Amiens, treaty of
Amiens, treaty of, 1802. The treaty provided the only break in the long war between Britain and revolutionary and Napoleonic France from 1793 to 1814. By 1801 the conflict was near to stalemate. Britain had been unable to co-ordinate effective coalitions and her raids on the continent had proved unsuccessful: France had lost control of the seas and was unable to deliver a knock-out blow. The resignation of Pitt in 1801 made it easier for his successor Addington to seek peace. Britain retained Ceylon and Trinidad but restored the Cape of Good Hope to the Dutch. Malta was to be given back to the Knights of St John and guaranteed. The French were to withdraw from Naples and central Italy and Egypt was to return to Turkish rule. Each side dragged its feet on fulfilling the terms and the peace, little more than an armed truce, lasted only until May 1803, when Britain declared war. Napoleon then began planning an invasion of England.
J. A. Cannon
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Amiens, treaty of
