Gilbert Stuart Williamstown Portrait of George Washington

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 (, 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 ...

, United States Ambassador to France, and signed by Frederick the Great and

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

. The treaty officially established commercial relations between the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...

and the

United States of America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguo ...

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 the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

. 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

John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was the sixth president of the United States, serving from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States secretary of state from 1817 to 1825. During his long diploma ...

(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' and 'speech' or 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, the concept of jurisdiction applies at multiple level ...

*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 Contraband (from Medieval French ''contrebande'' "smuggling") is any item that, relating to its nature, is illegal to be possessed or sold. It comprises goods that by their nature are considered too dangerous or offensive in the eyes of the leg ...

*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: a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher and Political philosophy, political philosopher.#britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the m ...

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before Presidency of John Adams, his presidency, he was a leader of ...

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 economic history 1785 in Prussia Prussia–United States relations

Main provisions

Co-authors

See also

References

Sources