Monroe–Pinkney Treaty
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The Monroe–Pinkney Treaty was a proposed treaty drawn up in 1806 by diplomats of the United States and
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
to renew the 1795
Jay Treaty The Treaty of Amity, Commerce, and Navigation, Between His Britannic Majesty and the United States of America, commonly known as the Jay Treaty, and also as Jay's Treaty, was a 1794 treaty between the United States and Great Britain that averted ...
. It was rejected by President
Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...
, and never took effect. The U.S. and U.K. went to war in 1812. The proposed treaty was negotiated by the minister to Britain,
James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American Founding Father of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. He was the last Founding Father to serve as presiden ...
, and his associate, William Pinkney, on behalf of the
Jefferson administration Jefferson may refer to: Names * Jefferson (surname) * Jefferson (given name) People * Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), third president of the United States * Jefferson (footballer) * Jefferson (singer) or Geoff Turton (born 1944), British s ...
and by Lord Holland and Lord Auckland on behalf of the Ministry of All the Talents, a government that was headed by Lord Grenville. For the Americans, the treaty had the goals of making the British abandon the practice of impressing sailors from American ships, addressing the neutral trading rights of American vessels during the ongoing
Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
, and other commercial concerns. However, the British were short of manpower for the
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
and knew that many British deserters were serving on American ships. In the desperate war against
Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...
, the British believed that they could not afford to abandon impressment and that offending the Americans was seen as a much lesser evil than losing to Napoleon. Therefore, no concessions on the issue of impressment were made. The negotiations were begun on 27 August 1806, and the treaty was signed on 31 December 1806. Jefferson received the treaty in March 1807 but was disappointed and refused to submit it to the
US Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...
for ratification. That failure to resolve differences over the issue of impressment and of neutral trading rights contributed to the coming of the
War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...
.


References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Monroe-Pinkney Treaty United Kingdom–United States treaties War of 1812 legislation Unratified treaties 1806 treaties 1806 in the United States 1806 in the United Kingdom Treaties of the United Kingdom (1801–1922) 1806 in British law