Dating back to the earliest colonial period, a French presence remained in New England with its proximity to Quebec, even after many Acadians were sent to Spanish Louisiana during "Le Grand Dérangement". Although the French and Indian War would leave distance between the Yankee and Franco settlers, the role of France in the American Revolution as well as the contributions of French military figures like Rochambeau in the Siege of Yorktown, engendered an alliance against Loyalists at that time.