The capture of Fort Beauséjour was a deciding factor in relations between the British Empire and the Acadian population of Nova Scotia. For decades Britain had been struggling to extract an oath of allegiance from the Acadians, who maintained that the "conventions of 1730" had secured their neutrality in all future Anglo-French conflicts. Such refusal, combined with French colonists' repeated attempts to incite rebellion among their fellow French-speakers, left British officials—especially Governor Charles Lawrence—increasingly wary of an attack from within.
