Transcribed from "A Century of Armed Conflict in Newfoundland" "By Bernard Ransom" MILITARY OPERATIONS IN NEWFOUNDLAND 1662-1763 Naval Wars with Holland, 1652-74 1662 - French fortify Placentia. 1665 - Dutch fleet under Admiral De Ruyter captures and burns St. John's. 1673 - Capt. Martin's defence of St. John's against Dutch and pirate attacks. War of the League of Augsburg, 1689-1697 (King William's War) 1692 - Abortive British attack on Placentia. 1694 - Capt. Holman's defence of Ferryland. 1695 - HMS Sapphire sunk at Bay Bulls. 1696 - French capture Bay Bulls, Petty Harbour and St. John's. 1697 - British troops reoccupy St. John's. Some 214 of 300 soldiers perished during winter due to lack of provisions, shelter, etc. 1698 - Construction begins of Fort William, completed by 1700. Orders given for the permanent garrisoning of St. John's. War of the Spanish Succession, 1702-13 (Queen Anne's War) 1703 - Abortive British attack on Placentia. 1704 - Capt. Gill's defence of Bonavista. 1705 - French attack of St. John's but unable to take Fort William. All communities in Conception, Trinity and Bonavista Bays, with the exception of Carbonear Island, destroyed by the French. 1709 - French forces capture Fort William with little opposition. Over 300 English prisoners transported to France. All forts destroyed. 1711 - Abortive British attack on Placentia. 1713 - Treaty of Utrecht removes French from Placentia. Subsequently, British fortifications decay. War of the Austrian Succession, 1743-48 (King George's War) 1743 - Major reconstruction of Fort William by British. 1745 - Naval squadron from Newfoundland sent to support successful Anglo-American attack on Louisbourg. Seven Years War, 1756-63 (French and Indian War) 1762 - French capture Bay Bulls and St. John's in June. British Forces under command of Col. William Amherst recapture town in September. 1763 - Fort William rebuilt and construction begins on Queen's Battery, Crows Nest Battery and Fort Amherst. Treaty of Paris forces France to abandon all her possessions in North America except the Islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon and fishing rights on the north west coast of Newfoundland. FOOTNOTE: 1. In 1975 the underwater wreck of HMS Sapphire was declared a Provincial Historic Site and archaeological excavations have yielded significant artifacts, some of which are now in the collection of the Newfoundland Museum.