Preliminary Peace Treaties at Versailles

Background. Peace negotiations began in Paris in April 1782, following the fall of Prime Minister Frederick North's government on 20 March, in the wake of the British defeat at Yorktown. France was exhausted by the war, and all parties sought peace except Spain, which insisted on continuing the war until it could capture Gibraltar from the British.

Negotiating Context. In September 1782, French Foreign Minister Vergennes proposed a solution to the deadlocked negotiations between the United States and the British, which the United States rejected. Vergennes also developed treaty terms under which Spain would forego holding Gibraltar and the United States would be granted independence, confined to the area east of the Appalachian Mountains.

Separate Agreements. Alongside the American treaty, Great Britain signed separate agreements with France and Spain and provisionally with the Netherlands. The treaty with the Dutch Republic, which returned Dutch East Indies possessions captured in 1781 in exchange for trading privileges, was not finalized until 1784. These instruments are collectively known as the Peace of Paris.