The Treaty of Alliance of 1778 was a treaty between France and the United States, that was signed in Paris by American and French officials on February 6 1778, which stated the two countries agreed to aid each other in the event of a British attack from the present time and forever, and also stated that neither countries would make amends with England until independence of the United States was recognized. The treaty resulted from the success of American forces in the Battle of Saratoga.

This alliance, also called the Franco-American Alliance, brought France into the American Revolutionary War, helping to tip the scales towards the American side and giving hope to the revolutionary cause. It would later prove decisive at the siege of Yorktown. The Treaty was abrogated in late 1799 after the XYZ Affair, and was only mutually beneficial for five years, from 1778 to 1783. However, the actual treaty lasted for twenty-two years (until 1800).

1778 | American Revolutionary War | History of France | United States treaties