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Primary sourceDocument24 July 1905

Treaty of Björkö

Nicholas II of Russia and Wilhelm II of Germany · 24 July 1905

A secret 1905 defence treaty Nicholas II signed personally with Kaiser Wilhelm II, which his own ministers then refused to ratify.

Nicholas personally signed this secret treaty, which his own ministers then overturned, revealing his impulsive diplomacy.

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Handwritten French treaty text on a grey, aged sheet, dated Björkö 24/11 1905 (11/VII). Text in two columns with Articles I to IV. Signed at the bottom right by Nicholas and A. Birileff, and at the bottom left by Wilhelm with a note beneath the signature.
Treaty of Björkö, 24 July 1905. Photocopy of the 1905 original made in 1953.

About this source

What it is

This secret mutual defence treaty was signed on 24 July 1905 at Björkö by Tsar Nicholas II and Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, aboard their yachts. It was countersigned by German official Heinrich von Tschirschky and Russian Naval Minister Aleksei Birilev. The document survives as a handwritten French text with the signatures of both monarchs.

Why it matters

Wilhelm drafted the treaty without consulting his own ministers, and Nicholas signed it without his foreign minister present. When Russian officials Sergey Witte and Vladimir Lambsdorff learned of it, they argued it clashed with Russia's existing alliance with France, and Nicholas backed down, leaving the treaty unratified. The episode shows how personal diplomacy between the two emperors could clash sharply with their governments' official policies.

Look closer

  • Why might two emperors choose to negotiate such an agreement secretly, without their ministers?
  • What does Nicholas's decision to back away from the treaty suggest about the limits of his personal power?
  • How does Wilhelm's angry reaction reveal the personal, emotional side of this diplomacy?

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