After Yorktown in October 1781, fighting dwindled, but the war was not over. British troops still held New York, Charleston and Savannah, and peace had to be negotiated in Europe. You can read the treaty in the Harvard Classics reading for September 3.
Key idea
In the Treaty of Paris, signed September 3, 1783, Britain recognized American independence. The borders: the Mississippi River in the west, roughly the Great Lakes and Canada in the north, and Florida (returned to Spain) in the south, at the 31st parallel.
Why it works
The American negotiators, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams and John Jay, won generous terms. Britain's new government under Lord Shelburne wanted a quick peace and hoped to pull the United States away from France and toward British trade. A large, friendly United States seemed better for Britain than a small one tied to France. So Britain gave up the land all the way to the Mississippi.
Worked example: What else did the treaty say?
Besides independence and borders, what did the treaty promise?
- American fishermen could keep fishing off Newfoundland.
- Debts owed to British merchants were to be paid.
- Congress would "earnestly recommend" that the states return Loyalists' seized property.
- Both nations could navigate the Mississippi.
Answer: Fishing rights, debts, a recommendation on Loyalist property and use of the Mississippi.
Worked example: Who was left out?
Native nations held most of the land between the Appalachians and the Mississippi. What did the treaty say about them?
- Nothing: they were not part of the negotiations.
- Britain transferred its claims to land that Native nations still lived on and controlled.
- Conflict over that land continued for decades.
Answer: They were left out, and the treaty set up new struggles over their lands.
Congress ratified the treaty on January 14, 1784. The last British troops left New York in November 1783.
Common mistake
A frequent error is to think the war ended with Yorktown in 1781. Fighting dwindled after Yorktown, but the war formally ended with the Treaty of Paris two years later, in 1783. Remember both dates: Yorktown 1781, peace 1783.