On this day in 1783, the Treaty of Paris was signed, formally ending the Revolutionary War

On this day in 1783, the Treaty of Paris was signed, formally ending the Revolutionary War. 🇺🇸 🇬🇧 🇫🇷 Though we often remember the Battle of Yorktown (1781) as the effective end of the war in the colonies, it wasn’t for two more years that the war would be officially ended and the United States recognized as a free and independent nation.

Representatives of King George III met with statesmen Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, and John Adams to negotiate terms that not only ended the war but ceded a substantial amount of American territory to the new United States.

Did you know? British-American tensions remained after the treaty was signed, ultimately coming to a head nearly 30 years later in the War of 1812. In fact, the painting featured today (“Treaty of Paris” by Benjamin West) is believed to be unfinished because the British delegation refused to pose for it. 🧓 👨‍🦳 👨‍🦳 👴 👨‍🦳 👤 👤

Treaty of Paris, Benjamin West, 1783