<P> The Treaty of Alliance was in effect an insurance policy for France which guaranteed the support of the United States if Britain were to break the current peace they had with the French, "either by direct hostilities, or by (hindering) her commerce and navigation," as a result of the signing of the Treaty of Amity and Commerce . The treaty lays out the terms and conditions of this military alliance, establishes requirements for the signing of future peace treaties to end hostilities with the British, and provides a secret clause which leaves open the possibility of Spain and other European nations, "who may have received injuries from England," to join the alliance . </P> <P> The first articles of the treaty establish that in the case that war were to break out between France and Britain, during the continuing hostilities of the American Revolutionary War, a military alliance would be formed between France and the United States which would combine each respective military force, and efforts for the direct purpose of maintaining the "liberty, Sovereignty, and (independence) absolute and unlimited of the said united States, as well in Matters of (Government) as of commerce ." </P> <P> This portion of the treaty is used to preemptively divide up any lands obtained from Great Britain due to successful military campaigns or concessions made by Britain in peace treaties to end hostilities with the signing nations . The United States is effectively guaranteed control of any land it is able to gain possession of in North America, besides the islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon which France had retained possession of after the Seven Years' War, and of the Islands of Bermuda due to King Louis XVI of France, renouncing "for ever the possession of the Islands of Bermudas as well as of any part of the continent of North America which before the treaty of Paris in 1763, or in virtue of that Treaty, were acknowledged to belong to the Crown of Great Britain, or to the United States heretofore called British Colonies, or which are at this Time or have lately been under the Power of The King and Crown of Great Britain ." In return the King is guaranteed "any of the Islands situated in the (Gulf) of Mexico, or near that (Gulf)" which France is able to gain possession of . Additional clauses insure that neither France nor the United States will seek to make any additional claims of compensation for their services during the conflict, and that neither side will cease fighting, nor sign a peace treaty with Britain, without the consent of the other nation and insurances that the independence of the United States will be recognized by Britain . </P> <P> Article 10 of the treaty, although largely directed to Spain, invites any other nations "who may have received injuries from England" to negotiate terms and conditions for joining the alliance . </P>

Which event led to an open alliance between the french in the united states