Treaty of Paris Theme of Friendship

Friendship might sound like a weird thing to bring up after a long and bitter war, but it's part of the goal of a treaty. Ending a war turns an enemy into an ally.

Or, at least it does in theory. Some of the rhetoric is so over the top, it almost sounds like they're trolling each other.

While the Treaty of Paris might not have transformed both countries into steadfast friends, the next couple hundred years did. Ultimately, the lesson stuck.

1. If the goal of the Treaty of Paris was friendship, did it succeed? Or were other factors in the near century-and-a-half between the Revolution and World War I more important? Which ones?
2. The Treaty of Paris is famous partially for being so generous to the United States. Was the goal of this generosity true friendship? Were there other goals? Was it unrelated?
3. Was friendship a realistic goal for either side? A useful goal? Who had more to gain by it? Who had more to lose?
4. Is the desire for friendship a genuine one, or is this the polite language of diplomacy? Could the British have seen the United States as a potential ally against European powers? Were they just trying to keep the U.S. from allying with France or Spain?

A sincere desire for friendship prompted the British generosity to the United States, and it paid dividends, producing a centuries-long alliance in the 20th and 21st centuries.

The British were seething from defeat and wanted no friendship with the U.S., but knew that antagonizing them would push them into the welcoming arms of their enemy, France.