Treaty of Paris (1898)
The Treaty of Peace between the United States of America and the Kingdom of Spain, commonly known as the Treaty of Paris of 1898,[a] was signed by Spain and the United States on December 10, 1898, that ended the Spanish–American War. Under it, Spain relinquished all claim of sovereignty over and title to territories described there as the island of Porto Rico and other islands now under Spanish sovereignty in the West Indies, and the island of Guam in the Marianas or Ladrones, the archipelago known as the Philippine Islands, and comprehending the islands lying within the following line: (details elided),[2] to the United States. The cession of the Philippines involved a compensation of $20 million[b] from the United States to Spain.[3]
For other treaties of Paris, see Treaty of Paris (disambiguation).Treaty of Peace between the United States of America and the Kingdom of Spain
The treaty came into effect on April 11, 1899, when the documents of ratification were exchanged.[4] It was the first treaty negotiated between the two governments since the 1819 Adams–Onís Treaty.
The Treaty of Paris marked the end of the Spanish Empire, apart from some small holdings. It had a major cultural impact in Spain known as the "Generation of '98". It marked the beginning of the United States as a world power. In the U.S., many supporters of the war opposed the treaty, which became one of the major issues in the election of 1900 when it was opposed by Democrat William Jennings Bryan, who opposed imperialism.[5] Republican President William McKinley supported the treaty and was easily reelected.[6]
Article V of the peace protocol between United States and Spain on August 12, 1898[11] read as follows:
The composition of the American commission was somewhat unusual in that three of its members were senators, which meant, as many newspapers pointed out, that they would later vote on the ratification of their own negotiations.[13] These were American delegation's members:
The Spanish commission included the following Spanish diplomats:
The American delegation, headed by former Secretary of State William R. Day, who had vacated his position as U.S. Secretary of State to head the commission, arrived in Paris on September 26, 1898. The negotiations were conducted in a suite of rooms at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. At the first session, on October 1, the Spanish demanded that before the talks got underway, the return of the city of Manila, which had been captured by the Americans a few hours after the signing of the peace protocol in Washington, to Spanish authority. The Americans refused to consider the idea and, for the moment, it was pursued no further.[14]
Felipe Agoncillo, a Filipino lawyer who represented the First Philippine Republic, was denied participation in the negotiation.
For almost a month, negotiations revolved around Cuba. The Teller Amendment to the declaration of war made it impractical for the United States to annex the island as it had with Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines.[14] At first, Spain refused to accept the Cuban national debt of four hundred million dollars[b], but ultimately, it had no choice. Eventually, it was agreed that Cuba was to be granted independence and for the Cuban debt to be assumed by Spain. It was also agreed that Spain would cede Guam and Puerto Rico to the United States.[15]
The negotiators then turned to the question of the Philippines. Spanish negotiators were determined to hang onto all they could and hoped to cede only Mindanao and perhaps the Sulu Islands.[15] On the American side, Chairman Day had once recommended the acquisition of only the naval base in Manila, as a "hitching post."[16] Others had recommended retaining only the island of Luzon. However, in discussions with its advisers, the commission concluded that Spain, if it retained part of the Philippines, would be likely to sell it to another European power, which would likely be troublesome for America.[17] On November 25, the American Commission cabled McKinley for explicit instructions. Their cable crossed one from McKinley saying that duty left him no choice but to demand the entire archipelago. The next morning, another cable from McKinley arrived:
This position was proposed by U.S. negotiators, though they considered it unsound, and was formally rejected on November 4. Seeking a solution to avoid collapse of the negotiations, Senator Frye suggested offering Spain ten or twenty million dollars[b] for the islands. The State Department approved, though they considered this odious.[19] After some discussion, the American delegation offered twenty million dollars[b] on November 21, one tenth of a valuation that had been estimated in internal discussions in October, and requested an answer within two days.[20] Montero Ríos said angrily that he could reply at once, but the American delegation had already departed from the conference table. When the two sides met again, Queen-Regent Maria Christina had cabled her acceptance. Montero Ríos then recited his formal reply:
Work on the final draft of the treaty began on November 30. It was signed on December 10, 1898.
Ratification[edit]
Spanish ratification[edit]
In Madrid, the Cortes Generales, Spain's legislature, rejected the treaty, but Maria Christina signed it as she was empowered to do by a clause in the Spanish constitution.[22]
Provisions[edit]
The Treaty of Paris provided for the independence of Cuba from Spain, but the U.S. Congress ensured indirect U.S. control by the Platt Amendment and the Teller Amendment. Spain relinquished all claims of sovereignty over and title to Cuba. Upon Spain's departure, Cuba was to be occupied by the United States, which would assume and discharge any obligations of international law by its occupation.
The treaty also specified that Spain would cede Puerto Rico and the other islands under Spanish sovereignty in the West Indies as well as the island of Guam in the Mariana Islands to the United States.
The treaty also specified that Spain would cede the Philippine Islands, including the islands within a specified line, to the United States in exchange for twenty million dollars[b].
Specifics of the cession of the Philippines were later clarified on November 7, 1900, when Spain and the United States signed the Treaty of Washington. This clarified that the territories relinquished by Spain to the United States included any and all islands belonging to the Philippine Archipelago, but lying outside the lines described in the Treaty of Paris. That treaty explicitly named the islands of Cagayan Sulu and Sibutu and their dependencies as among the relinquished territories.[30] The boundary between the Philippines and North Borneo was further clarified by the Convention Between the United States and Great Britain (1930).[31]
Muslim sultanates issue[edit]
Included in the cession of the Philippines were three Moro sultanates in the southern Philippines, the Sultanate of Maguindanao, the Sultanate of Sulu, and the Confederation of sultanates in Lanao. The texts of the Spanish and English copies of the treaties and agreements ceded these to the United States, but the local language's copy of the texts always emphasized the sovereignty and independence of the sultanates and actually included provisions of tribute (similar to the British leasing of Hong Kong from the Qing Dynasty) to be paid to the rulers by the Spanish and the Americans for a handful of lightly garrisoned coastal outposts in the sultanates. Suzerainty, not sovereignty, was the relationship between Spain and these three sultanates, implying that the Spanish Empire did not have the right to include Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago in the Treaty of Paris.
Aftermath[edit]
In the United States[edit]
Victory in the Spanish–American War turned the United States into a world power because the attainment of the territories of Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines expanded its economic dominance in the Pacific. Its growth continued to have effects on U.S. foreign and economic policy well into the next century.[32] Furthermore, McKinley's significant role in advancing the ratification of the treaty transformed the presidential office from a weaker position to a prototype of the stronger presidency that is more seen today.[33]
Further reading[edit]
^ Grenville, J.A.S.; Young, G.B.; Yale University (1966). Politics, Strategy, and American Diplomacy: Studies in Foreign Policy, 1873-1917. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-00511-0.