The Nuu-chah-nulth were among the first Pacific peoples north of California to encounter Europeans, who sailed into their area for trade, particularly the Maritime fur trade. Tensions flared up between Spain and Great Britain over control of Nootka Sound, which led to a bitter international dispute around 1790 known as the Nootka Crisis. It was settled under the Nootka Convention, in which Spain agreed to abandon its exclusive claims to the North Pacific coast. Negotiations to settle the dispute were handled under the aegis and hospitality of Maquinna, a powerful chief of the Mowachaht Nuu-chah-nulth.