The Treaty of Paris formally recognized the United States as independent, completing the diplomatic story behind America250.
The treaty was signed on September 3, 1783, ending the American Revolutionary War between Great Britain and the United States. Britain recognized the United States as a sovereign nation and accepted boundaries that extended west to the Mississippi River.
The treaty followed the military struggle that began before and continued after the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration stated the colonies' claim to independence in 1776, while the treaty secured Britain's formal recognition seven years later.
The United States negotiated through commissioners including Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, John Jay, and Henry Laurens. The agreement also addressed debts, property, prisoners, and Loyalists. It is often confused with the 1783 Treaty of Paris ending other wartime arrangements, but this treaty specifically settled the Anglo-American conflict. America250's anniversary thus recalls both a declaration and the eventual international settlement that confirmed it.