Established the definitive Costa Rica–Nicaragua border and allocated the San Juan River to Nicaragua while granting Costa Rica commercial navigation rights.
Key Facts
- Date enacted
- April 15, 1858
- Costa Rica negotiator
- José María Cañas
- Nicaragua negotiator
- Máximo Jerez
- River assigned to Nicaragua
- San Juan River
- Border landmark
- Southern edge of Lake Nicaragua
- Costa Rica navigation rights
- Commercial navigation on San Juan River
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Growing border tension between Costa Rica and Nicaragua over their shared frontier, including the course of the San Juan River and the southern shore of Lake Nicaragua, necessitated a formal diplomatic resolution between the two nations.
On April 15, 1858, diplomats Máximo Jerez (Nicaragua) and José María Cañas (Costa Rica) concluded the Cañas–Jerez Treaty, tracing a border along the southern edge of Lake Nicaragua and then eastward along the San Juan River, placing the river under Nicaraguan sovereignty.
The treaty assigned full sovereignty over the San Juan River to Nicaragua while securing commercial navigation rights for Costa Rica, providing a legal framework for the shared boundary that would remain the basis of territorial claims and disputes between the two countries for generations.
Political Outcome
Border established along Lake Nicaragua's southern edge and the San Juan River; river sovereignty granted to Nicaragua with commercial navigation rights reserved for Costa Rica.
Disputed border and unresolved sovereignty over the San Juan River between Costa Rica and Nicaragua
Defined border with the San Juan River under Nicaraguan sovereignty and Costa Rican commercial navigation rights recognized