The time of Spanish Rule was marked by Spanish and English competition for the allegiance of the Quapaw. While withdrawing, the French warned the Quapaw not to attack the English. The British recognized, as had the French, that the Quapaw would be valuable allies. They tried to win the Quapaw over with gifts and high quality trade goods. As for the Quapaw, they were at first hesitant to deal with the British. For many years their allies, the French, had told them bad things about the English. Also, their bitter enemies, the Chickasaw, were allied with the British. Despite these differences, the Quapaw favored the English over the Spanish because the English had cheap high-quality trade goods.
No longer encouraged by the French to make war on tribes allied with the British, the Quapaw ended their long rivalry with the Chickasaw in 1784. This treaty started a welcome period of peace between the Quapaw and their neighbors.
In 1801, the area the Quapaw lived in returned to French ownership, due to Napoleon, who had conquered most of Europe at the time. Napoleon wanted to build a North American Empire but, two years later, in 1803, recognized the futility of his dream and sold the Louisiana Territory to the United States of America. The Louisiana Purchase occurred when Thomas Jefferson was President.