X, Y, Z Affair

1. X, Y, Z Affair By: Emma Ellis

2. What was the X.Y,Z Affair • The X, Y, Z Affair was an incident between France and the United States that had resulted in an undeclared war (Quasi War).And had led to the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798, and almost to war, between the United States and France. The X, Y, Z Affair had taken place in 1778 during one of the Napoleonic wars between France and Great Britain. President John Adams had appointed Charles Pinckney minister to France in 1796 in an attempt to ease French-U.S. relations, but his plans had failed when the French foreign minister, Charles Talleyrand, refused to accept Pinckney, Adams appointed a commission to France, which consisted of Pinckney, John Marshall, and Elbridge Gerry. Talleyrand sent three French agents to meet with the commission members. The three agents (X, Y, Z) had stated that Talleyrand would agree to the treaty if he received from the United States a $250,000 bribe and France received a $10 million loan, the commission had refused.

3. Focus Question 1:Who were X,Y,Z? No, one is certain on who X,Y,Z were they were publically showed as X,Y,Z. They're names were later revealed as, Jean Conrad Hottinguer, Pierre Bellamy and Lucien Hauteval.

4. Focus Question 1:Jean Conrad Hottinguer (X) The Hottinguer name has been connected with the political, commercial, economic, cultural, and religious life in Europe. His original name was Hans Konrad, changed in 1764 to Jean-Conrad. He studied finance in Geneva, where he took interest in the emerging areas of commercial law. Became a devoted student in public borrowing in both France and Britain. Like Pierre Bellamy, Hottinguer was also a banker, Swiss.

5. Focus Question 1:Pierre Bellamy (Y) Pierre Bellamy was an American banker in Hamburg, Germany and an important merchant. Bellamy was known to be Tallyrand’s personal banker. Pierre was also introduced as Tallyrand’s close friend by Hottinguer.

6. Focus Question 1:Lucien Hauteval (Z) Lucien Hauteval was a wealthy sugar planter from Santo Domingo had lived in Boston, where he had been acquainted with Elbridge Gerry. Lucien had moved to Paris in 1796, and was known to be especially friendly toward the United States.

7. Focus Question 2:Who did X,Y,Z work for? X,Y,Z had worked for the French foreign minister, Charles Tallyrand. Each person had their own connections is to how they knew Tallyrand. Jean Conrad Hottinguer, X, had known Tallyrand through various land purchases in Pennsylvania. Pierre Bellamy, Y, knew Tallyrand because he was his personal banker. Lucien Hauteval, Z, had connections to Tallyrand because he was a close personal friend of his.

8. Focus Question 3:How was the French gov. at the time? Napoleon Bonaparte was in charge of France during the late 1700’s and early 1800’s. He led his armies to victory after victory, and by 1807 France ruled territory that stretched from Portugal to Italy. But his attempt to conquest the rest of Europe failed when he was defeated in Moscow nearly destroyed his empire. He was exiled to the island of Elba, a year later he returned to power for a short period, and was sent to exile again to the island of St.Helena, where he had died in 1821.

9. Sources Websites: • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XYZ_Affair • http://law.jrank.org/pages/11426/XYZ-Affair.html • http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/history/A0852911.html • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baron_Jean-Conrad_Hottinguer • http://wiki.monticello.org/mediawiki/index.php/XYZ_Affair • http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ho/time/nr/16318.htm • http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_happened_with_the_government_in_France_during_the_1800's Books: John Marshall: Definer of a Nation By: Jean Edward Smith Published: New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1996