1763

During a bloody spate of Indian uprisings against the British in the Great Lakes region, Gen. Jeffery Amherst proposed a novel means of curbing the violence. In July, Amherst suggested to Col. Henry Bouquet that he provide Indians with blankets contaminated with smallpox. The idea intrigued Bouquet, but in the end he relied on more conventional weapons such as musketry and bayonets.