Download Britain in the US Civil War

Britain in the U.S. Civil War
Jenson Phillips
Abraham Lincoln was elected into office in 1860 and
promised to end slavery. Even before he took office,
seven states in the south broke away from the union
and formed a new nation. On 12 April 1861, the
confederates opened fire on Fort Sumter and forced it
to lower the American flag in surrender. According to
James McPherson, "the real fighting began in 1862.
Huge battles like Shiloh in Tennessee, Gaines' Mill,
Second Manassas, and Fredericksburg in Virginia, and Antietam in Maryland foreshadowed even bigger
campaigns and battles in subsequent years, from Gettysburg in Pennsylvania to Vicksburg on the
Mississippi to Chickamauga and Atlanta in Georgia."
Between 1801 and 1850, over 50% of the British population shifted from agriculture to industry. In 1822,
a large government reform came about which had been introduced by the Tory government. The new
reforms included abolishing 180 of the 200 reasons a person could be hung.
In 1829, Sir Robert Peel created the first modern police force in London. This is the first such force in all
of Britain. The police are still called bobbies today because Robert (or Bobby) was Peel's first name.
Railways became a large part of transportation in Britain, as well as the US. By 1848 there were over
5,000 miles of railways in Britain. Through the beginning and middle of the nineteenth century, Britain
was the most powerful nation in the world.
The nineteenth century was relatively peaceful for Britain except for the Crimean War (1853-1856) and
their involvement in the American Civil War (1861-1865).
The US Civil War, while not having a direct impact on Britain, was a highly contested and debated topic
throughout Britain. There were pro-confederate balls, anti-slavery petitions, and cotton boycotts. The
Confederate states believed they would have the support because of the impact on cotton in the British
economy. The attitude varied based on region and social classes. The British ruling and middle class
favored the Confederacy because of the fear of competition from the advanced industrial North. The
radicals and lower middle class as well as the working class favored the North due to the issue of anti
slavery and democracy. Despite the idea that the rulers supported the Confederacy, the government did
not view the Confederacy as an independent nation.
Reprinted from Scholarly Voices
http://scholarlyvoices.org/unflattening/mini/britain-american-civil-war.html
Last updated on 23 July 2015
Photo Credit: Painting by Rear Admiral J.W. Schmidt, USN (Retired), 1961, depicting the Alabama
in chase of a merchant ship.
1
In November of 1861, the USS San Jacinto intercepted the RMS Trent. Onboard the Trent were two
confederate diplomats: James Mason and John Slidell. Charles Wilkes , the commanding officer on board
the San Jacinto, forcibly removed the diplomats and took them to Boston. While that action was popular
with the Union, Britain was not happy with what happened. Britain demanded that the two men be
returned. This resulted in the possibility of war with the British and the Confederacy being diplomatically
recognized by the British. Fortunately, a diplomatic compromise was reached in part by the efforts of
Secretary of State William Seward. The two men were released in 1862 and a huge crisis was averted.
While Britain may not have been politically all-in for the Civil War, economically Britain was. Britain
purchased more war bonds on each side than any other party. Along with the bonds, Britain sold many
items to both sides in the war such as guns, artillery, bullets, uniforms, and machinery. This resulted in
an industrial boom throughout Britain.
A prime example of the way Britain supplied war products to both sides is the CSS Alabama. Built by
Britain, the Alabama was built for the purpose of destroying Union ships to hurt commerce in the North.
The ship was launched on 29 July 1862 near Liverpool, England. It snuck across the Atlantic to the South.
The CSS Alabama was a big cause of controversy in the North who questioned why England would be
supplying a ship to the South. The damages caused by the Alabama were a large part of why the North
sought compensation after the war in the "Alabama Claims." The Alabama was sunk by the USS
Kearsarge on 19 June 19 1864.
When the Emancipation Proclamation was signed by President Lincoln on 1 January 1863, many of the
English people began to side with the North. Slavery had been completely abolished in England by 1833
and very few in England believed the need for slaves that the South was fighting for. Over 50,000
Englishmen volunteered to fight in the war. Sir John Courcy, who later became Lord Kingsale, was
actually a colonel in the 16th Ohio Volunteers. Philips Baybutt received an English Medal of Honor for
fighting in the Civil War. British volunteers served in all capacities from doctors to soldiers.
After the war, the alliance continued with the United States and England. However, the British needed
to pay back over 15.5 million dollars to the United States for damages caused by the CSS Alabama and
other ships that caused destruction to Union property. The Treaty of Washington was established in
1871 between Secretary of State Hamilton Fish and British Representative Sir John Rose.
Dr. Sousanis' Unflattening states our "awareness stems from our ability to reflect on ourselves and on
our environment." (130) The British were not only aware of what was going on in the United States, they
were able to reflect on the situation during and after the war to make the right decisions. Secondly, the
book states we are "separate yet connected, and see ourselves simultaneously from different vantage
points." England saw the United States differently from an outside perspective than we do from a
America perspective.
Reprinted from Scholarly Voices
http://scholarlyvoices.org/unflattening/mini/britain-american-civil-war.html
Last updated on 23 July 2015
Photo Credit: Painting by Rear Admiral J.W. Schmidt, USN (Retired), 1961, depicting the Alabama
in chase of a merchant ship.
2
For Further Reading
"Anglo-American Relations During the Civil War." British Library. nd. Web. 15 Jun. 2015.
Gambino, Megan. "The Unknown Contributions of Brits in the American Civil War." Smithsonian. 9
Dec. 2011. Web. 17 Jun. 2015.
Johnson, Ben. "Sir Robert Peel." Historic UK. nd. Web. 16 Jun. 2015.
Lambert, Tim. "A History of Britain in the 19th Century." A World History Encyclopedia. 2012. Web. 14
Jun. 2015.
McPherson, James. "A Brief Overview of the American Civil War: A Defining Time in Our Nations'
History." Civil War Trust. 2014. Web. 10 Jun. 2015.
Smith, Jean Edward. Grant. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2001.
Sousanis, Nick. Unflattening. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2015.
Reprinted from Scholarly Voices
http://scholarlyvoices.org/unflattening/mini/britain-american-civil-war.html
Last updated on 23 July 2015
Photo Credit: Painting by Rear Admiral J.W. Schmidt, USN (Retired), 1961, depicting the Alabama
in chase of a merchant ship.
3