The Very Day that England Declared the War Over, the American Revolution Over, France Officially Calls Off Operations Against the British and Orders French Forces to Return Home from the Colonies

A bookend to the war for American independence: Thus ended successfully a war in which the French had been instrumental in gaining American independence

 

“The ratifications [of the Treaty of Paris] having been exchanged, all dispatch must be made for the return of the troops, supplies and vessels of the army of M. the Comte d’Estaing. It is the intention of the War Department to bring to Provence all the troops who have departed…”

Despite discussions of a full alliance, French assistance to the fledgling United States was limited in the early years of the American Revolution. French Foreign Minister the Comte de Vergennes finally decided in favor of an alliance when news of the British surrender at the Battle of Saratoga reached him in December 1777. Vergennes, having heard rumors of secret British peace feelers to the United States, wanted to put a stop to that and offered the U.S. an official French alliance. On February 6, 1778, Benjamin Franklin and other two Americans commissioners, Arthur Lee and Silas Deane, signed a Treaty of Alliance and a Treaty of Amity and Commerce with France. The Treaty of Alliance contained the provisions the U.S. commissioners had originally requested, but also included a clause forbidding either country to make a separate peace with Britain. The Treaty of Amity and Commerce promoted trade between the United States and France and recognized the United States as an independent nation.

On May 4, 1778, the alliance between France and the new United States of America became effective. The Americans had high hopes for this venture, but those hopes were initially dashed. The French sent a fleet under Admiral d’Estaing in the summer of 1778; but after failing to encounter the British in the Chesapeake Bay and making unsuccessful moves at New York and Newport, it abandoned the offensive. However, the French were determined to play a role in the outcome of the American War and planned to send a significant number of troops and ships for the next campaign. Count Rochambeau was appointed to command of the army that was destined to support the Americans, and on May 2, 1780, he sailed for the U.S.

Washington eagerly anticipated the active intervention of the French, and their hoped-for imminent arrival. He planned a joint Franco-American late- summer campaign against British-held New York, and in expectation of his ally’s arrival set about making sure that all of his preparations were complete. William Dobbs was an expert pilot qualified to guide navies into port. On July 2, 1780, Washington called Dobbs to headquarters for consultations on issues of navigation with a large navy. In a letter to Rochambeau, General Lafayette described the discussions at headquarters, saying of Dobbs and a colleague, “The two persons…who will go aboard your ship…are best known for their integrity and ability”. But there was still no sight of the French and no way for them to receive such communications.

On July 11 came the momentous news: the French had been sighted in American waters. At about the same time, Rochambeau landed on American soil, disembarking at Newport, Rhode Island. The 1780 offensive against New York did not materialize. But in 1781, Washington’s vision of the Franco-American juggernaut finally took shape. By September 28, the combined armies with the French fleet – some 16,000 troops – had arrived in Virginia, where the army set up camp outside the British defenses at Yorktown and the French fleet blockaded the port so the British could not leave nor receive reinforcements. Just three weeks later, the siege of Yorktown ended with the complete surrender of the British. As a result of this catastrophe to their arms, Britain would sue for peace; the war was effectively over. So Washington’s dream – that the arrival of the French would make the difference and secure American independence – became a reality.

The year 1782 saw the approach of a general peace. Franklin rejected initial peace overtures from Great Britain for a settlement that would provide the thirteen states with some measure of autonomy within the British Empire. He insisted on British recognition of American independence and refused to consider a peace separate from France, America’s staunch ally. Franklin did agree, however, to negotiations with the British for an end to the war. Joined by John Adams and John Jay, Franklin engaged the British in formal negotiations beginning on September 27, 1782. Two months of hard bargaining resulted in preliminary articles of peace in which the British accepted American independence and boundaries, resolved the difficult issues of fishing rights on the Newfoundland banks and prewar debts owed British creditors, promised restitution of property lost during the war by Americans loyal to the British cause, and provided for the evacuation of British forces from the United States. The preliminary articles signed in Paris on November 30, 1782, were only effective when Britain and France signed a similar treaty, which French Foreign Minister Vergennes quickly negotiated. France signed preliminary articles of peace with Great Britain on January 20, 1783, and a formal peace – the Treaty of Paris – would be signed on September 3, 1783. In the eyes of the world, the United States was officially in existence.

The Comte de Estaing commanded the French Navy in America. At Savannah on October 9, 1779, he attempted a surprise assault on the western fortifications, but deserters had alerted the English, who repelled the combined American-French force with heavy casualties. Estaing was wounded in an arm and leg. The French vessels divided up, and d’Estaing sailed to France. He arrived there in December just in time to enjoy the celebrations for his victory at Grenada. In July 1780 Estaing was sent to Cadiz, a staging point in Spain, to command a joint French-Spanish amphibious expedition. Its object was set as British Jamaica, but the signing of the Peace Preliminaries on January 20, 1783, ended the need for the project. In fact, now it was time to bring the French army and navy home and cancel operations against the British.

On February 4, 1783, after signing treaties with France and Spain, England officially declared an end to hostilities.

Manuscript, in the hand of the main aide at the French Navy Department, February 4, 1783, from the Navy Department to the Department of Naval Forces in French Guadeloupe, calling off further military action against Britain and cancelling the action against Jamaica. Note that Toulon had been the staging site of the military navy for supplies sent to America, and was then replaced by the Brest arsenal, better located because more close to the British Isles and more able to ship forces to North America

“M. de Castries [Navy Minister, and a major figure in planning the war] warns M. le Baron de Clungy [Marc Antoine Gabriel de Clugny – Guadeloupe Governor] that, the ratifications having been exchanged, all dispatch must be made for the return of the troops, supplies and vessels of the army of M. the Comte d’Estaing. It is the intention of the War Department to bring to Provence all the troops who have departed, including the first recruits of 550 men who had gone from Toulon to Cadiz. And to Brest and to Rochefort all who had left from the ports of the West. It will be necessary to gather for M. de la Porte [General Intendant of Naval Forces] all supplies, either to be sold at Cadiz if that can be done, or to return them to our ports or send them to the Isles [Antilles], according to the calculations to be made relative to the colonies. We think, however, that, all the troops of the King needing to return there within 3 to 4 months to France, there must be, in the Isles, provisions already beyond their needs. Presuming that the Baron de Clugny did not keep the provision information that he proposed to Mr. de Castries regarding Cadiz, he sends the table of measurements that he gave him last Sunday in Versailles in order to so that he can plan.”

As rare and tangible a token of the end of the Revolutionary War as you can find. We’ve not seen anything like it. Peace was now at hand, though one that would scarcely survive a decade.