USA HISTORY

MAKING OF A NEW NATION 1776 1800

PRESIDENT JOHN ADAMS FROM ALIEN AND SEDITION ACTS TO XYZ AFFAIR

Question [CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
Why did the French oppose Jay’s Treaty?
A
It put a great financial strain on France
B
They felt that it benefitted the British
C
It made it difficult for France to receive certain goods from America
D
It placed limits on the importing of French goods
Explanation: 

Detailed explanation-1: -When Britain and the United States signed the Jay Treaty (1794) to maintain the peace between the two nations, France saw that treaty as deeply unfair. (For example, Britain could seize goods from U.S. ships sailing to France if it paid compensation.)

Detailed explanation-2: -Jefferson, Madison and other opponents feared the treaty gave too many concessions to the British. They argued that Jay’s negotiations actually weakened American trade rights and complained that it committed the U.S. to paying pre-revolutionary debts to English merchants.

Detailed explanation-3: -France, then at war with England, interpreted the treaty as a violation of its own commercial treaty of 1778 with the U.S. This resentment led to French maritime attacks on the U.S. and between 1798 and 1800 to an undeclared naval war.

Detailed explanation-4: -The only concessions Jay obtained was a surrender of the northwestern posts (already agreed to in 1783) and a commercial treaty with Great Britain that granted the United States “most favored nation” status, but seriously restricted U.S. commercial access to the British West Indies.

There is 1 question to complete.