A working draft of the Treaty of Ghent records British changes to the American proposal, including terms for the return of prisoners of war. Though it didn’t address all the causes of the conflict, the Treaty of Ghent initiated a lasting peace between the United States and Great Britain.
His Britannic Majesty and the United States of America, desirous of terminating the War which has unhappily subsisted between the two Countries, and of restoring, upon principles of perfect reciprocity, Peace, Friendship and Good Understanding between them have, for that purpose appointed their respective Plenipotentiaries,…who,…have agreed upon the following Articles.
Records of the U.S. Senate, National Archives and Records Administration
Projet of a Treaty of Peace (Treaty of Ghent), November 10, 1814
War of 1812: The Treaty of Ghent
The Treaty of Ghent officially ended the War of 1812. Signed in Ghent, Principality of the United Netherlands, on December 24, 1814, it was quickly approved by the British Parliament. The United States Senate approved it for ratification on February 16, 1815. Though the war had no clear winner, the treaty restored pre-war territorial boundaries, returned prisoners, and strengthened the United States as a nation. The greatest loss was to American Indians; without the support of their British allies, they were left vulnerable to U.S. power and expansionism.
A working draft of the Treaty of Ghent records British changes to the American proposal, including terms for the return of prisoners of war. Though it didn’t address all the causes of the conflict, the Treaty of Ghent initiated a lasting peace between the United States and Great Britain.
His Britannic Majesty and the United States of America, desirous of terminating the War which has unhappily subsisted between the two Countries, and of restoring, upon principles of perfect reciprocity, Peace, Friendship and Good Understanding between them have, for that purpose appointed their respective Plenipotentiaries,…who,…have agreed upon the following Articles.
Records of the U.S. Senate, National Archives and Records Administration
