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Why did Robert Dinwiddie send George Washington to Fort Le Boeuf in 1753?

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Painting of Edward Braddock and British troops in uniform advancing through dense forest, facing Native American and French fighters during the French and Indian War near Fort Duquesne. — French and Indian War British commander Edward Braddock and his troops preparing to march on the French-held Fort Duquesne (now Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) during the French and Indian War.

In 1753, Lieutenant Governor Robert Dinwiddie of Virginia dispatched George Washington to Fort Le Boeuf to deliver an ultimatum to the French forces occupying the region.12

The mission was prompted by reports that the French were driving out British traders and constructing forts on the headwaters of the Allegheny River to consolidate their control over the Ohio Valley. Virginia claimed these lands under its 1609 charter, and the colonial government—along with the Ohio Company—had a vested interest in protecting these territories for settlement and trade.31

Dinwiddie’s message to the French commander was clear: the French were encroaching on land belonging to the British Crown and were required to leave. When the French commander refused to withdraw, asserting their intent to possess the Ohio country, the failure of Washington’s diplomatic mission set the stage for the military confrontations that marked the beginning of the French and Indian War.213