1803-December-01: Secretary of State James Madison engaged in a theoretical discussion with French chargé Pichon regarding the future status of Saint-Domingu…
1803-December-01: Secretary of State James Madison engaged in a theoretical discussion with French chargé Pichon regarding the future status of Saint-Domingue following a total French withdrawal. Madison posited three possibilities: British occupation, British commercial treaties with the black population, or the island remaining independent in its external relations. He expressed concern that if Great Britain monopolized the trade through a treaty, American merchants would be unfairly excluded from a vital market. Madison used these scenarios to probe whether France would continue to assert sovereignty over the trade even if they no longer held any territory on the island. This conversation highlighted the American priority of maintaining commercial access regardless of the political outcome of the revolution.