Treaty of Paris (1783)
The
Treaty of Paris of 1783, signed on
September 3 1783, and ratified by the
U.S. Congress on
January 14 1784, formally ended the
American Revolutionary War between the
Kingdom of Great Britain and the
United States of America that had rebelled against British rule in
1776. Great Britain signed ancillary treaties with
France and
Spain as the
Treaties of Versailles.
The treaty is commonly referred to as the
Second Treaty of Paris, the first being the
Treaty of Paris of 1763. Several other treaties have also been made under this name.
The treaty contained the following terms:
*Recognizing the thirteen colonies (
Delaware is not specifically mentioned but was likely included in
Pennsylvania, of which it was technically part before the war) as free and sovereign States [Article 1];
*Establishing the boundaries between the United States and
British North America [Article 2]; (for an account of two strange anomalies resulting from this part of the Treaty, see
Northwest Angle and the
Republic of Indian Stream)
*Granting fishing rights to United States fishermen in the
Grand Banks, off the coast of
Newfoundland and in the
Gulf of Saint Lawrence [Article 3];
*Recognizing the lawful contracted debts to be paid to creditors on either side [Article 4];
*United States Congress will
"earnestly recommend" to state legislatures to recognize the rightful owners of all confiscated lands
"provide for the restitution of all estates, rights, and properties, which have been confiscated belonging to real British subjects [Loyalists]". [never implemented, Article 5];
*United States will prevent future confiscations of the property of
Loyalists [Article 6];
*
Prisoners of war on both sides are to be released and all property left by British army in the United States unmolested (including
"Negroes") [Article 7];
*Great Britain and the United States were each to be given perpetual access to the
Mississippi River [Article 8];
*Territories captured by Americans subsequent to treaty will be returned without compensation [Article 9];
*Ratification of the treaty was to occur within six months from the signing by the contracting parties [Article 10]
The treaty document was signed by
David Hartley (a member of the
British Parliament representing the
British Monarch,
King George III),
John Adams,
Benjamin Franklin, and
John Jay (representing the United States).
On September 3, Britain also signed separate agreements with
France,
Spain, and the
Netherlands, which had been negotiated earlier. In the treaty with Spain, Britain recognized Spanish rule over several territories seized by the Spaniards during the war: The colonies of
East and
West Florida were ceded to Spain (without any clearly defined northern boundary, resulting in
disputed territory resolved with the
Treaty of Madrid), and Spain also reclaimed the island of
Minorca, while the
Bahama Islands and
St. Kitts were returned to Britain. The treaty with France largely reinforced earlier treaties, guaranteeing fishing rights off
Newfoundland.
Sumatra was ceded by Britain to the Netherlands.
The American
Continental Congress ratified the treaty on
January 14,
1784. Britain ratification occurred on
April 9,
1784 and ratifications exchanged on
12 May 1784. Although Britain's ratification and the exchange were not within the six-month deadline specified by the treaty, this had no effect on the honoring of the treaty. The delay was partly caused by transportation difficulties.
In March 1782, the British parliament decided no longer to use military force as a means to regain control of the thirteen colonies, but did not recognize American independence. Shortly thereafter, the British government sent a diplomat to negotiate with the American ambassador in Paris, calling the ambassador the representative of the North American "colonies". Formerly they had not acknowledged that he represented Americans. The American ambassador refused to accept his credentials because they did not authorize him to negotiate with representatives of "the United States of America". Parliament very quickly revised the credentials, but not before a debate about whether that amounted to recognition of independence or merely recognition of the name by which the Americans wished to be called. No decision was made on that question. It is possible that some members of parliament intended to recognize American independence when they voted for revision of the credentials, and the Lord Chancellor said he considered that act of Parliament to amount to such recognition. "Preliminary articles of peace" signed in November 1782 stated that the British recognized American independence, but they were not to be effective until they were included in a final peace treaty.
Although
Vermont had been de-facto independent since the declaration of independence of the
Vermont Republic in January 1777, and had negotiated with the
Continental Congress and with the British government, its independence was not yet recognized by any other government. Accordingly, the Treaty defined boundaries of the United States that entirely included Vermont within United States territory. Vermont thereafter continued peacefully unrecognized until 1788, and finally in 1791 was admitted into the United States as the 14th state.
*
Text of the Treaty of Paris
