley by the great river. Near the coast, there are many salt domes, where salt is mined and oil is often found. The Tertiary covers roughly the time span between the demise of the dinosaurs and beginning of the most recent ice age. At the beginning of the period mammal replaced reptiles as the dominant animals. The marshlands are imprints of the dinosaurs traversing five geological epochs and a shortage of their strata. A large part of Louisiana is the creation and product of the Mississippi River. It was originally covered by an arm of the sea, and has been built up by the silt carried down the valley by the great river.