The American Colonies

Thousands of Acadians were sent to different British colonies of North America during the Deportation. The authorities in most of these future States of the United States of America made life hard for the Acadian deportees. As Francophone Catholics, they were associated with the French in New France, making them natural enemies of the colonies they had been sent to. Virginia for example, categorically refused to accept deportees, sending them to other places such as England, where they were imprisoned until the Seven Years' War ended in 1763. Fewer than 1,000 Acadians were sent to the Middle Colonies and around 4,000 were distributed among those of the South and New England. For the most part, Acadians deported to the American Colonies encountered hardship and poverty, as illustrated by their numerous petitions pleading with the authorities to help improve their situation.
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