Friedrich der Große (1781 or 1786) - Google Art Project

Gilbert Stuart Williamstown Portrait of George Washington

Thomas Jefferson by Rembrandt Peale, 1800

John Quincy Adams by Gilbert Stuart, 1818

The Treaty of Amity and Commerce between the Kingdom of Prussia and the United States of America (September 10, 1785) was a treaty negotiated by Count Karl-Wilhelm Finck von Finckenstein, Prussian Prime Minister, and

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...

United States Ambassador to France The United States ambassador to France is the official representative of the president of the United States to the president of France. The United States has maintained diplomatic relations with France since the American Revolution. Relations we ...

, and signed by

Frederick the Great Frederick II (german: Friedrich II.; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was King in Prussia from 1740 until 1772, and King of Prussia from 1772 until his death in 1786. His most significant accomplishments include his military successes in the S ...

and

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

. The treaty officially established commercial relations between the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918. Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. ...

and the

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

and was the first one signed by a European power with the United States after the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

. The Kingdom of Prussia became therefore one of the first nations to officially recognize the young American Republic ''after'' the Revolution. The first nation to recognize the US was Sweden, who during the Revolution signed a Treaty of Amity and Commerce. The Treaty was signed to promote free trade and commerce and became a benchmark for subsequent free trade agreements and treaties. In addition, the Treaty demanded the unconditionally humane custody for war prisoners, a novelty at the time. The Treaty was renewed in 1799 after negotiations with

United States Ambassador to Prussia The United States has had diplomatic relations with the nation of Germany and its principal predecessor nation, the Kingdom of Prussia, since 1835. These relations were broken twice (1917 to 1921, and 1941 to 1955) while Germany and the United St ...

John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, and diarist who served as the sixth president of the United States, from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States ...

(1797 -1801).

Main provisions

*Peace and friendship between the Kingdom of Prussia and the U.S. *Mutual Most Favored Nation status with regard to commerce and navigation *Mutual protection of all vessels and cargo when in U.S. or Prussian

jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels. J ...

*Mutual right for citizens of one country to hold land in other's territory *Mutual right to search a ship of the other's coming out of an enemy port for contraband *Mutual right to trade with enemy states of the other as long as those goods are not contraband *If the two nations become enemies nine months protection of merchant ships in enemy territory *Novelty: Mutual ban letter of marque (Article 20) *Novelty: Unconditionally humane custody for war prisoner (Article 24) *Mutual right to have Counsuls, Vice Counsuls, Agents, and Commissaries of one nation in the other's ports

Co-authors

*Freiherr Friedrich Wilhelm von Thulemeyer *

Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading inte ...

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before his presidency, he was a leader of t ...

References

Sources

*Giunta, Mary A., ed. ''Documents of the Emerging Nation: U.S. Foreign Relations 1775-1789.'' Wilmington, Del.: Scholarly Resources Inc., 1998. * Middlekauff, Robert. ''The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution, 1763-1789.'' New York: Oxford University Press, 1982. *"Treaty of Amity and Commerce," ''The Avalon Project at Yale Law School''
Treaty of Amity and Commerce Between His Majesty the King of Prussia, and the United States of America; September 10, 1785
Accessed 10 September 2010.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amity and Commerce (Prussia-United States) Treaties of the Kingdom of Prussia Treaties of the United States Political history of the United States 1785 treaties Commercial treaties 1785 in the United States Ordinances of the Continental Congress 1785 in economics 1785 in Prussia Prussia–United States relations

Main provisions

Co-authors

See also

References

Sources