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George Washington
Relations with
Amerindians
In 1791, Washington learned that an
American force had been defeated by a
Native American uprising in the Northwest
Territory (present-day Ohio) that killed over
600 American soldiers and militia. The
President ordered the Revolutionary War
veteran General "Mad" Anthony Wayne to
launch a new expedition against a
coalition of tribes led by Miami Chief Little
Turtle. Wayne spent months training his
troops to fight using forest warfare in the
style of the Indians before marching boldly
into the region. After constructing a chain
of forts, Wayne and his troops crushed the
Indians in the Battle of Fallen Timbers (near
present-day Toledo) in the summer of
1794. Defeated, the seven tribes—the
Shawnee, Miami, Ottawa, Chippewa,
Iroquois, Sauk, and Fox—ceded large
portions of Indian lands to the United
States and then moved west.
Battle of Fallen Timbers: Chief Little Turtle presents a
wampum belt.
IN THE LATE 18TH CENTURY, ABOUT 1/70TH OF THE POPULATION OF THE FLEDGLING UNITED STATES
LIVED ALONG THE MONONGAHELA RIVER IN SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA.
HOWEVER, THIS FRACTION OF THE AMERICAN POPULATION OWNED AND OPERATED ABOUT 1/4TH
OF THE STILLS.
WITH TRAVEL CONDITIONS EXTREMELY DIFFICULT IN EARLY AMERICA,
THESE DISTILLERS FOUND THAT IT WAS MUCH MORE COST EFFICIENT
AND PROFITABLE TO TRANSPORT A JUG OF LIQUOR AND TO SELL IT
RATHER THAN THE GRAIN USED TO PRODUCE IT.
Hamilton’s role

Secretary of the Treasury Alexander
Hamilton urged Congress to adopt the
excise tax on liquor, asserting that the
farmers had nothing to fear from this tax
on their business as they could simply
pass on the higher costs to their
customers.

Obviously, these farmers weren’t to keen
on the government taxing their
livelihood.

Hamilton’s motive for proposing the tax
was to prevent the federal government
from going deeper into debt which it
had incurred to finance the Revolution.
Whiskey Rebellion background contd.

In the late 18th century a cashstrapped national government (that is,
Congress) passed a 25% excise (sales)
tax on liquor in order to raise money.
Whiskey tax receipt

Anger about the tax was widespread
along the frontier from Pennsylvania to
Georgia.

Many Americans along the frontier
resented the tax from a distant
legislature.

There were outbreaks of opposition. In
rural areas where no one was willing to
serve as tax collector, the taxes went
unpaid.
Political cartoon depicting "An Exciseman" and
threatening to "tar and feather the rascal" who
was collecting the 1791 federal tax on whiskey.
Whiskey Rebellion contd.

By July of 1794, the tension had reached a breaking point.

Tax collectors were harassed, tarred and feathered; one’s
home was burned.

In Western Pennsylvania, the rebellion was intense.

Farmers along the Monongahela River responded by the tar
and feathering of many tax collectors. Other protests also
took place along the frontier of every state south of New
York. Most folks simply refused to pay the tax which had to
be made in cash, a commodity that was in short supply in the
West.

Reports told that six thousand people were camped outside
Pittsburgh threatening to march on the town.

Washington believed he had to act.
The home of district excise inspector, John Neville, was surrounded by about
500 angry farmers who stormed the building and burned it to the ground.
NOT ONLY HAD THE PROTESTERS BURNED DOWN NEVILLE’S HOUSE, THEY HAD
ALSO PREVENTED THE CONSTRUCTION OF OTHER TAX COLLECTOR OFFICES.
IN ADDITION, PROTESTERS STOLE THE MAIL OF SOME TAX OFFICIALS IN AN
EFFORT TO DETERMINE WHOM IN THE REGION OPPOSED THEIR EFFORTS.

the protesting farmers in Pennsylvania began
electing their own assembly as they felt that they
were not represented in Congress.

There was some talk of secession.

They even created a Whiskey Rebellion flag.

Radical elements within the moonshine assembly
wanted to convince others on the frontier to join
them in an organized insurrection.

More moderate voices (e.g. Hugh Henry
Brackenridge and Albert Gallatin) prevented the
radicals from gaining full control of the makeshift
legislative body.

As secretary of the assembly, Gallatin spoke to the
protesters, many with weapons in hand, and told
them what a mistake it was to advocate open
rebellion against the government.
Albert Gallatin,
ca. 1803
The Whiskey Rebellion Flag
George Washington by Gilbert Stuart (1797)

On August 7, 1794 Washington issued
a proclamation declaring
Southwestern PA in a state of
insurrections and commanding all
“insurgents” to “disperse and retire
peaceably to their respective
abodes.”

He cited his authority under the 1792
Militia Act.

But the rebellion continued……
Background to the
Whiskey Rebellion
To support federal power to
enforce the law under the U.S.
Constitution, Congress passed the
Militia Law of 1792.
This law allowed Congress to raise
a militia to “execute the laws of the
union, (and) suppress
insurrections.”
Federal soldiers marching to PA during the
Whiskey Rebellion

Washington and his cabinet members
met with Pennsylvania officials.

They decided to present evidence of
the violence to Associate Justice of
the Supreme Court James Wilson.
Associate Justice James Wilson, by Robert S. Susan

After reviewing the evidence, Wilson certified that the
situation could not be controlled by civil authorities
alone.

A military response could proceed.
On September 25, 1794, Washington issued another Proclamation
which read in part,
“… I, George Washington, President of
the United States, in obedience to that
high and irresistible duty consigned to me
by the Constitution ‘to take care that the
laws be faithfully executed,’ … do hereby
declare and make known that… a
militia…force which…is adequate to the
exigency is already is motion…”
President Washington, astride a white horse, reviews his troops at
Carlisle, Pennsylvania in September 1794.

Washington recruited militia members
from Pennsylvania as well as nearby
Maryland and New Jersey.

In total, there were almost 13,000
men—about as many as had served in
the entire Continental Army that
defeated the British.

Washington personally led the troops
into Bedford—This marked the first and
only time a sitting US President has led
troops into the field.
Washington in Carlisle, PA
Washington’s decision to take personal leadership may
have been as much of a political move than one of
military necessity.
Insurrectionists might think twice about opposing General
Washington and his imposing stature. Beyond his
reputation and experience in the American Revolution, he
was also considered by many to be the father of the
country.
The notion that his command was one of psychological
and political expedience is supported by the fact that,
after a month, he left for Philadelphia and placed General
Henry “Light Horse Harry” Lee (father of Robert E.
Lee) in overall command.
One of the commanders of the force was also none other
than Secretary of Treasury Alexander Hamilton, who was
also wearing the temporary hat of Secretary of War. He
carried with him a list of 20 men that members of
Washington’s staff wanted arrested. Two names on the list
were those of Gallatin and Brackenridge.
Outcome and significance of the Whiskey Rebellion

Initially, twenty rebels were arrested but on November 17, 1794, Alexander Hamilton wrote to the president
that “the list of prisoners has been very considerably increased, probably to the amount of 150. . . .
Subsequent intelligence shews that there is no regular assemblage of the fugitives . . . only small vagrant
parties . . . affording no point of Attack. Every thing is urging for the return of the troops.” However, Albert
Gallatin was not among those arrested. Two days after the letter was written, Hamilton notified Washington
that most of the army was returning home with only a regiment left behind to maintain order. Most of those
taken into custody were eventually acquitted due to lack of evidence.

By the end of November, more than 150 people had been arrested; most were later freed due to lack of
evidence. Two were convicted of treason, but Washington later pardoned them (On July 10, 1795,
Washington issued a pardon for any insurgent who was not sentenced or indicted).

Washington’s strong response to the Whiskey Rebellion became, as future-President James Madison put it,
“a lesson to every part of the Union against disobedience to the laws.”

Most historians have concluded that the Whiskey Rebellion was one of the greatest threats to the stability of
the United States prior to the Civil War.

As for Albert Gallatin, he went on to a long and distinguished career in Congress that lasted until 1849.
Jay’s Treaty
As the official with the constitutional responsibility to receive
ambassadors and the power to negotiate treaties, the President
was the chief diplomat of the United States.
George Washington was intensely conscious that he set an
example for future Presidents with every act of diplomacy.
One of his first challenges came with the negotiation of Jay’s
Treaty.
Background
Tensions between the two countries had increased since the end of the Revolutionary War

Britain was still smarting from the loss of her colonies

Despite their signing the Treaty of Paris of 1783, both the British and Americans continued to breach the terms/conditions of the Treaty of Paris of 1783:

Britain's continued occupation of military posts on American territory had Jay warning Congress to prepare for war in 1786.

The demands by their former owners for the return of slaves taken by the British during the revolutionary war were not being met.

American state courts repeatedly impeded or blocked the collection of debts owed the British before/during the war

American state courts repeatedly upheld the confiscation of Loyalist estates while impeding or blocking the restitution of Loyalist properties taken during the war.

Jay himself, in a report that he prepared for Congress, affirmed that the Americans had been first to breach the peace treaty, an opinion that he indiscreetly shared
with Sir John Temple, the British consul general in New York.

The British were once again inciting Native Americans to attack settlers in the West, hoping to destabilize the fledgling Republic.
The French Revolution

Following the beginning(s) of the French Revolution in 1789, many Americans (mindful of French
aid during their own struggle for independence) supported returning the favor by providing aid
to the radical French revolutionaries.

Within days of Washington's second inauguration, France declared war on a host of European
nations, England among them--controversy erupted over American involvement in the dispute.

When the French Revolution led to war between Britain and France in 1793, Divisions emerged
in the United States between those who supported the French, including Secretary of
State Thomas Jefferson, and those who supported the British, including Secretary of the Treasury
Alexander Hamilton.

Any sentiments for aiding France in any conflict with Great Britain were reinforced by American
anger in response to the British policy of provoking Native Americans in the West to attack
American settlements.

The Jefferson and Hamilton factions fought endlessly over the matter.
Washington receiving Citizen Genet:

The French ambassador to the U.S.—the
charismatic, audacious "Citizen" Edmond
Genet—had meanwhile been appearing
nationwide, drumming up considerable
support for the French cause.

Washington was deeply irritated by this
meddling (which he considered to be
subversive).

When Genet allowed a French-sponsored
warship to sail out of Philadelphia against
direct presidential orders, Washington
demanded that France recall Genet.

In mid-1793, Britain announced that it would seize
any ships trading with the French, including those
flying the American flag.

The British were interfering with American trade and
shipping.

Britain’s impressments of American sailors and seizure
of naval and military supplies bound to enemy ports
on neutral ships

Americans protested British seizures of cargoes from
American ships they believed were unrelated to war.

In protest, widespread civil disorder erupted in
several American cities.

British exports flooded U.S. markets, while American
exports were blocked by British trade restrictions and
tariffs.
Impressment
Britain had by an Order in Council issued on November 6, 1793, widened its attacks on neutral ships
to include any trading with the French West Indies.
Widespread depredations followed – over 250 American ships were seized.
The two countries appeared to be on the brink of war
On the brink of war

By 1794, tensions with Britain were so high that
Washington had to stop all American
shipments overseas.

In addition, Washington commissioned the
construction of six large warships (among
them the USS Constitution, aka "Old Ironsides").

An envoy was sent to England to attempt
reconciliation, but the British were now
building a fortress in Ohio while increasing
insurgent activities elsewhere in America.

By 1794 a turbulent international context
existed.

By late 1793/early 1794, news arrived of British
incitement of Indians on the Northwest
border.
“Old Ironsides”

Washington, leery of any foreign entanglement
and considering his country too weak and
unstable to fight another war with a major
European power, responded to these threats by
urging Congress to take defensive measures
while at the same time sending an envoy to
London to explore the possibility of reaching an
accommodation (i.e. reaching a diplomatic
solution) with the British.

Fearing the repercussions of a war with Britain,
President George Washington sided with Hamilton
and sent pro-British Chief Justice John Jay to
negotiate with the British Government as Envoy
Extraordinary to Great Britain.

At the time he was chosen for the mission, John
Jay, was the Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme
Court.
Jay’s Treaty
[AKA “Treaty of Amity Commerce and Navigation, between His Britannic Majesty; and The United States of America” ]


At President George Washington's request,
Chief Justice of the United States John Jay
sailed to London to negotiate a reduction of
tensions between the two nations.
The negotiations sought to settle outstanding
issues between the two countries that had
been left unresolved since American
independence.

The president wanted (and Jay was instructed
to negotiate):
1.) The withdrawal of British troops from the United
States' northwestern territories
2.) Compensation to slave holders for slaves
British soldiers had abducted during the
Revolutionary War
3.) British payment to ship-owners for trading
vessels seized by the Royal Navy,
4.) Free and open (unrestricted) trade with the
British West Indies.
Jay looked to Hamilton for specific instructions for the treaty.

Hamilton recommended an approach that would:
stabilize relations with Great Britain
guarantee increased trade between the United States and
Great Britain.

Jay was briefed by Alexander Hamilton to seek the following:
compensation for spoliations of American ships
clarification of the rules governing British searches and/or
seizures of vessels.
American insistence of the relinquishment by the British of
their posts in the Northwest
British adherence to the terms of the Treaty of Paris
If possible, Jay was to seek limited access for American ships to
the British West Indies.

In return, the United States would:
take responsibility for pre-Revolutionary debts owed to
oBritish merchants and others.
Hamilton’s meddling

Jay’s only significant bargaining chip in the negotiations was the threat
that the United States would join the Danish and the Swedish governments
in defending their neutral status and resisting British seizure of their goods
by force of arms.

In an attempt to guarantee good relations with Britain, Hamilton
independently informed the British leadership that the United States had no
intention of joining in this neutral armament.

Hamilton’s actions left Jay with little leverage to force the British to comply
with U.S. demands.
Timeline of Jay’s Treaty
•John Jay arrived in London
•Correspondences during treaty negotiations:
Summer
1794
November
19, 1794
June 8,
1795
•John Jay to Lord Grenville (August 6, 1794)
•Lord Grenville to John Jay (August 30, 1794)
•John Jay to Edmund Randolph (September 13, 1794)
•The negotiated treaty was signed by
representatives of the United States and Great
Britain.
•President George Washington submitted to the
Senate all of the documents related to the
negotiation of Jay's Treaty.
•U.S. Senators debated whether to ratify the
agreement.
June 24,
1795
Summer
1795
April 14,
1796
•The U.S. Senate ratified the treaty with the necessary two-thirds
majority (20-10) with a reservation inserted regarding a provision
that limited American trade in the British West Indies and a copy
of the resolution announcing the Senate’s approval of Jay’s
Treaty was sent to President George Washington.
•After much agonizing, President Washington approved (that is,
signed) the treaty.
•terms were leaked by a Democratic Republican senator
and so became known to the wider public.
•The U.S. House of Representatives began debate over
whether to appropriate the funds necessary to implement
the terms and conditions of the agreement ratified by the
Senate within the United States.
•Opponents in the House attempted to block passage of
the appropriations bill but were unsuccessful.
April 30, 1796

The appropriation for the treaty was narrowly approved by a vote of 51-48
(two votes determined the outcome).

Congress approved the treaty with the proviso that trade barriers imposed
by England be lessened.

Washington, while dissatisfied with elements of the treaty, signed it
nonetheless.
How successful was John Jay in protecting American interests?

The resulting treaty addressed few U.S. interests, and ultimately granted Britain additional rights.

Jay was only partially successful in getting Britain to meet America's demands; Jay achieved only a limited success.

In Jay’s Treaty, the British agreed to evacuate the Great Lakes forts they had continued to occupy after the Revolution, but most
other U.S. concerns were not addressed.

Most significantly, the British failed to recognize rights of neutral countries and made no commitment to stop impressment of
American sailors.

Jay’s Treaty did guarantee compensation to American merchants for British seizures of their vessels and/or cargoes.

Other concessions Jay obtained were a surrender of the northwestern posts (already agreed to in 1783) and a commercial treaty
with Great Britain that granted the United States “most favored nation” status, but seriously restricted U.S. commercial access to the
British West Indies.

All other outstanding issues, including the Canadian-Maine boundary, compensation for pre-revolutionary debts, and British
seizures of American ships, were to be resolved by arbitration.

Jay even conceded that the British could seize U.S. goods bound for France if they paid for them and could confiscate without
payment French goods on American ships.
How successful was John Jay in protecting American interests?

In the final estimation, the treaty that emerged from these discussions was a bit of a mixed bag, but probably the best America
could have hoped for, given the realities of the situation.

Jay made little headway in attempts to get compensation for slaves taken by the British during the War of Independence and was
unable to secure British recognition of the neutral rights of American ships.

Neither did he succeed in persuading the British to remove their naval vessels from the Great Lakes or desist from aiding the
Indians during times of war.

Nonetheless, he did achieve the key objectives outlined by Hamilton.

The British were to relinquish their military posts on the Northwest frontier

mixed commissions were to resolve:

the spoliation of American vessels by the Royal Navy

pre-Revolutionary debt

boundary issues

Vessels under seventy tons would be allowed access to the markets of the British West Indies for a limited number of years.
How successful was John Jay in protecting American interests?

Jay's concessions on the West India question, as well as agreement to surrender the right
of commercial retaliation for ten years, fueled opposition to the treaty.

Many Americans were unhappy about Jay’s Treaty because it did not sufficiently protect
the rights of Americans.

Though the Senate ratified the document, many Americans were unhappy with the Treaty
because it did not sufficiently protect the rights of Americans.

Public protests erupted across the country and the criticisms of Jay and even of President
Washington was very harsh and insulting.

Among the rights left unaddressed were the fact that the British failed to recognize rights
of neutral countries and made no commitment to stop impressment of American sailors.

Jay failed to obtain protections for American shipping or reimbursement for stolen slaves,
and he prematurely conceded American responsibility to pay British merchants for preRevolutionary War debts.

Jay's treaty contained provisions that many considered humiliating to the United States.
Opposition to Jay’s Treaty

members of the Senate's anti-administration
Democratic-Republican (aka Republican)
minority

They demanded that the treaty be renegotiated—
among other reasons—because it failed to protect
America's trading agreements with France.

For the incipient Republican interest, any
concessions to the British were intolerable.

Republican newspapers railed against the treaty's
perceived surrender to the British.

John Rutledge, Washington's recess
appointee to replace Jay as chief justice,
criticized ratification of the treaty as a sellout.

Robert Livingston, another prominent New
Yorker, did not hold back in his criticism of the
treaty:
“Were we to estimate the difference in this
point of view, between an immediate
evacuation and one that is to take place in
June 1796, it would certainly not fall short of
$1,000,000, independent of the destruction of
our fellow citizens, whose lives are beyond
all price.”
Opponents contd.

Newspapers sympathetic to the Jeffersonians,
emboldened by the public controversy
surrounding the treaty with England, became
increasingly critical of Washington during his
final two years in office.

One called him "Saint Washington"

another mockingly offered him a crown.

James Madison was a leading opponent of
the ratification of Jay's Treaty as indicated in
these notes for a speech he gave in 1796
related to the treaty.

Thomas Jefferson was adamantly opposed to
Jay's Treaty and expressed his opposition in a
number of letters to friends and colleagues.

Soon after the provisions of the treaty were
made public, Jefferson wrote to James
Monroe on September 6, 1795, that
"so general a burst of dissatisfaction never
before appeared against any transaction.
Those who understand the particular articles
of it, condemn these articles. Those who do
not understand them minutely, condemn
it generally as wearing a hostile face to
France."
Jefferson contd.

A month after he wrote to Monroe, Jefferson
agreed with Edward Rutledge
"in thinking the treaty an execrable thing . . . I
trust the popular branch of our legislature [U.S.
House of Representatives] will disapprove of it,
and thus rid us of this infamous act, which is
really nothing more than a treaty of alliance
between England & the Anglomen
[Anglophiles] of this country against the
legislature & people of the United States."

During the debate in the House, Jefferson wrote
another letter to James Monroe, stating that
"the most remarkable political occurrence with
us has been the treaty with England, of which no
man in the U S. has had the effrontery to affirm
that it was not a very bad one except A. H.
[note: Alexander Hamilton] under the signature
of Camillus. It's most zealous defenders only
pretended that it was better than war, as if war
was not invited rather than avoided by
unfounded demands. I have never known the
public pulse beat so full and in such universal
union on any subject since the declaration of
independence, the House of Representatives of
the U. S. has manifested its disapprobation of the
treaty."
How successful was John Jay in protecting American interests?

Critics argued that John Jay negotiated a weak
treaty that undermined freedom of trade on the
high seas and failed to compensate Americans
for slaves taken by the British during the
Revolution.

Worst of all, the treaty did not address the thencommon British practice of impressment.

Jay found it difficult even to secure the British
ministry's full attention.

War with France, after all, took precedence over
negotiations with the largely impotent United
States.

Opponents in the U.S. House of
Representatives attempted to defeat
the appropriations bill being
considered in the House considered
necessary if the provisions of the treaty
were to be implemented within the
United States.
Opposition included:

Meetings were organized to denounce the treaty

Jay was burned in effigy (right)

Jay (who resigned from the Supreme Court) later
remarked that he could have traveled the length of
the country by the light of bonfires burning his effigy.

Hamilton (who favored the treaty) was stoned by an
angry crowd in New York.

Petitions objecting to Jay's treaty were sent to
Washington from a large number of towns, cities, and
counties.

Similar petitions were also sent to various state
legislatures, such as this draft of a letter to an
unknown correspondent containing a petition to the
General Assembly of Virginia protesting Jay's Treaty.
Opposition contd.

The treaty's opponents, members of the Senate's anti-administration
Democratic-Republican minority, demanded that the treaty be renegotiated.

When the text of the treaty became public, mobs took to the streets to
condemn George Washington, John Jay, and the United States Senate.

A mob marched on the Philadelphia home of Pennsylvania Senator William
Bingham.

In Frankfort, Kentucky, the state legislature denounced Senator Humphrey
Marshall and demanded that the Constitution be amended to allow for the
recall of United States senators.


Marshall was "burned in effigy, vilified in print, and stoned in Frankfort."
Many of the other senators who had provided the two-thirds majority necessary
to approve John Jay's treaty with Great Britain experienced similar popular
outrage.

Alexander Hamilton defended the treaty, writing under the pen name Camillus.

In his first article, Hamilton began:
It was to have been foreseen, that the treaty which Mr. Jay was charged to
negotiate with Great Britain, whenever it should appear, would have to
contend with many perverse dispositions and some honest prejudices; that
there was no measure in which the government could engage, so little likely
to be viewed according to its intrinsic merits—so very likely to encounter
misconception, jealousy, and unreasonable dislike.

While acknowledging the treaty’s shortcomings, most historians believe that it
was the best that could be hoped for given America’s lack of international
clout at the time.
President Washington’s response/reaction:

Although President George Washington was disappointed with the treaty’s
provisions, he felt it was the best hope to avert war with Great Britain and
submitted it to the Senate for approval.

Despite the public outcry, President Washington sent it to the Senate for
formal approval.

The president and his supporters argued that Jay had obtained the best
possible deal and that the nation could ill afford another war with Britain.

Washington signed the unpopular treaty even though it had significant
shortcomings because, in his judgment as “Chief Diplomat,” a flawed
agreement was better than no agreement.

Despite its faults, Washington came to the conclusion that Jay's Treaty
was necessary in order to avoid war with Great Britain.
Washington contd.
In a letter to Secretary of State Edmund Randolph
dated July 22, 1795, Washington wrote,
"My opinion respecting the treaty, is the same now
that it was: namely, not favorable to it, but that it is
better to ratify it in the manner the Senate have
advised (and with the reservation already
mentioned), than to suffer matters to remain as they
are, unsettled."

To Washington, popular disapproval was simply
the price of peace with Great Britain; a peace
that gave the United States valuable time to
consolidate and rearm in the event of future
conflict.

Washington responded to most of these protests
with the same answer that he sent to the Boston
Selectmen on July 28, 1795.

When people sent the President petitions
opposing the treaty, he sent this response:

“…I have weighed with attention every
argument…. But the constitution is the guide,
which I never will abandon. It has assigned to the
President the power of making treaties, with the
advice and consent of the senate. ... that they
ought not to substitute for their own conviction
the opinions of others…”
Washington contd.

Washington maintained his dignity, never responding publicly
to the insults, and he explained the Constitutional system by
which the Senate provides advice and consent for treaties

Washington made no move to shut down the vigorous public
protest, thus demonstrating his commitment to liberties such
as speech, press, assembly and petition.

To the President's considerable credit, he bore these attacks
with dignity—not even responding to them publicly.

If a letter from Treaty opponents was disrespectful, he did not
reply at all. Regarding one set of petitions, Washington noted:
"No answer given. The Address too rude to merit one."

Privately, he was deeply wounded by the attacks on his
integrity, and toward the end of his life, he ceased to have
any contact with Thomas Jefferson.
Ways in which President Washington demonstrated that the President
is the key decision-maker regarding foreign affairs:

Washington’s insistence on neutrality in foreign quarrels set another key precedent, as did his
insistence that the power to make such a determination be lodged in the presidency.

Washington delegated the negotiation process to John Jay.

Washington allowed public protest to run its course, and then took action based on the advice and
consent of the Senate.

Washington declined to justify the Treaty to the House of Representatives by providing the documents
they demanded, explaining that only the Senate has the Constitutional role of advice and consent—
When Treaty opponents in the House of Representatives demanded documents related to the Treaty,
the President declined, stating that the Constitution provides no role for the House in treaty ratification.

Washington set the example as chief diplomat, demonstrating both the orderly process of shared
responsibility between the Senate and the President, and the Constitution’s placement of the President
in the central position regarding foreign affairs.

Washington ultimately gave his support to the treaty even though it was not all he had hoped for,
highlighting the responsibility of the President to settle foreign policy questions through diplomacy.
Significance of Jay’s Treaty:

Differences in the way the treaty was received played a significant role in the development of
political parties

This was admitted by John Jay himself in a letter to General Henry Lee dated July 11, 1795.

For the first time, members of the government openly criticized Washington and the fledgling
government chose partisan sides.

It was the first example of the partisan give-and-take that has been essential to the survival of
American democracy for over two centuries.
Significance of Jay’s Treaty contd.

Washington's advisers presented him with evidence that Edmund Randolph, Jefferson's
successor as secretary of state, had allegedly solicited a bribe from a French envoy to
oppose the treaty with England.

Although Randolph denied the charges, an angry Washington forced his old friend to
resign.

With this action, another important precedent was set:

The Constitution empowers the President to nominate his principal officers with the advice
and consent of the Senate; it says nothing, however, about the chief executive's authority
to dismiss appointees.

With Washington's dismissal of Randolph, the administrative system of the federal
government was firmly tied to the President.

In total, Washington dismissed three foreign ministers, two consuls, eight collectors, and
four surveyors of internal revenue—all without seeking the advice or approval of
Congress.
Significance of Jay’s Treaty contd.

Although debate over the flawed pact deepened the nation's political divisions and destroyed
relations with France, its ratification likely saved the still-fragile republic from a potentially disastrous
new war with Britain.

The treaty did accomplish the goal of maintaining peace between the two nations and preserving
U.S. neutrality.

John Jay's treaty with the British continued to have negative ramifications for the remainder of
Washington's administration.

France declared it in violation of agreements signed with America during the Revolution and claimed
that it comprised an alliance with their enemy, Britain.


By 1796, the French were harassing American ships and threatening the U.S. with punitive sanctions.
Diplomacy did little to solve the problem, and in later years, American and French warships
exchanged gunfire on several occasions.
In conclusion:

Though the opposition was intense, it was also short lived.

By 1796, after the treaty had been ratified, America was enjoying a
buoyant prosperity as a result of its dominance of the Atlantic carrying
trade while European powers continued to wage war.

Moreover, with the removal of the British from their posts, Americans
began to pour into the Old Northwest to settle rich farm lands.

By 1796, then, many Americans had come to view the Jay Treaty as a
significant success.
Treaty of San Lorenzo (aka Pinckney’s Treaty)

A pair of treaties—one with Algiers and another with Spain—dominated the later stages of
Washington's foreign policy. Pirates from the Barbary region of North Africa were seizing
American ships, kidnapping their crew members, and demanding ransom. These Barbary pirates
forced a harsh treaty on the U.S. that demanded annual payments to the ruler of Algiers. It was,
in short, a shakedown for protection money, and it hardened Washington's resolve to construct
a viable navy. The ships built during his administration would prove to be instrumental in naval
actions that ended disputes with Algiers in later administrations.

The agreement with Spain had a much happier outcome for Washington. Spanish-controlled
Florida agreed to stop inciting Native American attacks on settlers. More importantly, Spain
conceded unrestricted access of the entire Mississippi River to Americans, opening much of the
Ohio River Valley for settlement and trade. Agricultural produce could now flow on flatboats
down the Ohio and Cumberland Rivers to the Mississippi River and on to New Orleans and
Europe.
Washington’s Farewell Address
Washington’s Farewell Address