Summary of Treaty of Paris 1783
The 1783 Treaty of Paris was one of a series of treaties, collectively known as the Peace of Paris, or the Treaty of Versailles of 1783, that established peace between Great Britain and the allied nations of France, Spain, and the Netherlands. The Treaty of Paris was negotiated as a separate treaty between Great Britain and the United States, the primary provisions of the Treaty of Paris established the independence of the United States and ended hostilities between the two nations. Other provisions dealt with defining borders, restitution for Loyalist property confiscated by Americans during the war, the return of slaves confiscated by the British, and the removal of British troops from American soil.
John Jay, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Henry Laurens, and William Temple Franklin were the Americas who negotiated the treaty. Image Source: Wikipedia.
Treaty of Paris 1783 — Quick Facts
- Signed by U.S. and British Representatives on September 3, 1783, ending the Revolutionary War.
- Based on a preliminary treaty agreed to in 1782.
- Recognized the independence of the United States.
- Granted the U.S. significant western territory.
- Other important provisions established U.S. boundaries, specified certain fishing rights, allowed creditors of each country to be paid by citizens of the other, restored the rights and property of Loyalists, opened up the Mississippi River to citizens of both nations, and provided for the evacuation of all British forces.
- Was one of a series of treaties collectively known as the Peace of Paris, or the Treaty of Versailles of 1783, which also established peace between Great Britain and the allied nations of France, Spain, and the Netherlands.
- Signed by John Jay, Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams, who negotiated the treaty for the U.S., and by David Hartley, member of the House of Commons, representing King George III.
- The Congress of the Confederation ratified the treaty on January 14, 1784.
- Great Britain ratified on April 9, 1784.
- Signed and ratified versions of the document were exchanged in Paris on May 12, 1784.
- In the aftermath, parts of the treaty were not honored by both nations. The Americans did not honor the section about not confiscating loyalist property. The British did not return former American slaves and they also did not remove their troops from frontier forts on the United States side of the border until after the Jay Treaty.
