half of his reign waging war. He took
land from Austria and conquered other
German lands. Later he added a large
part of Poland to Prussia’s territory.
Building a great army was always Frederick’s
most important goal. He used most
of the kingdom’s money to feed, equip,
and pay his soldiers. But Frederick also
encouraged industry, education, and
culture. He wrote poetry and books on
history and politics. He also composed
Frederick the Great
64 Frederick the Great BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
music. Frederick died near Berlin on
August 17, 1786.
#More to explore
Prussia
Freetown
Population
(2004 estimate),
urban area,
786,900
Freetown is the capital of theWest African
country of Sierra Leone. The city
lies on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean.
It is Sierra Leone’s main port and largest
city.
The city is named Freetown because it
began as a home for freed slaves. An
Englishman named Granville Sharp
founded Freetown in 1787. Sharp was
an abolitionist, or a person who worked
to end slavery. Africans who had been
slaves in England began settling the new
town. Freed and escaped African slaves
from other parts of the world also
moved there.
In the early 1800s Sierra Leone became
a British colony. In the middle of the
1800s Freetown was the capital of all of
Great Britain’s colonies inWest Africa.
Sierra Leone became an independent
country in 1961. Freetown became its
capital.
Rebels fought the government of Sierra
Leone from 1991 to 2002. Freetown
was often the site of terrible violence.
#More to explore
Abolitionist Movement • Sierra Leone
• Slavery
Fremont, John
Charles
John Charles Fremont was a U.S.
explorer, soldier, and politician. He
blazed many trails in the American
West. He also played a key role in the
early history of California.
Fremont was born on January 21, 1813,
in Savannah, Georgia. He attended college
in South Carolina. Then he became
a surveyor. In that job he measured land
in the wilderness.
In 1838 Fremont helped to survey the
upper Mississippi and Missouri rivers.
While in Missouri Fremont met Senator
Thomas Hart Benton.With Benton’s
support, Fremont led expeditions to
John Charles Fremont
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Fremont, John Charles 65
map much of the area between the Mississippi
River valley and the Pacific
Ocean. He explored the Oregon Trail in
1842. In 1843 he reached California.
In 1845 Fremont returned to California.
California was then part of Mexico.
American settlers were rebelling against
Mexican rule. The United States went to
war with Mexico around the same time.
Fremont joined the Army and helped
the Americans take control of California.
Then he was governor for a time.
After California became a state in 1850,
Fremont was elected one of its first senators.
Later, from 1878 to 1883, Fremont
was governor of Arizona Territory. He
died on July 13, 1890.
#More to explore
California • Oregon Trail
French and
IndianWar
From 1754 to 1763 France and Great
Britain fought each other in the French
and IndianWar. The war was part of a
bigger war, called the Seven Years’War,
in Europe. However, the French and
IndianWar took place in North
America. Even though France got help
from its Native American allies, Britain
won the war. The victory gave Britain
control over most of the colonies in
North America.
Background
In the middle of the 1700s both Britain
and France controlled land in North
America. Britain controlled the 13 colonies
that later became the United States.
France’s lands were called New France.
New France included large parts of what
is now eastern Canada. It also covered
much of the Great Lakes region and
areas west of the Appalachian Mountains.
Both countries wanted the upper Ohio
River valley, in what is now northeastern
Ohio and western Pennsylvania. The
French were trading with the Native
Americans, while people from the British
colonies were starting settlements.
Both sides built forts in the area.
War
War began in 1754, when British colonial
troops under GeorgeWashington
tried to drive the French from what is
now western Pennsylvania. They failed.
British soldiers arrived in 1755. They
lost a battle for Fort Duquesne, near
what is now Pittsburgh.
The British general Edward Braddock was
badly wounded in the fight for Fort
Duquesne in 1755. He left the battlefield on
a cart and died soon afterward.
66 French and Indian War BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
The next few years of the war continued
to be difficult for the British. The
French had a better army, and the
Native Americans knew how to fight in
the woodlands.
By the end of 1757, however, the British
had begun to gain ground. They had
collected more money and better supplies
than France. They also had become
experts in wilderness fighting. By 1760
the British had captured all of New
France. The war ended when Britain
and France signed the Treaty of Paris on
February 10, 1763.
#More to explore
Washington, George
French Guiana
A part of France lies on the northeastern
coast of South America. French Guiana
is an overseas department (a type of
province) of France. Cayenne is its largest
city and capital.
Geography
Suriname and Brazil border French Guiana.
