Human history is replete with numerous examples of peace and war. These phenomena were known thousands of years before Christ. Peace treaties are extremely powerful documents. They can end a conflict, and prevent or indirectly provoke a new one. We at The Dope Lists have put together the top 10 contracts that changed history.
Ramses II and Hattushil

Battle of Kadesh
Do you know when the first peace treaty in the world was signed? Egypt and the Hittite state had been in conflict for a long time. In 1275 BC, the Battle of Kadesh is known among historians as the first great battle without a winner in ancient history. The misunderstanding had a negative effect on both countries, so 15 years after the Battle of Kadesh, the Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II and the Hittite king Hattushil concluded the world’s first peace treaty. They cemented it with a dynastic marriage and marked the beginning of a long period of peace between the two countries.
Treaty of Verdun

Treaty of Verdun
After the death of Charlemagne, the Frankish Empire gradually fell into a political crisis. His son Louis the Pious did not have his father’s firm hand and determination, and his rule was marked by attempts to predetermine the division of the empire between his three sons, as someone was still dissatisfied. He died in 840, and the country was engulfed in a severe political crisis and a three-year civil war. Finally, his sons managed to negotiate. With the Treaty of Verdun, signed in 843, he divided the Frankish Empire into three parts: France, Italy, and Germany.
Magna Carta

The Magna Carta
The Magna Carta Libertatum was signed by the English King John Lackland in 1215. The Magna Carta was reached after a series of failures by the king, which cost the aristocrats almost all their possessions in France. At the same time, other sections of society are dissatisfied with the increase in taxes and unsuccessful domestic policies, resulting in internal strife erupting. In practice, it is not a peace treaty, but it is one of the first documents restricting royal power and protecting the rights and interests of the church, the feudal aristocracy, and the citizens. It marks the beginning of democratic constitutional law.
Peace of Westphalia

Peace of Westphalia
In 1648, they put an end to two protracted conflicts: the Thirty Years’ War for the Czech Crown and the Eighty Years’ War for the liberation of the United Dutch provinces from Spanish control. The Treaties of Westphalia marked the end of Spanish power and the transformation of France into a leading European power. The independence of the Swiss Confederation and the United Provinces is affirmed. All countries have recognized the Peace of Augsburg since 1555, and Christians of all denominations are free to practice their religion, which is why some historians believe that the Peace of Westphalia finally ended the religious wars in Europe that began after the Reformation. Some of the ideas in the treaties became the basis of international law.
United States Declaration of Independence
Towards the end of the 18th century, revolutions were brewing in many countries. The revolutionary era did not pass the British colonies in North America. A series of unjust government decisions forced 13 of the colonies to unite and start a war of independence. On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence of the United States, declaring that the 13 colonies were no longer part of the British Empire. The Paris Peace Treaty of 1783 recognized the existence of the new state. Today, there is hardly an international issue on which the United States does not take a stand.
Congress of Vienna

Congress of Vienna
After ‘the sunrise and the sunset’ of Napoleon Bonaparte, France was exhausted to the limit. Europe was exhausted as well. Therefore, in 1815, representatives of each European country were summoned to Vienna. In principle, the losing country is not involved in such international negotiations. Still, everyone is aware that although France has now been defeated, it is a great power and can prove it if it wishes. After the end of the Congress of Vienna, it was decided that France would return to its borders by 1790 and that it would pay reparations. According to some historians, the Congress of Vienna did not do any work, especially since it did not have a single official meeting. However, most researchers, including Henry Kissinger, believe that it was the reason why the first global conflict was postponed for a hundred years.
American Civil War

American Civil War
In 1861, Abraham Lincoln became the sixteenth president of the United States. He opposed the existing slaveholding system and launched a campaign to abolish it, which is why he was called the Great Liberator. But this caused discontent in 11 southern states and became one of the reasons for the outbreak of the American Civil War. With the onset of the end of the war between the North and the South, the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution was introduced, banning slavery. By the end of the 19th century, most countries gradually banned slavery.
Congress of Berlin

Congress of Berlin
The purpose of the congress was to distribute the territories that until recently were part of the Ottoman Empire. The paradox is that the fate of a large part of the Balkan territories is being decided, but not every country has a representation. As a result, Bulgaria was divided into five parts to prevent the creation of a large country with a potentially pro-Russian orientation, and Bosnia and Herzegovina was annexed by Austria-Hungary. The intervention of the Great Powers in territorial and ethnic disputes and the resolution of the problem according to their interests turned the Balkans into a powder keg of Europe, which would explode in 1914 and become the occasion for the beginning of the first global conflict.
Treaty of Versailles

Treaty of Versailles
The First World War began in 1914. The next four years were filled with the transfer of military superiority between the Entente and the Triple Alliance until the end of the conflict, which caused colossal losses, was finally reached. Several peace treaties were signed with conditions imposed by the victors, called the Versailles Treaty System. The consequences for the defeated are very significant. They lose several territories and advantages. As a kind of revenge, the Entente satisfied its claims at the expense of the defeated. Thus, with the end of the first world conflict, the foundations were laid on the way to the second, and the Versailles system of treaties was called the ‘sandy foundation of peace’.
Paris Peace Treaties

Paris Peace Treaties
As if without a lesson, two decades later, the states are embarking on a new war, caused mainly by extreme dissatisfaction with the Versailles system of treaties, a war much bloodier than the previous one. It came to an end in 1945 with the conclusion of the Paris Peace Treaties, which largely determined the future of the population and our peaceful development today. However, there are regional conflicts in some parts of the world.
The truth is that no peace treaty lasts forever. It influences the outbreak of a new war in one way or another. The reasons are different, but most often, they are related to dissatisfaction with the imposed conditions and punishments by the winners. We can only hope that the Paris Peace Treaties have done their job and will not become the next written promises that have led to a new war, but instead, they will be the foundation of eternal world peace.