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In the London Straits Convention concluded on 13 July 1841 between the
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of
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at the time—
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, the
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,
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,
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
and
Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...
—the "ancient rule" of the
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...
was re-established by closing the Turkish Straits (the
Bosporus The Bosporus Strait (; grc, Βόσπορος ; tr, İstanbul Boğazı 'Istanbul strait', colloquially ''Boğaz'') or Bosphorus Strait is a natural strait and an internationally significant waterway located in Istanbul in northwestern Tu ...
and
Dardanelles The Dardanelles (; tr, Çanakkale Boğazı, lit=Strait of Çanakkale, el, Δαρδανέλλια, translit=Dardanéllia), also known as the Strait of Gallipoli from the Gallipoli peninsula or from Classical Antiquity as the Hellespont (; ...
), which link the
Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...
to the
Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...
, from all
warships A warship or combatant ship is a naval ship that is built and primarily intended for naval warfare. Usually they belong to the armed forces of a state. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are usually faster an ...
whatsoever, barring those of the
Sultan Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it c ...
's allies during wartime. It thus benefited British naval power at the expense of Russia as the latter lacked direct access for its navy to the Mediterranean. The
treaty A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal per ...
is one in a series dealing with access to the Bosporus, the
Sea of Marmara The Sea of Marmara,; grc, Προποντίς, Προποντίδα, Propontís, Propontída also known as the Marmara Sea, is an inland sea located entirely within the borders of Turkey. It connects the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea via t ...
, and the Dardanelles. It evolved as a reaction to the secret article in the Treaty of Hünkâr İskelesi (Unkiar Skelessi), created in 1833, in which the Ottoman Empire guaranteed exclusive use of the straits to Ottoman and Imperial Russian warships in the case of a general war, allowing no "foreign vessels of war to enter therein under any pretext whatsoever". The modern treaty controlling relations is the
Montreux Convention Regarding the Regime of the Straits The (Montreux) Convention regarding the Regime of the Straits, often known simply as the Montreux Convention, is an international agreement governing the Bosporus and Dardanelles Straits in Turkey. Signed on 20 July 1936 at the Montreux Palace ...
from 1936, which is still in force.


Historical background

The Straits Convention was an agreement between the major powers to strengthen the Ottoman Empire. It evolved from the earlier Treaty of the Dardanelles, signed between Britain and the Ottomans in 1809. Beginning in 1831,
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...
, under the leadership of
Muhammad Ali of Egypt Muhammad Ali Pasha al-Mas'ud ibn Agha, also known as Muhammad Ali of Egypt and the Sudan ( sq, Mehmet Ali Pasha, ar, محمد علي باشا, ; ota, محمد علی پاشا المسعود بن آغا; ; 4 March 1769 – 2 August 1849), was ...
, was revolting against the Ottoman Empire, resulting in the
Egyptian–Ottoman War (1831–33) Egyptian–Ottoman War may refer to: * Ottoman–Mamluk War (1485–91) * Ottoman–Mamluk War (1516–17) * Egyptian–Ottoman War (1831–33) * Egyptian–Ottoman War (1839–41) {{Disambig ...
. Russian
Tsar Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East and South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" in the European medieval sense of the ter ...
, Nicholas I, chose to support the Ottomans. In 1833, Russia sent a naval force and troops to support the Ottoman defence of Constantinople. Britain was likewise supporting the Ottoman Empire. Nevertheless, Russia was then the Ottomans' principal ally; the two countries signed the Treaty of Hünkâr İskelesi, which reflected this alliance. The Treaty guaranteed that the Ottomans would close the Straits to foreign warships if and when Russia was under threat, and requested this.


Negotiations

Still, the hostility between the Turks and the Egyptians continued in 1839, resulting in the Egyptian–Ottoman War (1839–41). The Egyptians again threatened the Ottoman positions. Lord Palmerston of Britain called for talks with Russia, Austria, and Prussia in London in 1840. This resulted in the Convention of London (1840). Efforts were made to convince France, which tended to side with Mehmet, to accept a multilateral agreement. This evolved into the Straits Convention of 1841, which included
guarantee Guarantee is a legal term more comprehensive and of higher import than either warranty or "security". It most commonly designates a private transaction by means of which one person, to obtain some trust, confidence or credit for another, engages ...
s similar to those of the 1809 Treaty of the Dardanelles, also extending the 1840 Convention of London. The motivation of Tsar Nicholas I to agree to the closing of the straits has been said to be his uneasiness over the Treaty of ''Hünkâr İskelesi'', which he feared might turn the other Great Powers against Russia by creating too close an alliance between him and the Sultan,
Abdülmecid I Abdulmejid I ( ota, عبد المجيد اول, ʿAbdü'l-Mecîd-i evvel, tr, I. Abdülmecid; 25 April 182325 June 1861) was the 31st Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and succeeded his father Mahmud II on 2 July 1839. His reign was notable for the r ...
. He also authorised the British Navy to quell the attack on the Ottoman Empire by its former
vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerai ...
, Muhammad Ali. However,
Anglo-Russian The Anglo-Russians were an English expatriate business community centred in St Petersburg, then also Moscow, from the 1730s till the 1920s. This community was established against the background of Peter I's recruitment of foreign engineers for his ...
tensions over the region remained, leading eventually to the
Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...
.


Outcomes

From the British point of view, this convention helped preserve the European balance of power by preventing Russia's newly powerful navy from dominating the Mediterranean. From the Russian point of view, the treaty encouraged the aggressive policies of Britain in the region, which would lead to the
Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...
. Different interpretations, as well as history of British-Russian relations in the 1840s, suggest that the Straits Convention 'appeared to establish a new era of harmony' between both powers, keeping Russian navy out of the Mediterranean and British out of the Black Sea.J. Clarke, British Diplomacy and Foreign Policy 1782-1865: the National Interest (London, 1989), p. 207. While these arrangements forced Tsar Nicholas I to abandon his plans for reducing the Ottoman Empire to complete dependence upon Russia and wresting the control of the
Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...
countries of the Balkans from the Porte, the Ottoman Empire was not wholly independent after the convention, as it relied on Britain and France for protection.


See also

*
International waterway The terms international waters or transboundary waters apply where any of the following types of bodies of water (or their drainage basins) transcend international boundaries: oceans, large marine ecosystems, enclosed or semi-enclosed region ...


References

{{Authority control Law of the sea treaties Politics of the Russian Empire Treaties of the Ottoman Empire 1841 treaties Treaties of the Russian Empire Treaties of the United Kingdom (1801–1922) Treaties of the July Monarchy Treaties of the Austrian Empire Treaties of the Kingdom of Prussia Russia–Turkey relations 1841 in the Ottoman Empire 1841 in the United Kingdom Turkish Straits