Ministers to the Court of Versailles (1778–1792) Relations between the United States and the French Court of Versailles were established in 1778 with the signing of the
Treaty of Amity and Commerce. As a republic, the United States was not entitled to send an ambassador. Instead, relations were maintained at the lower
diplomatic rank of
Minister. The position was formally known as the
Minister Plenipotentiary from the United States of America at the Court of Versailles.
Ministers to the First Republic (1792–1804) Diplomatic relations were broken in 1796 due to French anger at U.S. neutrality in the
War of the First Coalition. After the
Directory refused to accept
Charles Cotesworth Pinckney's credentials, a commission was appointed to negotiate with the French Republic. The members of the commission — Pinckney,
John Marshall, and
Elbridge Gerry — were all accredited with the rank of
Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary. French officials demanded a bribe before they would commence negotiations, scuttling the mission in the
XYZ Affair. Hostilities culminated in the outbreak of the
Quasi-War between the U.S. and France. Diplomatic relations were restored with the
Convention of 1800.
James Monroe was accredited Minister Plenipotentiary to the French Republic in 1803 to negotiate the
Louisiana Purchase. However, Robert Livingston remained chief of mission.
Ministers to the Court of the Tuilleries (1804–1848) Since
Versailles had been stripped of its furnishings during the French Revolution, Napoleon I returned the French court to its pre-1682 home at the Tuilleries. U.S. ministers to all future French monarchs would be accredited to the
Tuilleries. After the
Congress of Vienna standardized the system of
diplomatic ranks, the United States continued to send a
Minister, who was officially credentialed as an
Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary.
Ministers to the Second Republic (1848–1852) Ministers to the Court of the Tuilleries (1852–1870) Ministers to the Third Republic (1870–1893) Ambassadors to the Third Republic (1893–1942) After it became a republic, France continued to exchange ambassadors with other Great Powers. This put an end to the longstanding rule that only Great Power monarchies could exchange ambassadors with each other. As the United States grew in population and economic strength, it followed the French example. In 1893, the United States upgraded its diplomatic relations with the other Great Powers to the ambassadorial level.
Ambassadors to the Fourth Republic (1944–1961) Ambassadors to the Fifth Republic (since 1961) ==See also==