Long before the thunder of muskets at Lexington or the echo of Jefferson’s pen across the pages of the Declaration of Independence, the American colonies were already engulfed in a struggle that would change the world.
In this week’s episode of Dave Does History on Bill Mick Live, we trace the origins of that struggle—not to July 1776, but back to the tangled frontier of 1754. That’s when a 22-year-old Virginian named George Washington led a small detachment of colonial militia into the Ohio Country, unknowingly lighting the match that would ignite a global firestorm.
The war that followed is commonly called the French and Indian War here in the United States. But in truth, it was far more than a colonial dust-up. Known globally as the Seven Years’ War, this was the first true world war—fought on five continents, involving every major European power, and shaking the very foundations of empire. And yet, too often, it’s skipped over or misunderstood.
In this second installment of our “Liberty 250” series, we ask: Why does this war matter to understanding the American Revolution?
Because it shaped the minds, hearts, and habits of the very men who would later rise up in defiance of Britain. It tested their loyalty, exposed imperial arrogance, and forced colonial Americans to organize, fight, and sacrifice long before they ever demanded independence. They raised militias, built forts, defended their homes, and buried their sons—all without official support from the Crown.
It was during this conflict that colonial leaders began to see themselves as something distinct from Englishmen. And it was in those frontier battles that a new American identity began to take form—not in theory, but in practice.
From the blood-soaked banks of the Monongahela to the icy ramparts of Quebec, we explore how this war set the stage for the revolutionary explosion two decades later. It’s a tale of arrogance and adaptation, of cultural clash and emerging confidence, and of how a forgotten war became the proving ground for liberty itself.
So join us as we roll back the calendar to a time when the world caught fire—and a young, untested colony began to learn what it meant to fight for its own future.
🎙️ Listen to Dave Does History: Liberty 250 – The First World War
Available now on iHeartRadio, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts.
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