The 'Treaty of Paris', often called the 'Peace of Paris', or the 'Treaty of 1763', was signed on
February 10,
1763, by the kingdoms of
Great Britain,
France and
Spain, with
Portugal in agreement. Together with the
Treaty of Hubertusburg, it ended the
French and Indian War/
Seven Years' War.
[1] The treaties marked the beginning of an extensive period of British dominance outside of Europe.
[2]
While the bulk of conquered territories were restored to their pre-war owners, the British made some substantial overseas gains at the expense of France and, to a lesser extent, Spain.
[3] Preferring to keep
Guadaloupe, France gave up
New France and all of its claims to the territory east of the
Mississippi River to Britain. Spain ceded
Florida to the British, but later received
New Orleans and
French Louisiana from France;
Manila and
Cuba were restored to Spain. France retained
Saint Pierre and Miquelon and recovered
Guadelupe,
Martinique, and
Saint Lucia in exchange for
Dominica,
Grenada,
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and
Tobago going to the British. In
India, the French lost out to the British, receiving back its "factories" (trading posts), but agreeing to support the British client governments, as well as returning
Sumatra and agreeing not to base troops in
Bengal. The British garrison on the
Mediterranean island of
Minorca was returned to her control, having been captured by the French at the outbreak of hostilities in Europe.
Britain returned the
slave station on the isle of
Gorée to the French, but gained the
Senegal River and its settlements. Britain agreed to demolish its fortifications in
Honduras, but received permission from Spain to keep a
logwood-cutting colony there. Britain confirmed in the treaty the rights of its new subjects to practice the
Roman Catholic religion
[4] and received confirmation of the continuation of the British king's
Hanoverian right as a
Prince-elector of the
Holy Roman Empire.
It is sometimes claimed that the British King
George III renounced his
claim to be King of France by the treaty. However, this is a historical myth, and it is also falsely attributed to some of the treaties of the
French Revolutionary Wars. Such a renunciation is nowhere in the text of the treaty, and, in fact, George III continued to be styled "King of France" and used the
fleurs-de-lis as part of his
arms until 1801, when Britain and
Ireland united. It was dropped then because the claim was regarded as
anachronistic.
Louisiana question
The Treaty of Paris is frequently stated as the point at which France conveyed
Louisiana Territory to Spain. However the transfer actually occurred in 1762 in the
Treaty of Fontainebleau (1762) (which was not publicly announced until 1764).
The Treaty of Paris was to give Britain the east side of the Mississippi (including
Baton Rouge, Louisiana which was to be part of the British territory of
West Florida). New Orleans on the east side was given to France. The Mississippi River corridor in what is modern day Louisiana was to be reunited following the
Louisiana Purchase in 1803 and the
Adams-Onís Treaty in 1819.
The 1763 treaty states in Article VII:
Quebec question
Article IV of the treaty provided protections for Catholics in Canada and has been cited as the basis for
Quebec often having its unique set of laws that are different from the rest of Canada.
The article also provided for unrestrained emigration for 18 months from Canada. As a result many of the emigrants called
Cajuns were to move to Louisiana to a region called
Acadiana which they thought was going to remain part of France -- only to find out after they had moved that Louisiana had become part of Spain.
The article states:
See also
★
List of treaties
References
1. The French-Indian War 1754-176, , Daniel, Marston, Osprey Publishing, 2002, The French-Indian War 1754-1760
2. Wars and Battles:Treaty of Paris (1763)
3. The Treaty of Paris ends the French and Indian War
4. Extracts from the Treaty of Paris of 1763, , , , A. Lovell & Co., ,
External links
★
Treaty of Paris
★
The Treaty of Paris and its Consequences (in French)