Chapter 6: The Duel for North America, 1608-1763

domestic - Concerning the internal affairs of a country. "It was convulsed…by foreign wars and domestic strife…"

minister - In politics, a person appointed by the head of the state to take charge of some department agency of government. "Leadership of a high order was provided by a series of brilliant ministers…"

magistrate - a civil official charged with upholding the law, often exercising both judicial and executive power. "…there was no trial by jury-merely the decision of the magistrate.

peasant - A farmer of agricultural laborer, sometime legally tied to the land. "Landowning French peasants…had little economic motive to move."

coureurs des bois - French-Canadian fur trappers; literally, "runners of the wood." "These colorful coureurs des bois…were also runners of risk…"

voyageurs - French-Canadian fur traders and adventurers. "Singing, paddle-swimming French voyageurs also recruited Indians…"

ecological - Concerning the relations between the biological organisms of their environment. "…they extinguished the beaver population…, inflicting incalculable ecological damage."

mutinous - Concerning revolt by subordinate soldiers or seamen against their commanding officers. "…he…was murdered by his mutinous men."

strategic - Concerning the placement and planned movement of large-scale military forces so as to gain advantage, usually prior to actual engagement with the enemy. "Commanding the mouth of the Mississippi River, this strategic semitropical outpost also tapped the fur trade…"

guerilla warfare - Unconventional combat wagged by smaller military units using hit-and-run tactics. "…so a kind of primitive guerilla war prevailed."

buffer - "A territory between two hostile states, designed to soften an attack from one or the other side. "It was confined… to the much-buffeted colony of Georgia…"

siege - A military operation surrounding and attacking a fortified place, often over a sustained period. "After a ten-hour siege he was forced to surrender..."

flotilla - A fleet of boats, usually smaller vessels. "The Indian fur flotilla…numbered four hundred canoes."
Regulars Trained professional soldiers, as distinct from militia or conscripts. "…they had fought bravely beside the crack British regulars…"

commissions - An official certification granting a commanding rank in the armed forces. "…the British refused to recognize any American militia commission…"