Scraps of Paper

[chr92]

Does anyone have treaties they think could easily have been different enough to change history? Tordesillas was one which occurred to me, but that seems to have been something of a ratification of a fait accompli. But someone who knows more about it might want to disagree.

I was looking at the Treaty of Breda, for an example; written quickly, and incomplete. Would anyone think different settlements likely there?

 

[Anaxagoras]

The thought occurred to me that if the 1763 Treaty of Paris that ended the Seven Years War had not allowed France to retain control of the tiny islands of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, and somehow a butterfly net was put in place allowing history to otherwise unfold as it did IOTL, it would have a significant impact on World War II and the Cold War. The Free French operation to seize control of the islands infuriated Franklin Roosevelt and contributed to a deep distrust of Charles de Gaulle. This, in turn, badly damaged Franco-American relations for the duration of the war and for many years after.