Methuen Treaty

The Methuen Treaty was a military and commercial treaty between Portugal and England that was signed in 1703 as part of the War of the Spanish Succession.

The treaty stipulated that no tax higher than the tax charged for an equal amount of French wines could be charged for Portuguese wines (but see below) exported to England and that no English textiles exported to Portugal would be charged any taxes, regardless of the geopolitical situation in each of the two nations (that was to make sure that England would still accept Portuguese wine in periods when not at war with France).

Some authors claim that the deal was negative for Portugal. The country would not develop its industrial infrastructures (and therefore lost the industrial race) and other types of agricultural products, but that is debatable since this period saw the appearance of other industries in Portugal like the manufacturing of porcelain. Some of the factories that appeared in this period still exist.

Thanks to this treaty, Portugal retained a strong political position on a stage that revealed itself to be fundamental in preserving the territorial integrity of its most important colony, Brazil, as argued by the Brazilian economist Celso Furtado, in his work "Brazilian Economic Foundation".

At the start of the War of Spanish Succession Portugal had allied with France. As part of this treaty the French had guaranteed the Portuguese naval protection. In 1702, the English navy sailed close to Lisbon on the way to and from Cadiz proving to the Portuguese that the French could not keep their promise. They soon began negotiations with the Grand Alliance about switching sides.

The Methuen treaty was negotiated by John Methuen (c. 1650–1706) who served as a member of Parliament, Lord Chancellor of Ireland, Privy Counsellor, envoy and then ambassador extraordinary to Portugal where he negotiated the "Methuen" Treaty of 1703; the Treaty cemented allegiances in the War of Spanish Succession.

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