Tensions between the United States and Britain remained high after the Revolution. American courts impeded the collection of debts owed to British creditors; there were still 1,000 British troops on American soil; and American markets were closed to the British West Indies. The crisis culminated in 1794 when the new French Republic declared war on Great Britain and the British began seizing ships bound for France and the French West Indies. Complicating matters, the French insisted that the United States was committed to aid the French because of the 1778 Treaty of Amity and Commerce, which stipulated that the two nations would defend each other against England. Washington rejected this on the grounds that the Treaty had been made with the French monarchy and not the French Republic, then declared the United States’ neutrality with respect to the ‘belligerent powers’. When the British refused to acknowledge his proclamation of neutrality, Washington sent John Jay to London to negotiate a new treaty.
Reaching London in June 1794, Jay laboured with negotiators through the summer and autumn, finally delivering a finished document to Washington in March 1795. The terms stipulated that the British would evacuate their northwest posts and would allow US ships to trade with the British West Indies – though severely restricting the size of ships. However favourable these terms were, there were several requirements: the repayment of debts to British creditors; the acknowledgement of Britain as ‘most favoured nation’ while tariffs remained in place on US goods; Britain’s right to seize US ships aiding the French war effort. Jay knew that the Treaty would not give ‘universal satisfaction,’ and Washington, anticipating some criticism, kept its contents secret for three months. When he did release a new treaty, there was widespread public outcry. Throughout the whole ordeal, the young nation remained divided. Republicans were steadfast in their support of the French revolutionaries, despite the deplorable bloodshed of post-revolutionary France’s Reign of Terror. Federalists were more pragmatic. While they were not pleased at feeling dictated to by their very recent foe, they understood that maintaining good relationships with Britain would benefit the national economy. Washington, Hamilton and Jay were in this camp, while Jefferson, Madison and Monroe were avid Francophiles. Feeling removed from the base of power, the three Republican leaders worked secretly to discredit the Treaty and Washington himself. Soon, with careful manipulation of the press, citizens up and down the Atlantic turned against Jay, some even by burning his effigy. At a rally in New York, Hamilton was stoned by the crowd when he rose to defend the Treaty. The presidential mansion was surrounded for days with protesters demanding war against England while praising the virtues of the new French Republic. Some Republican newspapers went as far as calling for Washington’s impeachment.
Washington was shaken and perplexed at the amount of abuse. Despite all the attacks, the Treaty was maintained, and provided the bedrock of peace and prosperity during his presidency. It opened up the area northwest of the Ohio River to a flood of settlers and established a foreign policy of isolationism that lasted nearly a century.
Washington had always supported the idea of free discussion of the government in the press, but he had no stomach for such outrageous, personal attacks. As a result, he refused to allow his name to be placed in nomination for a third term. In writing his Farewell Address, Washington bemoaned the establishment of political parties, viewing them as disloyal cabals against the duly elected government. In a letter to Thomas Pickering in 1795, he wrote of himself as a man ‘who is of no party, and whose sole wish is to pursue … a path which would lead this country to respectability, wealth, and happiness’. By endorsing only those Federalist programs put forth by Hamilton and ignoring Jefferson’s proposals, he had provoked Jefferson and his followers to turn against him. While Washington sincerely saw himself above party partisanship, he unwittingly sparked the development of the two-party system that endures to this day.