The Treaty of Portsmouth of 1905 stands today as one of history's great peace negotiations. It ended the Russo-Japanese War and marked the emergence of a new era of diplomatic negotiations, multi-track diplomacy.

Click here to learn the history of the War and the Peace and view archival 1905 newsreel footage.

To listen to the story, click here for links to New Hampshire Public Radio interviews about the history, music and newspaper accounts of the Treaty summer of 1905.

This official website for the study of the Treaty -- made possible by the Japan-America Society of NH funded by the Center for Global Partnership of the Japan Foundation -- provides the context for celebrating the Treaty anniversary each year: the history of the war and the treaty, its impact on diplomatic history, and its future implications for international peace negotiations. The Library of Congress has selected this website to expand on its own "Meeting of the Frontiers" focus on the Russo-Japanese War and the Treaty, noting this site's "educational content and accessibility."

Samantha Power delivers Portsmouth Peace
Treaty Forum VI speech, December 2008.

“What struck me, when I first heard about the negotiations here, are two aspects: First, the indispensable role of citizen and community in the peace that was brokered with the help of Portsmouth and with the help of Teddy Roosevelt. What was amazing about that sequence of those negotiations was the degree to which this community was at the center of negotiations. It wasn’t something held away from Americans as if it were something above our pay grade. Second was the absolute indispensability of diplomacy as a tool of American power. The force of diplomacy when it’s done well -- deftly, patiently and with American values and a commitment to peace at its core -- should not be understated.”

Click here to read the full transcript of her remarks.

THEODORE ROOSEVELT'S
1906 Nobel Peace Prize:
TR was born in 1858 and in 1906 won the Prize as President for negotiating the peace between Russia and Japan that produced the Treaty in 1905. For more on Roosevelt's diplomacy, and on the annual commemoration of the  anniversary of his Nobel Peace Prize, click here. Click here for Theodore Roosevelt Association details on TR's prize and click here to read the acceptance delivered on his behalf December 10, 1906. 

President Barack Obama is the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate. Click here to watch the award ceremony in Oslo.

Companion catalogue to the exhibit, "An Uncommon Commitment to Peace," available here, includes the newly-documented timeline of events during the 30 days the negotiators were in Portsmouth. It also contains images by noted photographer Richard Haynes, of the exhibit artifacts from 1905.

The Portsmouth Peace Treaty Trail

Members of the Portsmouth Peace Treaty Anniversary Committee spent months researching details on the sites that played important roles in the events of August and September 1905. For the first time, scholars and visitors can follow a day-by-day account of the formal/informal diplomacy and both public and private events to learn how "an uncommon commitment to peace became a common virtue" in Portsmouth in 1905. Click on the maps pages to explore the key sites of The Portsmouth Peace Treaty Trail -- from venues for formal conference sessions to informal social settings, identified through original newspaper reports, diaries and letters from event participants -- to bring the 30 days in 1905 to life.