Clayton-Bulwer Treaty

Clayton-Bulwer Treaty, agreement signed by the United States and Great Britain in 1850, giving the 2 countries an equal role in protecting a canal to be built through Central America, the 2 countries agreeing to maintain the neutrality of the canal and the land on either side of it. John Clayton, U.S. secretary of state, and Sir Henry Bulwer (1801–72), British minister to the United States, negotiated the treaty, which was replaced in 1901 by the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty, giving the United States the exclusive right to build and manage the canal.

See also: Hay-Pauncefote Treaties.