The Basque people throughout their history have avoided direct confrontation and preferred to adapt to situations in order to preserve what seemed to be essential to them. The treaties of "Bonne Correspondance" in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, terms for a standardized development of peace agreements in the Middle Ages, had as their main objective to preserve the economic interests of the Basque maritime provinces, threatened by the conflicts between France and Spain. The treaties establishing an original maritime peace were the result of real inter-regional collaboration, a reflection of the Basque people’s identity and independence.