Battle of the Plains of Abraham

1759 CE.

Shown on the map at 46.802°, -71.220°.

The Battle of the Plains of Abraham, also known as the First Battle of Quebec (French: Bataille des Plaines d'Abraham, Première bataille de Québec), was a pivotal battle in the Seven Years' War—whose North American theatre is referred to by Americans as the French and Indian War. The battle, which took place on 13 September 1759, was fought by the British Army and Royal Navy against the French Army on the Promontory of Quebec, a plateau just outside the walls of Quebec City on land that was originally owned by a farmer named Abraham Martin, hence the name of the location. The battle involved fewer than 10,000 troops in total, but proved to be a deciding moment in the conflict between France and Britain over the fate of New France, influencing the later creation of Canada. The culmination of a three-month siege by the British, the battle lasted about an hour. British troops commanded by General James Wolfe successfully resisted the column advance of French troops and Canadian militia under General Louis-Joseph, Marquis de Montcalm, employing new tactics that proved extremely effective against standard military formations used in most large European conflicts.

Text from the Wikipedia article Battle of the Plains of Abraham, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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