Louisiana in Politics and Diplomacy

This chapter sets the backdrop for the financial operations that followed from the Franco-American agreement on the transfer of Louisiana. First, it briefly explores the importance of Louisiana to those actors that had a direct interest in the transfer of the territory, that is France, the United States, Spain, and Britain. Second, the chapter briefly retraces the history of the negotiations on the transfer of Louisiana, concluding in the signing of the diplomatic treaty and conventions.