The Proclamation Line of 1763

It is 1763 and Americans are recovering from a war fought for control of their western territory. Many men have fought and died in this struggle. The French are defeated and their allies the Indians along with them.

During this terrible war many men discovered for themselves just how bountiful the land was west of the Appalachian Mountains. Land companies, formed even before the war, were ready to cash in on their investment. Such companies as the Ohio Valley and Loyal Land Company had made preparations. Longhunters were bringing back tales of land richer than the furs they traded. A great movement west was poised to begin

George III had other plans. England was practically bankrupt from the many years of war. They had no money to maintain a standing army in the area. With these problems, and attempting to honor treaties made with Indians, he issued the Proclamation of 1763. This decree forbade settlement or land grants beyond the crest of the Appalachian Mountains. The proclamation line ran from Maine to Georgia and reserved the land "washed by the western waters" for the natives. Representatives of King George had signed several treaties which led to this decision. Among these were The Treaty of Hard Labor with the Cherokee in 1761 and The Treaty of Easton (Pennsylvania) signed in 1758. These treaties had been signed in an effort to gain the support of various tribes during the Seven Years War.

The proclamation was fraught with problems. There were already many British settlers occupying the forbidden zone. Much of the land had previously been given away in large Grants. The Charter of several colonies called for their western boundary to be the Pacific Ocean. There were many French settlers occupying the area. There was a strong need to integrate these Frenchmen into English society. Finally the men of power in the colonies were almost to a man interested in developing the land for profit.

Settlers began to pour into the territory after only a brief hesitation. The problem was how to insure their land rights. Most pioneers simply squatted on the land. Some made separate, albeit illegal, treaties with the natives. An enterprising few leased the land from the Indians. One group even went as far as creating their own independent government called the Watauga Association. There were some initial efforts made by the British to herd the settlers back over the proclamation line. The soldiers of Fort Pitt even had a few violent skirmishes with recalcitrant settlers. Their efforts were soon found to be ineffective.

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