Treaty of Amiens
Encyclopedia
The Treaty of Amiens temporarily ended hostilities between the French Republic
and the United Kingdom
during the French Revolutionary Wars
. It was signed in the city of Amiens
on 25 March 1802 (Germinal 4, year X in the French Revolutionary Calendar), by Joseph Bonaparte
and the Marquess Cornwallis
as a "Definitive Treaty of Peace". The consequent Peace of Amiens lasted only one year (18 May 1803) and was the only period of peace during the so-called 'Great French War' between 1793 and 1815. Under the treaty, the United Kingdom (UK) recognised the French Republic
; George III
had only two years previously dropped the English crown's historical claim, dating back to 1340 and Edward III, to the now-defunct French Kingdom
. Together with the Treaty of Lunéville
(1801), the Treaty of Amiens marked the end of the Second Coalition, which had waged war against Revolutionary France since 1798.
. Nelson
's victory at Copenhagen
(2 April 1801) halted the creation of the League of Armed Neutrality
and led to a negotiated ceasefire.
The French First Consul, Napoleon Bonaparte, first made truce proposals to British foreign secretary Lord Grenville as early as 1799. Because of the hardline stance of Grenville and Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger
, their distrust of Bonaparte, and obvious defects in the proposals, they were rejected out of hand. However, Pitt resigned in February 1801 (over King George's
unwillingness to support Catholic emancipation
in Ireland), and was replaced by the more accommodating Henry Addington
. Addington's foreign secretary, Robert Jenkinson, Lord Hawkesbury
, immediately opened communications with Louis Guillaume Otto, the French commissary for prisoners of war in London, through whom Bonaparte had made his earlier proposals. Hawkesbury stated that he wanted to open discussions on terms for a peace agreement. Otto, generally under detailed instructions from Bonaparte, engaged in negotiations with Hawkesbury through the summer of 1801. Unhappy with the dialogue with Otto, Hawkesbury sent diplomat Anthony Merry
to Paris
, who opened a second line of communications with the French foreign minister Talleyrand. By mid-September, written negotiations had progressed to the point where Hawkesbury and Otto met to draft a preliminary agreement. On 30 September they signed the preliminary agreement in London
; it was published the next day.
The terms of the preliminary agreement required the UK to restore most of the French colonial possessions it had taken, to evacuate Malta
(which was to be restored to the Order of St. John
, whose sovereignty was to be guaranteed by one or more European Great Powers
, to be determined at the final peace), and withdraw from other occupied Mediterranean ports. France was to restore Egypt to Ottoman control, withdraw from most of the Italian peninsula, and to preserve Portuguese sovereignty. Ceylon, previously a Dutch territory, was to remain with the British, Newfoundland fishery rights were to be restored status quo ante bellum
, and the UK was to recognize the Seven Islands Republic, established by France on islands in the Adriatic Sea
that are now part of Greece
. Both sides were to be allowed access to the outposts on the Cape of Good Hope
. In a blow to Spain, the preliminary agreement included a secret clause in which Trinidad was to remain with Britain.
News of the preliminary peace was greeted in the UK with illuminations and fireworks; in Dublin a street was named for the treaty. Peace, it was thought in Britain, would lead to the withdrawal of the income tax
imposed by Pitt, a reduction of grain prices, and a revival of markets.
was sent to France with plenipotentiary powers to negotiate a final agreement. The expectation among the British populace that peace was at hand put enormous pressure on Cornwallis, something Bonaparte realised and capitalised on. His negotiators, his brother Joseph
and Talleyrand, constantly shifted their positions, leaving Cornwallis to write, "I feel it as the most unpleasant circumstance attending this unpleasant business that, after I have obtained his acquiescence on any point, I can have no confidence that it is finally settled and that he will not recede from it in our next conversation." The Batavian Republic
, whose economy depended on trade that had been ruined by the war, appointed Rutger Jan Schimmelpenninck
, their ambassador to France, to represent them in the peace negotiations; he arrived in Amiens on 9 December. The Dutch role in the negotiations was marked by a lack of respect on the part of the French, who thought of them as a "vanquished and conquered" client whose present government "owed them everything". Schimmelpenninck and Cornwallis negotiated agreements on the status of Ceylon (to remain British), the Cape of Good Hope (to be returned to the Dutch, but open to all), and the indemnification of the deposed House of Orange-Nassau for its losses. However, Joseph Bonaparte did not immediately agree with their terms, presumably needing to consult with the First Consul on the matter.
In January 1802 Napoleon Bonaparte went to Lyon
and accepted the presidency of the Italian Republic
, a nominally independent client republic
covering northern Italy, established in 1797. This act violated the Treaty of Lunéville, in which Bonaparte agreed to guarantee the independence of that and other client republics. He also continued to support the French Gen. Pierre Augereau's reactionary coup d'état of 18 September 1801 in the Batavian Republic, and its new constitution, ratified by a sham election, that brought it into closer alignment with its dominant partner.
British newspaper readers followed the events, presented in strong moralising colours. Hawkesbury wrote of Bonaparte's action at Lyons that it was a "gross breach of faith", exhibiting an "inclination to insult Europe." Writing from London, he informed Cornwallis that it "created the greatest alarm in this country [UK], and there are many persons who were pacifically disposed and who since this event are desirous of renewing the war."
The Spanish negotiator, the marquis de Azara
, did not arrive in Amiens until early February 1802. After some preliminary negotiations he proposed to Cornwallis that Britain and Spain make a separate agreement; Cornwallis rejected this, believing that to do so would jeopardise the more important negotiations with France.
However, pressure continued to mount on the British negotiators for a peace deal, in part because budget discussions were underway in the UK parliament, and the prospect of continued war was a significant factor. The principal sticking point in the late negotiations was the status of Malta. Bonaparte eventually proposed that the British were to withdraw within three months of the signing, with control passed back to a recreated Order of St. John, whose sovereignty was to be guaranteed by all of the major European powers. Left unspecified in this was the means by which the Order would be reestablished (it had essentially dissolved upon French seizure of the island in 1798); furthermore, none of the other powers had been consulted on the matter.
On March 14, London, under pressure to finalise the budget, gave Cornwallis a hard deadline. Given a treaty representing the last position taken by the French, if he could not reach an agreement within eight days, he was to return to London. Following a five-hour negotiating session that ended at 3 am on March 25, Cornwallis and Joseph Bonaparte signed the final agreement. Cornwallis was unhappy with the agreement, but he also worried about "the ruinous consequences of… renewing a bloody and hopeless war".
Two days after signing the treaty, all four parties signed an addendum specifically acknowledging that the failure to use the languages of all of the signatory powers (the treaty was only published in English
and French
) was not prejudicial and should not be viewed as setting a precedent. It also stated that the omission of any individual's titles was unintentional and also not intended to be prejudicial. The Dutch and French representatives also signed a separate convention clarifying that the Batavian Republic was not to be financially responsible for the compensation paid to the House of Orange-Nassau
.
took the opportunity to confer with his colleagues at the Observatoire
. In booths and temporary arcades in the courtyard of the Louvre
the third French exposition des produits français took place, 18–24 September. According to the memoirs of his private secretary Fauvelet de Bourrienne
, Bonaparte "was, above all, delighted with the admiration the exhibition excited among the numerous foreigners who resorted to Paris during the peace."
Among the visitors was Charles James Fox
, who received a personal tour from Minister Chaptal
. Within the Louvre, in addition to the display of recent works in the Salon of 1802
, visitors could see the display of Italian paintings, J.M.W. Turner filled a sketchbook, and Roman sculptures collected from all over Italy under the stringent terms of the Treaty of Tolentino
. Even the four Greek Horses of St Mark, which had been furtively removed in 1797, could now be viewed in an inner courtyard. William Hazlitt
arrived at Paris on 16 October 1802. The Roman sculptures did not move him, but he spent most of three months studying and copying Italian masters in the Louvre.
French visitors also came to England. Wax artist Marie Tussaud
came to London and established an exhibition similar to one she had in Paris. The balloonist André-Jacques Garnerin
staged displays in London, and made a balloon flight from London to Colchester
in 45 minutes.
Among the stream of British visitors to France was the family party that included Maria Edgeworth
, who spent the winter in Paris. She was able to leave France hastily and landed safely at Dover, 6 March 1803; Lovell Edgeworth was not so lucky. Another author, Frances Burney, travelled to Paris in April 1803 to see her husband, Comte Alexandre d'Arblay, and when hostilities resumed was required to remain until 1815.
The Spanish economy, which had been badly affected by the war, began to recover with the advent of peace. Much as it had been at the start of the wars in 1793, Spain remained diplomatically caught between Britain and France. King Carlos IV had been unhappy with France's unwillingness to negotiate the cession of Trinidad to Britain. Spanish economic interests were further concerned when Bonaparte, as conditions deteriorated in early 1803, sold Louisiana
to the United States, whose merchants competed with those of Spain. Following that sale, Carlos wrote that he was prepared to throw off alliance with France: "neither break with France, nor break with England."
did not undertake military demobilization, but maintained a large peacetime army of 180,000.
Actions taken by Bonaparte after the treaty was signed heightened tensions with Britain and signatories to the other treaties. He used the time of peace to consolidate power and reorganize domestic administration in France and some of its client states. However, his effective annexation of the Cisalpine Republic
and his decision to send French troops into the Helvetian Republic (to put down unrest against French-dominated rule
) in October 1802, another violation of Lunéville, raised eyebrows in London and St. Petersburg, where concerns were voiced over Bonaparte's appetite for conquest. Tsar Alexander
had just congratulated Bonaparte for withdrawing from there and other places, but the action increased the belief in his cabinet that Bonaparte was not to be trusted. Bonaparte met British protests over the action with belligerent statements again denying Britain's right to be formally involved in matters on the continent, pointing out that Switzerland had been occupied by French troops at the time of the treaty signing at Amiens. He also went so far as to demand the British government censor the strongly anti-French British press, and expel French expatriates from British soil; these demands were perceived in London as affronts to British sovereignty. Bonaparte also took advantage of the loosening of the British blockade of French ports to organize and dispatch a naval expedition to regain control over revolutionary Haiti
and to occupy French Louisiana
. These moves were perceived by the British as a willingness by Bonaparte to threaten them on a global stage.
Both sides refused to remove troops from territories they had agreed to evacuate. France continued to occupy the Batavian Republic, and Britain never removed its troops from either Egypt or Malta. Bonaparte formally protested the continuing British occupations, and in January 1803 published a report by Horace Sebastiani that included observations on the ease with which France might capture Egypt, alarming most of the European powers. In an interview in February 1803 with Lord Whitworth
, the UK's French ambassador, Bonaparte threatened war if Malta was not evacuated, and implied that he could have already retaken Egypt. The exchange left Whitworth feeling he was given an ultimatum. In a public meeting with a group of diplomats the following month, Bonaparte again pressed Whitworth, implying that the British wanted war since they were not upholding their treaty obligations. The Russian ambassador, Arkadiy Ivanovich Morkov
, reported this encounter back to St. Petersburg in stark terms; the implicit and explicit threats contained in the exchange may have played a role in Russia's eventual entry into the Third Coalition
. Morkov also reported rumors that Bonaparte would seize Hamburg
as well as Hanover
if war was renewed. Although Alexander wanted to avoid war, this news apparently forced his hand; he began collecting troops on the Baltic
coast in late March. The Russian foreign minister wrote of the situation, "The intention already expressed by the First Consul of striking blows against England wherever he can, and under this pretext of sending his troops into Hanover [and] Northern Germany... entirely transforms the nature of this war as it relates to our interests and obligations."
After Bonaparte's private exchange with Whitworth, the British government informed Bonaparte that they would only evacuate Malta if he gave up his expansionist activities; they also increased recruiting for the Royal Navy.Pocock, p. 75 The public exchange prompted an exodus of foreigners from France. Bonaparte's rejection of a British offer involving a ten-year lease of Malta prompted the reactivation of the British blockade of the French coast; Bonaparte, who was not fully prepared to resume the war, made moves designed to show renewed preparations for an invasion of Britain. Matters reached a diplomatic crisis point when the British rejected the idea of mediation by Tsar Alexander, and instead on 10 May ordered Whitworth to withdraw from Paris if the French did not accede to their demands in 36 hours. Last minute attempts at negotiation by Talleyrand failed, and Whitworth left France on 13 May. Britain declared war on France on 18 May.
Addington proved an ineffective prime minister in wartime, and was replaced on 10 May 1804 with William Pitt, who started the Third Coalition
. Pitt has been alleged to have been behind assassination attempts on Bonaparte's life by Cadoudal and Pichegru
.
Napoleon
, now emperor, assembled armies on the coast of France to invade Great Britain, but Austria and Russia, the UK's allies, were preparing to invade France. The French armies were christened La Grande Armée
and secretly left the coast to march against Austria and Russia before those armies could combine. The Grande Armée defeated Austria at Ulm
the day before the Battle of Trafalgar
, and Napoleon's victory at the Battle of Austerlitz
effectively destroyed the Third Coalition. In 1806 Britain retook the Cape Colony
from the Batavian Republic; Napoleon abolished the Republic later that year in favour of the Kingdom of Holland
, ruled by his brother Louis.
French First Republic
The French First Republic was founded on 22 September 1792, by the newly established National Convention. The First Republic lasted until the declaration of the First French Empire in 1804 under Napoleon I...
and the United Kingdom
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....
during the French Revolutionary Wars
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...
. It was signed in the city of Amiens
Amiens
Amiens is a city and commune in northern France, north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in Picardy...
on 25 March 1802 (Germinal 4, year X in the French Revolutionary Calendar), by Joseph Bonaparte
Joseph Bonaparte
Joseph-Napoléon Bonaparte was the elder brother of Napoleon Bonaparte, who made him King of Naples and Sicily , and later King of Spain...
and the Marquess Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis KG , styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as The Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army officer and colonial administrator...
as a "Definitive Treaty of Peace". The consequent Peace of Amiens lasted only one year (18 May 1803) and was the only period of peace during the so-called 'Great French War' between 1793 and 1815. Under the treaty, the United Kingdom (UK) recognised the French Republic
French First Republic
The French First Republic was founded on 22 September 1792, by the newly established National Convention. The First Republic lasted until the declaration of the First French Empire in 1804 under Napoleon I...
; George III
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
had only two years previously dropped the English crown's historical claim, dating back to 1340 and Edward III, to the now-defunct French Kingdom
Kingdom of France
The Kingdom of France was one of the most powerful states to exist in Europe during the second millennium.It originated from the Western portion of the Frankish empire, and consolidated significant power and influence over the next thousand years. Louis XIV, also known as the Sun King, developed a...
. Together with the Treaty of Lunéville
Treaty of Lunéville
The Treaty of Lunéville was signed on 9 February 1801 between the French Republic and the Holy Roman Emperor Francis II, negotiating both on behalf of his own domains and of the Holy Roman Empire...
(1801), the Treaty of Amiens marked the end of the Second Coalition, which had waged war against Revolutionary France since 1798.
Early diplomacy
The War of the Second Coalition started well for the coalition, with successes in Egypt. After France's victories at Marengo and Hohenlinden, Austria, Russia and Naples asked for peace, with Austria eventually signing the Treaty of LunévilleTreaty of Lunéville
The Treaty of Lunéville was signed on 9 February 1801 between the French Republic and the Holy Roman Emperor Francis II, negotiating both on behalf of his own domains and of the Holy Roman Empire...
. Nelson
Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson
Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronté, KB was a flag officer famous for his service in the Royal Navy, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars. He was noted for his inspirational leadership and superb grasp of strategy and unconventional tactics, which resulted in a number of...
's victory at Copenhagen
Battle of Copenhagen (1801)
The Battle of Copenhagen was an engagement which saw a British fleet under the command of Admiral Sir Hyde Parker fight and strategically defeat a Danish-Norwegian fleet anchored just off Copenhagen on 2 April 1801. Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson led the main attack. He famously disobeyed Parker's...
(2 April 1801) halted the creation of the League of Armed Neutrality
Second League of Armed Neutrality
The Second League of Armed Neutrality or the League of the North was an alliance of the north European naval powers Denmark–Norway, Prussia, Sweden and Russia. It occurred between 1800 and 1801 during the War of the Second Coalition and was initiated by Paul I of Russia...
and led to a negotiated ceasefire.
The French First Consul, Napoleon Bonaparte, first made truce proposals to British foreign secretary Lord Grenville as early as 1799. Because of the hardline stance of Grenville and Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger
William Pitt the Younger
William Pitt the Younger was a British politician of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He became the youngest Prime Minister in 1783 at the age of 24 . He left office in 1801, but was Prime Minister again from 1804 until his death in 1806...
, their distrust of Bonaparte, and obvious defects in the proposals, they were rejected out of hand. However, Pitt resigned in February 1801 (over King George's
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
unwillingness to support Catholic emancipation
Catholic Emancipation
Catholic emancipation or Catholic relief was a process in Great Britain and Ireland in the late 18th century and early 19th century which involved reducing and removing many of the restrictions on Roman Catholics which had been introduced by the Act of Uniformity, the Test Acts and the penal laws...
in Ireland), and was replaced by the more accommodating Henry Addington
Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth
Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth, PC was a British statesman, and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1804....
. Addington's foreign secretary, Robert Jenkinson, Lord Hawkesbury
Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool
Robert Banks Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool KG PC was a British politician and the longest-serving Prime Minister of the United Kingdom since the Union with Ireland in 1801. He was 42 years old when he became premier in 1812 which made him younger than all of his successors to date...
, immediately opened communications with Louis Guillaume Otto, the French commissary for prisoners of war in London, through whom Bonaparte had made his earlier proposals. Hawkesbury stated that he wanted to open discussions on terms for a peace agreement. Otto, generally under detailed instructions from Bonaparte, engaged in negotiations with Hawkesbury through the summer of 1801. Unhappy with the dialogue with Otto, Hawkesbury sent diplomat Anthony Merry
Anthony Merry
-Biography:The son of a London wine merchant, Anthony Merry served in various diplomatic posts in Europe between 1783 and 1803, holding mostly consular positions. He was Chargé d'Affaires in Madrid in 1796 and again in Copenhagen about 1799, and Minister ad interim in Paris in 1802.Merry was...
to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, who opened a second line of communications with the French foreign minister Talleyrand. By mid-September, written negotiations had progressed to the point where Hawkesbury and Otto met to draft a preliminary agreement. On 30 September they signed the preliminary agreement in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
; it was published the next day.
The terms of the preliminary agreement required the UK to restore most of the French colonial possessions it had taken, to evacuate Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
(which was to be restored to the Order of St. John
Knights Hospitaller
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...
, whose sovereignty was to be guaranteed by one or more European Great Powers
Historical powers
Historical powers include great powers, nations, or empires in history.The term "Great power" represent the most important world powers. In a modern context, recognised great powers came about first in Europe during the post-Napoleonic era. The formalization of the division between small powers and...
, to be determined at the final peace), and withdraw from other occupied Mediterranean ports. France was to restore Egypt to Ottoman control, withdraw from most of the Italian peninsula, and to preserve Portuguese sovereignty. Ceylon, previously a Dutch territory, was to remain with the British, Newfoundland fishery rights were to be restored status quo ante bellum
Status quo ante bellum
The term status quo ante bellum is Latin, meaning literally "the state in which things were before the war".The term was originally used in treaties to refer to the withdrawal of enemy troops and the restoration of prewar leadership. When used as such, it means that no side gains or loses...
, and the UK was to recognize the Seven Islands Republic, established by France on islands in the Adriatic Sea
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...
that are now part of Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. Both sides were to be allowed access to the outposts on the Cape of Good Hope
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
. In a blow to Spain, the preliminary agreement included a secret clause in which Trinidad was to remain with Britain.
News of the preliminary peace was greeted in the UK with illuminations and fireworks; in Dublin a street was named for the treaty. Peace, it was thought in Britain, would lead to the withdrawal of the income tax
Income tax
An income tax is a tax levied on the income of individuals or businesses . Various income tax systems exist, with varying degrees of tax incidence. Income taxation can be progressive, proportional, or regressive. When the tax is levied on the income of companies, it is often called a corporate...
imposed by Pitt, a reduction of grain prices, and a revival of markets.
Final negotiations
In November 1801 the Marquess CornwallisCharles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis KG , styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as The Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army officer and colonial administrator...
was sent to France with plenipotentiary powers to negotiate a final agreement. The expectation among the British populace that peace was at hand put enormous pressure on Cornwallis, something Bonaparte realised and capitalised on. His negotiators, his brother Joseph
Joseph Bonaparte
Joseph-Napoléon Bonaparte was the elder brother of Napoleon Bonaparte, who made him King of Naples and Sicily , and later King of Spain...
and Talleyrand, constantly shifted their positions, leaving Cornwallis to write, "I feel it as the most unpleasant circumstance attending this unpleasant business that, after I have obtained his acquiescence on any point, I can have no confidence that it is finally settled and that he will not recede from it in our next conversation." The Batavian Republic
Batavian Republic
The Batavian Republic was the successor of the Republic of the United Netherlands. It was proclaimed on January 19, 1795, and ended on June 5, 1806, with the accession of Louis Bonaparte to the throne of the Kingdom of Holland....
, whose economy depended on trade that had been ruined by the war, appointed Rutger Jan Schimmelpenninck
Rutger Jan Schimmelpenninck
Rutger Jan Schimmelpenninck , Lord of Nyenhuis, Peckedam and Gellicum, was a Dutch politician of the Batavian Republic and an investor in the Holland Land Company....
, their ambassador to France, to represent them in the peace negotiations; he arrived in Amiens on 9 December. The Dutch role in the negotiations was marked by a lack of respect on the part of the French, who thought of them as a "vanquished and conquered" client whose present government "owed them everything". Schimmelpenninck and Cornwallis negotiated agreements on the status of Ceylon (to remain British), the Cape of Good Hope (to be returned to the Dutch, but open to all), and the indemnification of the deposed House of Orange-Nassau for its losses. However, Joseph Bonaparte did not immediately agree with their terms, presumably needing to consult with the First Consul on the matter.
In January 1802 Napoleon Bonaparte went to Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
and accepted the presidency of the Italian Republic
Italian Republic (Napoleonic)
The Italian Republic was a short-lived republic located in Northern Italy. It was a vassal state of the First French Republic of Napoleon.-The republic:...
, a nominally independent client republic
French client republic
During its occupation of neighboring parts of Europe during the French Revolutionary Wars, France established republican regimes in these territories...
covering northern Italy, established in 1797. This act violated the Treaty of Lunéville, in which Bonaparte agreed to guarantee the independence of that and other client republics. He also continued to support the French Gen. Pierre Augereau's reactionary coup d'état of 18 September 1801 in the Batavian Republic, and its new constitution, ratified by a sham election, that brought it into closer alignment with its dominant partner.
British newspaper readers followed the events, presented in strong moralising colours. Hawkesbury wrote of Bonaparte's action at Lyons that it was a "gross breach of faith", exhibiting an "inclination to insult Europe." Writing from London, he informed Cornwallis that it "created the greatest alarm in this country [UK], and there are many persons who were pacifically disposed and who since this event are desirous of renewing the war."
The Spanish negotiator, the marquis de Azara
José Nicolás de Azara
Don José Nicolás de Azara was a Spanish diplomat.He was born at Barbunales, Aragon, and was appointed in 1765 Spanish agent and procurator-general, and in 1785 ambassador at Rome...
, did not arrive in Amiens until early February 1802. After some preliminary negotiations he proposed to Cornwallis that Britain and Spain make a separate agreement; Cornwallis rejected this, believing that to do so would jeopardise the more important negotiations with France.
However, pressure continued to mount on the British negotiators for a peace deal, in part because budget discussions were underway in the UK parliament, and the prospect of continued war was a significant factor. The principal sticking point in the late negotiations was the status of Malta. Bonaparte eventually proposed that the British were to withdraw within three months of the signing, with control passed back to a recreated Order of St. John, whose sovereignty was to be guaranteed by all of the major European powers. Left unspecified in this was the means by which the Order would be reestablished (it had essentially dissolved upon French seizure of the island in 1798); furthermore, none of the other powers had been consulted on the matter.
On March 14, London, under pressure to finalise the budget, gave Cornwallis a hard deadline. Given a treaty representing the last position taken by the French, if he could not reach an agreement within eight days, he was to return to London. Following a five-hour negotiating session that ended at 3 am on March 25, Cornwallis and Joseph Bonaparte signed the final agreement. Cornwallis was unhappy with the agreement, but he also worried about "the ruinous consequences of… renewing a bloody and hopeless war".
Terms
The treaty, beyond confirming "peace, friendship, and good understanding", called for:- The restoration of prisoners and hostages.
- The United Kingdom to return the Cape ColonyCape ColonyThe Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652, with the founding of Cape Town. It was subsequently occupied by the British in 1795 when the Netherlands were occupied by revolutionary France, so that the French revolutionaries could not take...
to the Batavian RepublicBatavian RepublicThe Batavian Republic was the successor of the Republic of the United Netherlands. It was proclaimed on January 19, 1795, and ended on June 5, 1806, with the accession of Louis Bonaparte to the throne of the Kingdom of Holland....
. - The UK to return most of its captured Dutch West Indian islands to the Batavian Republic.
- The UK to withdraw its forces from EgyptEgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
. - The ceding to the UK of TrinidadTrinidadTrinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
, TobagoTobagoTobago is the smaller of the two main islands that make up the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located in the southern Caribbean, northeast of the island of Trinidad and southeast of Grenada. The island lies outside the hurricane belt...
and Ceylon. - France to withdraw its forces from the Papal StatesPapal StatesThe Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
. - The borders of French GuianaFrench GuianaFrench Guiana is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department located on the northern Atlantic coast of South America. It has borders with two nations, Brazil to the east and south, and Suriname to the west...
to be fixed. - MaltaMaltaMalta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
, GozoGozoGozo is a small island of the Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of the Southern European country of Malta; after the island of Malta itself, it is the second-largest island in the archipelago...
, and CominoCominoComino is an island of the Maltese archipelago between the islands of Malta and Gozo in the Mediterranean Sea, measuring in area. Named after the cumin seed that once flourished in the Maltese islands, Comino is noted for its tranquility and isolation. It has a permanent population of only four...
to be restored to the HospitallersKnights HospitallerThe Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...
and to be declared neutralNeutral countryA neutral power in a particular war is a sovereign state which declares itself to be neutral towards the belligerents. A non-belligerent state does not need to be neutral. The rights and duties of a neutral power are defined in Sections 5 and 13 of the Hague Convention of 1907...
, although the islands remained under the British Empire. - The island of MinorcaMinorcaMin Orca or Menorca is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. It takes its name from being smaller than the nearby island of Majorca....
be returned to Spain. - The House of Orange-NassauHouse of Orange-NassauThe House of Orange-Nassau , a branch of the European House of Nassau, has played a central role in the political life of the Netherlands — and at times in Europe — since William I of Orange organized the Dutch revolt against Spanish rule, which after the Eighty Years' War...
was to be compensated for its losses in the Netherlands.
Two days after signing the treaty, all four parties signed an addendum specifically acknowledging that the failure to use the languages of all of the signatory powers (the treaty was only published in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
) was not prejudicial and should not be viewed as setting a precedent. It also stated that the omission of any individual's titles was unintentional and also not intended to be prejudicial. The Dutch and French representatives also signed a separate convention clarifying that the Batavian Republic was not to be financially responsible for the compensation paid to the House of Orange-Nassau
House of Orange-Nassau
The House of Orange-Nassau , a branch of the European House of Nassau, has played a central role in the political life of the Netherlands — and at times in Europe — since William I of Orange organized the Dutch revolt against Spanish rule, which after the Eighty Years' War...
.
Amiens interlude
Upper-class British visitors flocked to Paris in the summer and autumn of 1802. William HerschelWilliam Herschel
Sir Frederick William Herschel, KH, FRS, German: Friedrich Wilhelm Herschel was a German-born British astronomer, technical expert, and composer. Born in Hanover, Wilhelm first followed his father into the Military Band of Hanover, but emigrated to Britain at age 19...
took the opportunity to confer with his colleagues at the Observatoire
Paris Observatory
The Paris Observatory is the foremost astronomical observatory of France, and one of the largest astronomical centres in the world...
. In booths and temporary arcades in the courtyard of the Louvre
Louvre
The Musée du Louvre – in English, the Louvre Museum or simply the Louvre – is one of the world's largest museums, the most visited art museum in the world and a historic monument. A central landmark of Paris, it is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement...
the third French exposition des produits français took place, 18–24 September. According to the memoirs of his private secretary Fauvelet de Bourrienne
Louis Antoine Fauvelet de Bourrienne
Louis Antoine Fauvelet de Bourrienne , French diplomat, was born at Sens.He was educated at the military school of Brienne in Champagne along with Napoleon Bonaparte; and although the solitary habits of the latter made intimacy difficult, the two youths seem to have been on friendly terms...
, Bonaparte "was, above all, delighted with the admiration the exhibition excited among the numerous foreigners who resorted to Paris during the peace."
Among the visitors was Charles James Fox
Charles James Fox
Charles James Fox PC , styled The Honourable from 1762, was a prominent British Whig statesman whose parliamentary career spanned thirty-eight years of the late 18th and early 19th centuries and who was particularly noted for being the arch-rival of William Pitt the Younger...
, who received a personal tour from Minister Chaptal
Jean-Antoine Chaptal
Jean-Antoine Claude, comte Chaptal de Chanteloup was a French chemist and statesman. He established chemical works for the manufacture of the mineral acids, soda and other substances...
. Within the Louvre, in addition to the display of recent works in the Salon of 1802
Paris Salon
The Salon , or rarely Paris Salon , beginning in 1725 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris, France. Between 1748–1890 it was the greatest annual or biannual art event in the Western world...
, visitors could see the display of Italian paintings, J.M.W. Turner filled a sketchbook, and Roman sculptures collected from all over Italy under the stringent terms of the Treaty of Tolentino
Treaty of Tolentino
The Treaty of Tolentino was signed after nine months of negotiations between France and the Papal States on February 19, 1797. It was part of the events following the invasion of Italy in the early stages of the French Revolutionary Wars...
. Even the four Greek Horses of St Mark, which had been furtively removed in 1797, could now be viewed in an inner courtyard. William Hazlitt
William Hazlitt
William Hazlitt was an English writer, remembered for his humanistic essays and literary criticism, and as a grammarian and philosopher. He is now considered one of the great critics and essayists of the English language, placed in the company of Samuel Johnson and George Orwell. Yet his work is...
arrived at Paris on 16 October 1802. The Roman sculptures did not move him, but he spent most of three months studying and copying Italian masters in the Louvre.
French visitors also came to England. Wax artist Marie Tussaud
Marie Tussaud
Anna Maria Tussaud was an artist known for her wax sculptures and Madame Tussaud's, the wax museum she founded in London.- Biography :...
came to London and established an exhibition similar to one she had in Paris. The balloonist André-Jacques Garnerin
André-Jacques Garnerin
André-Jacques Garnerin was the inventor of the frameless parachute. He was born in Paris.His early experiments were based on umbrella-shaped devices...
staged displays in London, and made a balloon flight from London to Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
in 45 minutes.
Among the stream of British visitors to France was the family party that included Maria Edgeworth
Maria Edgeworth
Maria Edgeworth was a prolific Anglo-Irish writer of adults' and children's literature. She was one of the first realist writers in children's literature and was a significant figure in the evolution of the novel in Europe...
, who spent the winter in Paris. She was able to leave France hastily and landed safely at Dover, 6 March 1803; Lovell Edgeworth was not so lucky. Another author, Frances Burney, travelled to Paris in April 1803 to see her husband, Comte Alexandre d'Arblay, and when hostilities resumed was required to remain until 1815.
The Spanish economy, which had been badly affected by the war, began to recover with the advent of peace. Much as it had been at the start of the wars in 1793, Spain remained diplomatically caught between Britain and France. King Carlos IV had been unhappy with France's unwillingness to negotiate the cession of Trinidad to Britain. Spanish economic interests were further concerned when Bonaparte, as conditions deteriorated in early 1803, sold Louisiana
Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase was the acquisition by the United States of America of of France's claim to the territory of Louisiana in 1803. The U.S...
to the United States, whose merchants competed with those of Spain. Following that sale, Carlos wrote that he was prepared to throw off alliance with France: "neither break with France, nor break with England."
Breakdown
The British government balked at implementing certain terms of the treaty, such as evacuating their naval presence from Malta. After the initial fervour, objections to the treaty quickly grew in the UK, where it seemed to the governing class that they were making all the concessions and ratifying recent developments. Prime Minister AddingtonHenry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth
Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth, PC was a British statesman, and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1804....
did not undertake military demobilization, but maintained a large peacetime army of 180,000.
Actions taken by Bonaparte after the treaty was signed heightened tensions with Britain and signatories to the other treaties. He used the time of peace to consolidate power and reorganize domestic administration in France and some of its client states. However, his effective annexation of the Cisalpine Republic
Cisalpine Republic
The Cisalpine Republic was a French client republic in Northern Italy that lasted from 1797 to 1802.-Birth:After the Battle of Lodi in May 1796, Napoleon Bonaparte proceeded to organize two states: one to the south of the Po River, the Cispadane Republic, and one to the north, the Transpadane...
and his decision to send French troops into the Helvetian Republic (to put down unrest against French-dominated rule
Stecklikrieg
The Stecklikrieg of 1802 resulted in the collapse of the Helvetic Republic, the renewed French occupation of Switzerland and ultimately the Act of Mediation dictated by Napoleon on 10 March 1803....
) in October 1802, another violation of Lunéville, raised eyebrows in London and St. Petersburg, where concerns were voiced over Bonaparte's appetite for conquest. Tsar Alexander
Alexander I of Russia
Alexander I of Russia , served as Emperor of Russia from 23 March 1801 to 1 December 1825 and the first Russian King of Poland from 1815 to 1825. He was also the first Russian Grand Duke of Finland and Lithuania....
had just congratulated Bonaparte for withdrawing from there and other places, but the action increased the belief in his cabinet that Bonaparte was not to be trusted. Bonaparte met British protests over the action with belligerent statements again denying Britain's right to be formally involved in matters on the continent, pointing out that Switzerland had been occupied by French troops at the time of the treaty signing at Amiens. He also went so far as to demand the British government censor the strongly anti-French British press, and expel French expatriates from British soil; these demands were perceived in London as affronts to British sovereignty. Bonaparte also took advantage of the loosening of the British blockade of French ports to organize and dispatch a naval expedition to regain control over revolutionary Haiti
Haitian Revolution
The Haitian Revolution was a period of conflict in the French colony of Saint-Domingue, which culminated in the elimination of slavery there and the founding of the Haitian republic...
and to occupy French Louisiana
French Louisiana
The term French Louisiana refers to two distinct regions:* first, to colonial French Louisiana, comprising the massive, middle section of North America claimed by France; and,...
. These moves were perceived by the British as a willingness by Bonaparte to threaten them on a global stage.
Both sides refused to remove troops from territories they had agreed to evacuate. France continued to occupy the Batavian Republic, and Britain never removed its troops from either Egypt or Malta. Bonaparte formally protested the continuing British occupations, and in January 1803 published a report by Horace Sebastiani that included observations on the ease with which France might capture Egypt, alarming most of the European powers. In an interview in February 1803 with Lord Whitworth
Charles Whitworth, 1st Earl Whitworth
Charles Whitworth, 1st Earl Whitworth GCB, PC , known as The Lord Whitworth between 1800 and 1813 and as The Viscount Whitworth between 1813 and 1815, was a British diplomat and politician.-Early years:...
, the UK's French ambassador, Bonaparte threatened war if Malta was not evacuated, and implied that he could have already retaken Egypt. The exchange left Whitworth feeling he was given an ultimatum. In a public meeting with a group of diplomats the following month, Bonaparte again pressed Whitworth, implying that the British wanted war since they were not upholding their treaty obligations. The Russian ambassador, Arkadiy Ivanovich Morkov
Arkadiy Ivanovich Morkov
Arkadiy Ivanovich Morkov was a Russian noble and diplomat. He was the member of the Russian Collegium for Foreign Affairs and Alexander Bezborodko aide. He later replaced Bezborodko. Ambassador in France.-References:**...
, reported this encounter back to St. Petersburg in stark terms; the implicit and explicit threats contained in the exchange may have played a role in Russia's eventual entry into the Third Coalition
Third Coalition
The War of the Third Coalition was a conflict which spanned from 1803 to 1806. It saw the defeat of an alliance of Austria, Portugal, Russia, and others by France and its client states under Napoleon I...
. Morkov also reported rumors that Bonaparte would seize Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
as well as Hanover
Electorate of Hanover
The Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg was the ninth Electorate of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation...
if war was renewed. Although Alexander wanted to avoid war, this news apparently forced his hand; he began collecting troops on the Baltic
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
coast in late March. The Russian foreign minister wrote of the situation, "The intention already expressed by the First Consul of striking blows against England wherever he can, and under this pretext of sending his troops into Hanover [and] Northern Germany... entirely transforms the nature of this war as it relates to our interests and obligations."
After Bonaparte's private exchange with Whitworth, the British government informed Bonaparte that they would only evacuate Malta if he gave up his expansionist activities; they also increased recruiting for the Royal Navy.Pocock, p. 75 The public exchange prompted an exodus of foreigners from France. Bonaparte's rejection of a British offer involving a ten-year lease of Malta prompted the reactivation of the British blockade of the French coast; Bonaparte, who was not fully prepared to resume the war, made moves designed to show renewed preparations for an invasion of Britain. Matters reached a diplomatic crisis point when the British rejected the idea of mediation by Tsar Alexander, and instead on 10 May ordered Whitworth to withdraw from Paris if the French did not accede to their demands in 36 hours. Last minute attempts at negotiation by Talleyrand failed, and Whitworth left France on 13 May. Britain declared war on France on 18 May.
War
Not long after the British war declaration, the Royal Navy captured two French ships. In response, on 22 May 1803 (2 Prairial, year XI), the First Consul suddenly ordered the imprisonment of all British males between the ages of 18 and 60 in France, trapping many travelling civilians. This act was denounced as illegal by all the major powers. Bonaparte claimed in the French press that the British prisoners he had taken amounted to 10,000, but French documents compiled in Paris a few months later show that the numbers were 1,181. It was not until the abdication of Bonaparte in 1814 that the last of these imprisoned British civilians were allowed to return home.Addington proved an ineffective prime minister in wartime, and was replaced on 10 May 1804 with William Pitt, who started the Third Coalition
Third Coalition
The War of the Third Coalition was a conflict which spanned from 1803 to 1806. It saw the defeat of an alliance of Austria, Portugal, Russia, and others by France and its client states under Napoleon I...
. Pitt has been alleged to have been behind assassination attempts on Bonaparte's life by Cadoudal and Pichegru
Charles Pichegru
Jean-Charles Pichegru was a French general and political figure of the French Revolution and Revolutionary Wars.-Early life and career:...
.
Napoleon
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
, now emperor, assembled armies on the coast of France to invade Great Britain, but Austria and Russia, the UK's allies, were preparing to invade France. The French armies were christened La Grande Armée
La Grande Armée
The Grande Armée first entered the annals of history when, in 1805, Napoleon I renamed the army that he had assembled on the French coast of the English Channel for the proposed invasion of Britain...
and secretly left the coast to march against Austria and Russia before those armies could combine. The Grande Armée defeated Austria at Ulm
Battle of Ulm
The Battle of Ulm was a series of minor skirmishes at the end of Napoleon Bonaparte's Ulm Campaign, culminating in the surrender of an entire Austrian army near Ulm in Württemberg....
the day before the Battle of Trafalgar
Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars ....
, and Napoleon's victory at the Battle of Austerlitz
Battle of Austerlitz
The Battle of Austerlitz, also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of Napoleon's greatest victories, where the French Empire effectively crushed the Third Coalition...
effectively destroyed the Third Coalition. In 1806 Britain retook the Cape Colony
Cape Colony
The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652, with the founding of Cape Town. It was subsequently occupied by the British in 1795 when the Netherlands were occupied by revolutionary France, so that the French revolutionaries could not take...
from the Batavian Republic; Napoleon abolished the Republic later that year in favour of the Kingdom of Holland
Kingdom of Holland
The Kingdom of Holland 1806–1810 was set up by Napoleon Bonaparte as a puppet kingdom for his third brother, Louis Bonaparte, in order to better control the Netherlands. The name of the leading province, Holland, was now taken for the whole country...
, ruled by his brother Louis.
Further reading
- Cobbett's Annual Register 1803 contains much of the correspodence, principally involving French or UK participants
- Cobbett's Annual Register 1802 contains the treaty text
- Napoleon's British visitors contains accounts of British visits to France during the interlude