The British Colonization of Florida

During the Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, the British captured Havana, Cuba from Spain. In 1763, the British exchanged Havana, Cuba for Florida. Because many of natives of the Florida area at that time either died from new, European diseases or were slaves of Europeans, Florida, the new British colony, was almost empty when the Spanish evacuate.

The British planned to split Florida into two parts, so they decided that it would be wise to make ties with the Natives, who they called Seminolies or Seminoles. They also tried to attract the white settlers by offering them land. The plan of becoming "allies" with the other inhabitants of Florida could have made it a thriving British colony. Even so, the British colonization only lasted for twenty years.