Foreign Policy

What Are the Objectives of United States Foreign Policy?

A) Make Americans safer (poor track record in the post-9/11 world)

B) Make Americans wealthier (trillions of dollars squandered in Afghanistan and Iraq)

C) Advance American values—democracy, free markets, the rule of law, etc.— globally (tough to reconcile with cozying up to repulsive regimes in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and elsewhere)

Materialism versus Idealism (Interpretive Schema)

A) Materialists (Marxists, world-systems theorists) view U.S. foreign policy as principally determined by economic factors: the search for foreign markets, efforts to foster a free-trading capitalist international environment, etc.

B) Idealists emphasize ideological, non-material factors: racism, religious zeal, humanitarianism, etc.

Isolationism versus Internationalism (Prescriptive Schema)

A) Isolationists strive for a “Fortress America” that minds its own business

B) Interventionists argue that the United States benefits both itself and the rest of the world by getting involved in affairs beyond its borders

Who Makes Foreign Policy?

A) Not a democratic activity—tends to be the preserve of a rich, white, male elite

B) Presidents historically exercise greater control over foreign policy than Congress

1. Many milestones in the history of U.S. foreign policy arise from solely presidential initiative: Monroe Doctrine (1823), Open Door policy (1899-1900), Marshall Plan (1948), wars in Korea (1950-1953) and Vietnam (1965-1973)

2. Executive agreements are a handy substitute for treaties, a means of circumventing Congress

C)

Congress wields some weapons for redressing this balance

1. Tariff acts, immigration laws, and neutrality statutes can tie the executive’s hands in dealings with other nations.

2. The power of the purse: Congress can cut off funds or impose restrictions on spending

3. Hearings and investigations

Making Treaties: The Much-Maligned Two-Thirds Requirement

1. Objections: It’s undemocratic, encourages obstructionism

2. Defenses: Not as obstructive as often claimed, fosters careful legal review by experts, protects the rights of the minority

The Question of the Imperial Constitution

A) The British think of the colonies as dependent corporations that exist for the good of the Mother Country; the colonists see themselves as independent states governed by a common crown

B) The British think that the colonies are conspiring for independence; in fact, if not in law, the colonists express loyalty and great pride in their membership in the British Empire

C) The British think of the colonists as crude yokels who basically don’t want to pay their fair share of taxes; Colonel Barré expresses the American view in his famous “Sons of Liberty” address to Parliament

Impact of the Seven Years’ War (or French and Indian War)

A) The elimination of French and Spanish rivals in North America frees the hands of the British government to reorganize its increasingly valuable possessions

B) The displacement of the French from the North American continent results in an obvious potential ally for the American colonists, should they opt for independence

First Imperial Crisis: Grenville Ministry (1763-1765)

A) British actions: Proclamation of 1763, American Duties Act of 1764, Currency Act of 1764, Stamp Act of 1765

B) American response: Patrick Henry’s Resolves, Stamp Act Riots, Stamp Act Congress, non-importation

C) Resolution: New Rockingham ministry repeals Stamp Act, but also passes Declaratory Act

Second Imperial Crisis: Pitt Ministry (1767-1770)

A) British actions: Townsend Duties, Board of Customs

B) American response: Dickinson’s Farmer’s Letters, non-importation

C) Resolution: Troops landed in Boston; all Townsend Duties revoked except tea; non-importation collapses

Third Imperial Crisis: North Ministry (1774-1776)

A) American actions: Boston Massacre, burning of the Gaspee, Boston Tea Party

B) British response: Intolerable Acts

C) Resolution: The British make General Gage the governor of Massachusetts; first Continental Congress meets; battle at Lexington and Concord; Second Continental Congress meets; Paine’s Common Sense; American independence is declared

The New England Campaign (1774-1776)

A) The British ministry believes that the revolution is the result of a small faction that has taken control of New England; their first strategy is to use military force to bring order to the seat of the rebellion and rally the loyal citizenry.

B) They appoint Gage governor (and send him troops in Boston), thus unifying military and civilian command under the revised government.

C) Gage warns that support for the rebellion is more widespread than London realizes; he is ordered to make a show of force.

D) Catastrophe at Lexington and Concord, and costly “victory” over the colonials at Bunker Hill, force a reevaluation of British strategy

The Campaign in the Middle Colonies (1776-1777)

A) The British realize that New England is solidly revolutionary and cannot be occupied without overwhelming force; they decide to move to the more loyal and hospitable Middle Colonies, where they can isolate the Yankees, establish a secure base, rally loyalists, and crush Washington’s small army.

B) Despite scoring some impressive victories, the British discover that the population of the Middle Colonies is less loyal than they anticipated.

C) They also see the difficulty in trying to destroy an army that constantly retreats.

The Southern Campaign (1778-1781)

A) The British decide to focus their attention on the one region that is thought to be the most loyal, the South (relatively untouched by war up to this point).

B) The British assume that the South, with its abundance of loyalists, will require fewer British troops; soldiers will take areas and loyalists will “pacify” them—thus enabling the British to seize the entire South in an invincible campaign.

C) Much to the chagrin of the British, what they actually experience is guerrilla fighting and partisan civil war.

D) Washington triumphs at Yorktown, support for the war effort collapses in Britain, and the former colonial overlords sue for peace

The (Perceived) Commercial Benefits of Independence

A) Paine argues that ending England’s monopoly over American commerce will result in profitable trade with the other great powers of Europe, especially France; those nations will gladly assist the United States to protect and maintain that trade

B) Adams fashions a Model Treaty—the “Plan of 1776”—based on this over-optimistic view:

1. Its only political commitment is a pledge not to aid Britain militarily against France

2. Emphasizes neutral rights: “free ships make free goods”

3. Promotes a very narrow definition of contraband

French Reaction to the American Appeal for Assistance

A) Vergennes is eager to avenge France’s defeat by Britain in the Seven Years’ War, but wants to avoid outright co-belligerency with the Americans; he funnels supplies to the rebels through a dummy trading company

B) British military successes in the New York campaign give French statesmen pause, delaying official recognition of independence

C) The Battle of Saratoga tips the scales; Franklin and Vergennes sign two treaties:

1. Treaty of Amity and Commerce: Gives the United States most-favored-nation status and accepts the Model Treaty’s definitions of neutral rights and contraband

2. Treaty of Alliance: The U.S. pledges not to make peace with Britain without France’s consent, guarantees French possessions and conquests in North America

D) The other powers of Europe decline to form similar alliances with the U.S., but Spain and Holland ultimately join France in its war against England

Forging a Peace: The Americans Double-Cross the French

A) In confidential meetings with Oswald, Franklin hints at American willingness to reconcile with Britain, with or without French assent

B) Franklin, Jay, and Adams are troubled by Vergennes’s apparent disregard for American interests

C) The Americans initiate secret and separate negotiations with the British

D) A “preliminary” treaty is concluded; Franklin conciliates Vergennes

E) “The English buy the peace more than they make it”: A peace-hungry Britain agrees to astonishingly generous terms

A Union in Name Only: The United States, 1781-1789

A) Fails the standard tests of “nationhood”: no common language, territory, religion, traditions—even currency

B) National government possesses certain powers, but cannot tax

C) America’s military commands no respect: an abandoned navy, a one-regiment army (it sucks)

II) Humiliation at the Hands of the British

1. Americans miss the privileges of being members of the British Empire, find themselves shut out of England’s mercantilist system

2. Britain will not conclude any treaties of commercial reciprocity with the United States

3. The confederation government cannot compel the states to cooperate in commercial retaliation against Britain

4. Britain will not vacate its forts in the American Northwest, maintains control over the fur trade and influence over Amerindian tribes

5. British officials attempt to seize Vermont, attach it to Canada

6. John Adams, first U.S. minister to Britain, is “as insignificant . . . as you can imagine,” abandons the reasoning behind his 1776 Model Treaty

Humiliation at the Hands of the Spanish

A) Spain disputes the southwestern boundary established by the 1783 peace treaty, claims a massive chunk of the Old Southwest

B) Spain intrigues with Amerindian tribes, supplying them with weapons for their raids against U.S. settlers

C) Spain refuses to allow free U.S. navigation of the Mississippi—another violation of the Treaty of 1783

1. The Spanish close the mouth of the Mississippi to American commerce in 1784, threatening Westerners with economic devastation

2. Jay and Gardoqui negotiate a mortifying provisional settlement in which the U.S. renounces use of the Mississippi in exchange for trade privileges

3. Southern and Western opposition kills the Jay-Gardoqui agreement, exacerbates sectional tension in the U.S.

4. America finally gains access to the Mississippi after bribing Madrid

Humiliation at the Hands of the French

A) Jefferson tries to coax trade concessions from Paris, gets nowhere

B) France demands repayment of Revolutionary War debts, threatens to seize U.S. territory as compensation

The War-Making Power

A) Congress is provisionally given the power to “make” war, but concerns are raised about Congress’s capacity to act swiftly and decisively

B) Some suggest that the president be given the war-making power, but this smacks of autocracy

C) Ultimately, the word “declare” is substituted for “make” (Article I, Section 8)—a change that, at least from the perspective of framers Madison and Gerry, does not significantly expand the president’s prerogative in waging war

D) Article II, Section 2 makes the president “Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy”—a “tacked-on” clause that Cold War presidents inflate beyond the framers’ worst nightmares

The Power to Regulate Commerce

A) Southern delegates demand three safeguards to protect their interests:

1. No ban on the importation of slaves

2. No duties on exports

3. A two-thirds requirement for approving navigation acts

B) Madison and others are able to craft a sectional compromise, giving in to the slave request but adopting a simple majority policy on navigation acts; this rescues a desperately-needed source of federal revenue. 

The Treaty-Making Process

A) The president is allowed a role in forging treaties, but only as a hedge against the possible disproportionate influence of small states in the Senate—not as a deliberate enhancement of executive authority in the realm of foreign policy

B) The two-thirds majority rule for approving treaties is adopted, for better or worse

War Breaks Out in Europe in 1789, Does Not End until 1815: Principal Belligerents Are France and England

A) The Washington administration strives to remain neutral, but many Americans are fiercely pro-British or pro-French

B) Hamilton and the Federalists favor Britain, stress the importance of revenue from Anglo-American trade

C) Jefferson and the Republicans favor France, want to punish England commercially and widen the range of American trading partners

The Pro-French Furor (French Revolution)

A) News of the storming of the Bastille and the guillotining of Louis XVI is greeted with wild enthusiasm in America

B) When France declares war on Britain, many Americans—noting similarities to their own Revolutionary War and the obligations imposed by the 1778 treaty—demand that the U.S. ally with France; Jefferson and Madison issue ringing interventionist counters

C) Hamilton responds with classic isolationist reasoning

Washington’s Cabinet Thrashes Out Major Precedents

A) Decides to treat the 1778 treaty with France as still binding, despite the collapse of the Articles of Confederation and the French monarchy: sanctity of treaties

B) Elects to receive a diplomatic envoy from Revolutionary France:

swift recognition of regimes in de facto control

C) Washington issues his neutrality proclamation

The Citizen Genet Affair

A) Genet arrives in America, receives a rhapsodic welcome, and brazenly outfits American ships as privateers against Britain

B) Disappointed by Washington’s lack of enthusiasm for the revolutionary cause, Genet sponsors an anti-Washington campaign in the American press and among various Francophile groups

C) Washington demands, and receives, Genet’s deposal, but declines to send Genet home to face the guillotine

The Federalists Steer Clear of War (British Provocations) 

A) Refusal to surrender the forts on the northwest frontier (in defiance of the 1783 peace treaty)

B) Intrigue with the Amerindians

C) Drastic expansion of the definition of “contraband”

D) Resurrection of a stifling 1756 commercial restriction

Jay’s Thankless Task, Britain’s Hard Bargain

A) Jay negotiates a Treaty of Amity, Commerce, and Navigation with England

1. The British finally evacuated their forts and accorded the U.S. most-favored-nation status

2. But Jay permits the British to eviscerate the principle of “free ships make free goods” and does not insist upon the abandonment of impressment

B) Washington determines that the treaty is the price America must pay for peace

C) Jay’s Treaty clears the Senate by a whisker

D) Pinckney’s Treaty with Spain helps Jay’s Treaty win approval in the House of Representatives; the pacts are viewed as two halves of the same walnut

The Wrath of France

A) The French government abrogates the 1778 Commercial Treaty, begins seizing American ships

B) French agents maneuver to defeat Washington’s re-election in 1796

C) Washington withdraws from the presidential race, publishes his Farewell Address—a masterpiece of isolationist rhetoric

Adams Strives to Maintain U.S. Neutrality

A) “Not one cent for tribute!”: The XYZ incident whips America into a war frenzy

B) Congress initiates a quasi-war with France, unilaterally renouncing the 1778 alliance and dramatically expanding America’s military forces

C) Pro-British, Federalist influence is apparently at high tide, but Adams refuses to ask Congress for a declaration of war

D) Adams cuts his own political throat, sends a commission to France to devise peace terms

E) The U.S. (Adams) abandons all financial claims against France in exchange for French agreement to mutual abrogation of the 1778 treaties

F) Jefferson defeats Adams in the 1800 election, pledges to continue the Federalists’ policy of no entangling alliances

The Louisiana Purchase (background)

• France reacquires Louisiana (1800):

  • Jefferson, once pro-French, becomes alarmed—fears Napoleon’s ambitions.

  • Spain, under Napoleon’s influence, violates Pinckney’s Treaty by restricting U.S. use of New Orleans.

  • Napoleon prepares a large force to occupy Louisiana, heightening American panic.

• Santo Domingo (Haiti) Rebellion derails Napoleon’s plans:

  • Napoleon intended Louisiana to supply food and resources for the Caribbean colonies.

  • Toussaint L’Ouverture’s slave revolt and yellow fever destroy the French army.

  • Without Santo Domingo, Louisiana loses strategic value to France.

• Napoleon decides to sell Louisiana (1803):

  • Needs money for wars in Europe.

  • Hopes to strengthen ties with the U.S. and block British influence in America.

• Jefferson’s constitutional dilemma:

  • The Constitution doesn’t explicitly allow buying territory.

  • Fearful Napoleon might withdraw the offer if delayed, Jefferson proceeds without an amendment.

  • Congress approves the purchase, doubling U.S. territory.

• Credit for the purchase’s success:

  • John Adams: His earlier policies (e.g., maintaining peace, strengthening the Navy) kept U.S. options open.

  • Toussaint L’Ouverture: His successful rebellion indirectly forced Napoleon to abandon America.

Jefferson and the Napoleonic Wars

• Neutral Trade Boom (early 1800s):

  • U.S. profits from neutrality—trades freely with both Britain and France.

  • “Broken voyages” let Americans dodge British restrictions on colonial trade.

• Commercial Warfare between Britain & France:

  • Britain blocks Europe with the 1806 Order in Council; Napoleon retaliates with Berlin & Milan Decrees.

  • Both sides seize U.S. ships—Jefferson turns to isolationism to avoid war.

• Impressment Crisis:

  • British navy forcibly takes alleged deserters from U.S. ships.

  • Conflicts over citizenship (“Once an Englishman, always an Englishman”).

  • Monroe-Pinkney Treaty could’ve eased tensions, but Jefferson rejects it.

  • Chesapeake-Leopard affair (1807) sparks American outrage and near war.

• Jefferson’s “Peaceable Coercion” – The Embargo Act (1807):

  • Jefferson bans U.S. trade to pressure Britain and France to respect neutrality.

  • Backfires—crushes American commerce, especially in New England.

  • Some long-term benefits: boosts domestic manufacturing, ends impressment temporarily, and buys time.

  • Britain doesn’t yield—its voters unaffected, war economy resilient, good harvests lessen impact.

  • Embargo repealed by Congress in 1809, just before Jefferson leaves office.

War of 1812

• Blundering into War:

  • Non-Intercourse Act (1809): Replaces Jefferson’s embargo, reopening trade with all but Britain & France.

  • Erskine Affair: British diplomat promises too much; deal collapses.

  • Macon’s Bill No. 2 (1810): Reopens trade; Napoleon tricks Madison into siding against Britain.

  • War Hawks in Congress push for war—blame Britain for aiding Native resistance and violating U.S. neutrality.

  • Hopes for easy conquest of Canada and “freedom of the seas” drive U.S. toward conflict.

  • Madison rejects Britain’s late peace offer—war declared in June 1812.

• America the Unready:

  • U.S. military weak, divided—New England opposes the war.

  • Invasions of Canada fail; British repel attacks.

  • After Napoleon’s 1814 defeat, Britain focuses forces on America—captures D.C. and burns the capital.

• Peace at Ghent (1814):

  • Britain demands harsh terms; U.S. negotiators stand firm—stalemate.

  • U.S. victories at Plattsburgh and Baltimore boost morale.

  • Madison publicizes British demands, uniting Americans.

  • Treaty of Ghent ends war with no territorial gains, restoring status quo ante bellum

Jefferson’s and Adams’s Florida Policy Summary

• Early U.S. Attempts to Seize Florida:

  • Jefferson: Tries to claim West Florida as part of the Louisiana Purchase; secretly negotiates with Napoleon to obtain both Floridas from Spain.

  • Madison: Recognizes a local revolt in West Florida and annexes it; tolerates failed efforts to seize East Florida; expels remaining Spanish troops.

• Adams–de Onís Negotiations (1818–1819):

  • Spanish minister de Onís first offers all Florida but wants the western boundary at the Mississippi—Adams refuses, insisting on Rio Grande.

  • De Onís warns Europe of U.S. expansionism; Britain and France decline to help Spain.

  • Negotiations continue—Adams pushes for a transcontinental boundary.

• Jackson’s Florida Invasion (1818):

  • General Andrew Jackson invades Florida, captures posts, executes British subjects, and removes the Spanish governor.

  • Britain protests; Monroe’s cabinet divided, but Adams defends Jackson, blaming Spain for failing to control its territory.

• Spain Concedes – Adams-Onís Treaty (1819):

  • Facing colonial revolts in Latin America, Spain agrees to settle.

  • Adams drops the Rio Grande claim but secures East and West Florida and extends the U.S. boundary to the Pacific.

  • Despite delays, both nations ratify the Adams-Onís Treaty (1819), completing America’s acquisition of Florida.

The Monroe Doctrine

• Latin American Revolutions:

  • U.S. divided — Henry Clay and others want to recognize new Latin republics; Jefferson, Madison, Monroe choose isolation and neutrality.

  • European Holy Alliance threatens to restore Spanish rule — U.S. fears despotism spreading to the Americas.

• Russian Expansion Threat:

  • Tsar advances south into Alaska and toward Oregon, violating U.S.–British claims.

  • Monroe administration views Russian moves and the Holy Alliance as linked threats to the Western Hemisphere.

• Canning’s Proposal & Adams’s Stand:

  • Britain proposes a joint declaration to protect Latin America from re-colonization.

  • Most U.S. leaders agree, but Secretary of State John Quincy Adams insists the U.S. act alone — to assert independent policy.

  • Adams convinces Monroe to make a purely American statement rejecting European interference.

• The Monroe Doctrine (1823):

  • Declares the Western Hemisphere closed to new European colonization.

  • Separates Old and New Worlds — pledges non-intervention in European affairs.

  • Symbolizes growing American self-confidence and hemispheric leadership.

  • Initially resented by monarchies, distrusted by Latin America, but hailed in the U.S.

• Connection to Manifest Destiny:

  • The Monroe Doctrine becomes the ideological foundation for Manifest Destiny — justifying U.S. expansion as a defense of liberty in the Western Hemisphere.

  • Later generations reinterpret it as America’s “divine right” to spread across the continent and influence Latin America.

Manifest Destiny

• Motives for Expansion:

  • South: Wants more land for cotton and new slave states.

  • North & West: Farmers seek fresh soil after depleting old fields.

  • New England: Merchants desire Pacific ports (California, Oregon) for Asian trade.

  • Ideology: Many view expansion as divinely ordained—spreading liberty and civilization.

  • Patriotism: Others see it as strengthening America’s power and greatness.

• Debate over Annexation:

  • Some insist expansion should be voluntary, inspired by American ideals.

  • Others argue forcible annexation benefits “less advanced” peoples regardless of consent.

• Indian Removal Legacy:

  • Andrew Jackson enacts the Indian Removal Act (1830), forcing tribes westward.

  • Supreme Court rulings offer little restraint; Jackson ignores them.

  • The Trail of Tears devastates the Cherokee—sets precedent for future displacement.

• Manifest Destiny & Sectional Tension:

  • Western expansion leads to rapid creation of new states from Louisiana Purchase and Mexican War lands.

  • Missouri Compromise (1820) temporarily balances slave and free states.

  • Expansion reignites the slavery debate, culminating in the Civil War.

Treaty of 1778

France recognized the United States as an independent nation.
The United States and France pledged to fight together until American independence was secured.
1. France agreed to provide military and financial support, including troops, supplies, and a naval squadron.
2. The treaty included a Treaty of Amity and Commerce, which encouraged trade between the two nations.

XYZ Affair

The XYZ Affair was a diplomatic incident where U.S. diplomats were asked for bribes by French agents (labeled X, Y, and Z) to meet with the French foreign minister, leading to outrage in America and a "quasi-war" at sea between the two countries. It occurred when France was angry at the U.S. for remaining neutral in a war with Britain and seizing American ships

Jay and Pinckney Treaties

Jay's Treaty (1794) with Great Britain addressed lingering issues from the Revolutionary War, resulting in a British withdrawal from northwestern posts, a commercial treaty, and an arbitration of disputes, but failed to stop British impressment of American sailors.

Pinckney's Treaty (1795) with Spain resolved a southern border dispute, secured U.S. navigation rights on the Mississippi River, and granted the U.S. a "right of deposit" (tax-free storage) in the port of New Orleans

1778 Commercial Treaty

The 1778 commercial treaties were two agreements, the Treaty of Amity and Commerce and the Treaty of Alliance, signed by the United States and France.

The Treaty of Amity and Commerce established trade rules, treating both nations as equals and creating a framework for commercial exchange.

The Treaty of Alliance was a military pact that committed France to supporting the United States in the American Revolutionary War against Great Britain.

Both treaties were crucial for American independence, as they provided vital French support and formally recognized the United States as a sovereign nation.

Chesapeake–Leopard affair

The Chesapeake–Leopard affair was a naval engagement off the coast of Norfolk, Virginia, on June 22, 1807, between the British fourth-rate HMS Leopard and the American frigate USS Chesapeake. The crew of Leopard pursued, attacked, and boarded the American frigate, looking for deserters from the Royal Navy (caused American outrage against Britain) 

“Broken Voyages” 

a legal loophole used by neutral merchants, particularly American ships, to trade with warring nations by making a stop in a neutral port. Merchants would sail goods from an enemy's colony to a U.S. port, pay duties, and then re-export the goods as if they were American products. This allowed them to bypass Britain's "Rule of 1756," which prevented direct trade between a colony and its enemy, and significantly increased tensions between the U.S. and Britain, contributing to the War of 1812.