What was washington’s approach to foreign policy, and why was it complicated?

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The major diplomatic issues facing Washington included American western settlers' conflicts with the Creek Nation, the resolution of problems derived from the Treaty of Paris of 1783 that ended the Revolution, and the war between Great Britain and France.

Upon assuming the Presidency in 1789, Washington almost immediately began treaty negotiations with the Creek Nation. Settlers in several southeastern states were fighting skirmishes with the Native Americans primarily over American land expansion. Holding this land was, in Washington's estimation, a federal matter and a treaty was signed with the Creek. Under the document's provisions, the Creek were paid for their land and re-settled in federally-protected areas. Secretary of War Henry Knox finalized the treaty, covering lands in modern-day Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi. Only afterward did Washington ask for Congressional approval.

At the start of Washington's second term in February 1793, France went to war with Great Britain and its allies. This set up a complex situation for the new American nation that gained independence from Great Britain, yet relied on its former mother country as an important trading partner.

The Jay Treaty of 1794Washington resisted the inclination to support the French, America's stalwart Revolutionary War ally. Instead, he set a precedent by insisting that the United States remain neutral when foreign nations went to war. In addition, Washington claimed that the President had the right to determine this policy.

Washington moved cautiously to seem neutral because he knew that the United States remained militarily vulnerable. In actuality, for many reasons, Washington leaned towards Great Britain. To this end, he worked with Alexander Hamilton to develop the Jay Treaty to normalize trade relations with Britain, resolve financial issues, and settle western land claims. Washington sent John Jay overseas for negotiations without legislative approval.

As a result of the 1794 treaty, the British abandoned their forts around the Great Lakes (yielding additional lands to the United States), numerous pre-Revolutionary debts were canceled, and American traders were declared free to trade with Britain's West Indies colonies. Importantly, the treaty delayed war with Britain (eventually occurring in 1812), and established America and Britain as mutually-benefiting trade partners. Jeffersonians strongly attacked the treaty, favoring relations with France. However, the treaty was ultimately ratified in the Senate.

The treaty did have some negative outcomes as American relations with France deteriorated afterward. In addition, the bitterness over the treaty was one of the causes for the development of American political parties and the extreme partisanship that cropped up during the years of the Early Republic. However, in total, Washington proved an able diplomat and established the presidency on a strong footing for the nation's future travails.

William P. Kladky, Ph.D.

Bibliography:
Chernow, Ron. Washington: A Life. New York, NY: Penguin, 2010.

Herring, George C. From Colony to Superpower: U.S. Foreign Relations Since 1776. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008.

Middlekauff, Robert. The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution, 1763-1789. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1982, 2005.

Reynolds, David. America, Empire of Liberty: A New History of the United States. New York: Basic Books, 2009.

As America's first president, George Washington practiced a pragmatically cautious yet successful foreign policy.

Taking a Neutral Stance

As well as being the "father of the country," Washington was also the father of early US neutrality. He understood that the United States was too young, had too little money, had too many domestic issues, and had too small a military to actively engage in a strident foreign policy.

Still, Washington was no isolationist. He wanted the United States to be an integral part of the western world, but that could only happen with time, solid domestic growth, and a stable reputation abroad.

Washington avoided political and military alliances, even though the US had already been the recipient of military and financial foreign aid. In 1778, during the American Revolution, the United States and France signed the Franco-American Alliance. As part of the agreement, France sent money, troops, and naval ships to North America to fight the British. Washington himself commanded a coalition force of American and French troops at the climactic siege of Yorktown, Virginia, in 1781.​

Nevertheless, Washington declined aid to France during warfare in the 1790s. A revolution — inspired, in part, by the American Revolution — began in 1789. As France sought to export its anti-monarchical sentiments throughout Europe, it found itself at war with other nations, chiefly Great Britain. France, expecting the US would respond favorably to France, asked Washington for aid in the war. Even though France only wanted the US to engage British troops who were still garrisoned in Canada, and take on British naval ships sailing near US waters, Washington refused.

Washington's foreign policy also contributed to a rift in his own administration. The president eschewed political parties, but a party system began in his cabinet nonetheless. Federalists, the core of whom had established the federal government with the Constitution, wanted to normalize relations with Great Britain. Alexander Hamilton, Washington's secretary of the treasury and defacto Federalist leader, championed that idea. However, Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson led another faction — the Democrat-Republicans. (They called themselves simply Republicans, although that is confusing to us today.) The Democrat-Republicans championed France — since France had helped the US and was continuing its revolutionary tradition — and wanted widespread trade with that country.

Jay's Treaty

France — and the Democrat-Republicans — grew angrier with Washington in 1794 when he appointed Supreme Court Chief Justice John Jay as a special emissary to negotiate normalized trade relations with Great Britain. The resulting Jay's Treaty secured "most-favored-nation" trade status for the US in the British trade network, settlement of some pre-war debts, and a pull-back of British troops in the Great Lakes area.

Farewell Address

Perhaps Washington's greatest contribution to US foreign policy came in his farewell address in 1796. Washington was not seeking a third term (although the Constitution did not then prevent it), and his comments were to herald his exit from public life.

Washington warned against two things. The first, although it was really too late, was the destructive nature of party politics. The second was the danger of foreign alliances. He warned neither to favor one nation too highly over another and to not ally with others in foreign wars.

For the next century, while the United States did not steer perfectly clear of foreign alliances and issues, it did adhere to neutrality as the major part of its foreign policy.

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Jones, Steve. "American Foreign Policy Under George Washington." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/foreign-policy-under-george-washington-3310346 (accessed December 17, 2022).

What was George Washington's approach to foreign policy?

Washington's foreign policy focused on protecting the independence of the new nation and avoiding expensive and deadly wars. During Washington's first term, European powers sought every opportunity to undermine American sovereignty.

What was Washington's policy toward Britain and France and why was it complicated?

George Washington established a policy of isolationism to avoid alliances with other countries, which could draw the country into wars abroad. The war between France and Great Britain presented President Washington with the difficult problem of deciding which side to take.

What was George Washington's view on foreign policy quizlet?

George Washington's foreign policy was primarily to keep the United States neutral in foreign affairs as much as possible, as he did not believe it wise for the new nation to involve itself in the affairs of other nations.