The Treaty of Concordia, or the Partition Treaty of 1648, was signed on March 23, 1648, between the

Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France ( fro, Reaume de France; frm, Royaulme de France; french: link=yes, Royaume de France) is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the medieval and early modern period ...

and the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands ( Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...

and divided the island of Saint Martin.

Signature

The treaty was signed by the two governors of the island,

Robert de Longvilliers Robert de Longvilliers de Poincy (or Lonvilliers; 1611 – 1 April 1666) was a French local governor of Saint Christophe and Saint Martin in the French Antilles. His uncle, Phillippe de Longvilliers de Poincy, was commander of the French colonie ...

for France and Martin Thomas for the

States General of the Netherlands The States General of the Netherlands ( nl, Staten-Generaal ) is the supreme bicameral legislature of the Netherlands consisting of the Senate () and the House of Representatives (). Both chambers meet at the Binnenhof in The Hague. The States ...

. The signing took place atop ''Mount Concordia''. Based on the terms of the agreement, the island of Saint Martin was to be divided between the

and the

, and the peoples of St. Martin were to co-exist co-operatively. The French would keep the area that they occupied and the coast facing Anguilla, and the Dutch would have the area of the fort and the land around it on the south coast. The inhabitants would share the natural resources of the island. However, France and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Neth ...

continued to dispute over the ownership of the island until 1817, when the borders of the island were finally set. See the Text of the Treaty of Concordia (Wikisource: English translation of the original text in French).

Validity

Questions as to its validity have arisen several times in the past and continue to cause issues. Research was supposed to be undertaken by the

French Ministry of Foreign Affairs The Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs () is the ministry of the Government of France that handles France's foreign relations. Since 1855, its headquarters have been located at 37 Quai d'Orsay, close to the National Assembly. The term Qua ...

about it. At the time of the treaty, agreements signed between representatives of the

monarch A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority and power ...

had to be registered at the King's Council. That essential formality was never performed, but it seems that on many occasions, French civil law recognised the validity of the agreement. The treaty has always been fairly applied in practice and is referred to in the following texts: * Franco-Dutch Convention of November 28th, 1839. ( See French text) * French side gubernatorial Order of 11 February 1850 about the rules on the salt trade and use, whose Article #32 states : *: ''The inhabitants of the French side of St. Martin will enjoy the ability to consume and export abroad salts harvested by them on the Dutch side, this under the terms of the Treaty of 1648.'' * Decree of 30 July 1935, which in its Article #40 provides for the freedom of establishment in the French part of Saint-Martin for the Dutch citizens from the Dutch part of Saint-Martin : *: ''The requirements of the Decree shall not apply to foreigners from the Dutch island of St.Martin regarding their stay and transit in the French part of the island. Foreigners from the islands of Saba,

Anguilla Anguilla ( ) is a British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It is one of the most northerly of the Leeward Islands in the Lesser Antilles, lying east of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and directly north of Saint Martin. The territo ...

, Statia,

Saint Christopher Saint Christopher ( el, Ἅγιος Χριστόφορος, ''Ágios Christóphoros'') is venerated by several Christian denominations as a martyr killed in the reign of the 3rd-century Roman emperor Decius (reigned 249–251) or alternatively ...

Nevis Nevis is a small island in the Caribbean Sea that forms part of the inner arc of the Leeward Islands chain of the West Indies. Nevis and the neighbouring island of Saint Kitts constitute one country: the Federation of Saint Kitts and N ...

, which at the date of this Order were finally fixed in the dependences of Saint-Martin and

Saint Bartholomew Bartholomew (Aramaic: ; grc, Βαρθολομαῖος, translit=Bartholomaîos; la, Bartholomaeus; arm, Բարթողիմէոս; cop, ⲃⲁⲣⲑⲟⲗⲟⲙⲉⲟⲥ; he, בר-תולמי, translit=bar-Tôlmay; ar, بَرثُولَماو� ...

for the benefit referred to in the preceding paragraph.''

Abolition

There currently is a movement in both Sint Maarten and Saint Martin for the unification of the island, which would invalidate the Treaty of Concordia. It has been proposed that the freedom of movement allowed by this treaty may have made possible the development of a common identity by the inhabitants of both halves of the island.

References

Sources

External links