Which treaty officially ended the American Revolutionary War in 1783, a key event remembered by America250?

The Treaty of Paris (1783) officially ended the American Revolutionary War and recognized the United States as independent.

Representatives of Great Britain and the United States signed the treaty in Paris on September 3, 1783. The American negotiators were Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, John Jay, and Henry Laurens, while David Hartley signed for Britain on behalf of King George III.

The treaty recognized the 13 former colonies as free, sovereign, and independent states. It also established boundaries that extended the new country west to the Mississippi River, north to the Great Lakes, and south to Spanish Florida. Other provisions addressed fishing rights, debts, and property.

The treaty is often confused with the 1763 Treaty of Paris, which ended the Seven Years’ War, or the 1814 Treaty of Ghent, which ended the War of 1812. The 1783 agreement is the peace settlement linked to American independence.