Jay’s Treaty
To prevent another war with Britain, Washington dispatched
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court John Jay to London
in 1794 to negotiate
a settlement. Under Jay’s Treaty, Britain agreed to
withdraw its troops from the Ohio Valley and pay damages for American
ships that the Royal Navy had seized illegally. The United States,
meanwhile, agreed to pay outstanding pre-Revolutionary War debts.
The treaty greatly displeased the Jeffersonians, who believed that
the United States was cozying up to Britain and thought the treaty required
horrendous concessions.
Pickney’s Treaty
A year later, in 1795, Pinckney’s
Treaty ended the disputes with Spain. The agreement gave
Americans access to the Mississippi River in exchange for promises
of nonaggression against Spanish territory in the West. Hamiltonians
disapproved of this treaty as much as the Jeffersonians disapproved
of Jay’s Treaty. The two sides compromised by ratifying both treaties.
Washington’s Farewell Address
Tired of the demands of the presidency, Washington declined
to run for a third term, and in 1796,
he read his Farewell Address to the nation. In the
speech, he urged Americans not to become embroiled in European affairs.
In response to the growing political battles between Jefferson and
Hamilton, he also warned against the dangers of factionalism and
stated his belief that political parties would ruin the nation.
