British Involvement in the American Civil War
How President Abraham Lincoln prevented an alliance
We typically view the Civil War as a conflict between Americans and only Americans. While this is mostly true, there did exist some possibility for foreign intervention.
As can be observed during most civil wars around the globe, there is usually some form of meddling in the afflicted nation’s affairs by outsiders. This was the case for the American Civil War as well. A few European powers like France, Russia, and Great Britain tossed around the idea of siding with either the North or the South. The British in particular seemed to have a soft spot for the newly developed Confederacy.
Though they ultimately did not officially recognize the Confederacy, nor did they send any military personnel into the United States, Britain certainly favored the Southern cause at the start of the war.
British Support for the Confederacy
European monarchies typically did not picture rebellions in a positive light given their threat to stability and autocratic rule. However, the American South’s Confederacy was a little different. It was an aristocracy, a familiarity in Europe at the time. Many European aristocrats salivated at the thought of American democracy crumbling via a Union split.
Neither the British nor the French would support the institution of slavery, however. The South dealt with this point of contention by ensuring that the war was simply based upon the preservation of their new nation and a battle against the federal government’s encroachment on state’s rights. This was in fact true, at least until 1863. With the slavery issue temporarily subdued, the British contemplated a direct intervention.
Tensions between the North and the Crown flared to unprecedented heights in 1861. The Confederacy, amidst attempts to entice Europeans allies, selected and planned to send over respected diplomats James Mason and John Slidell to England and France, respectively. They both were able to slip past Union blockades in Charleston, South Carolina and eventually end up in Havana, Cuba. From here, they would board the British mail steamer Trent.
All was going according to plan until Yankee Captain Charles Wilkes aboard the U.S.S. San Jacinto pulled into Havana’s harbor and commandeered the Confederate statesmen. The British were furious at the nerve of Wilkes and threatened direct conflict if the prisoners were not returned. This was truly ironic, however, given that Britain had taken Americans captive on neutral ships just 50 years earlier. The British had justified these captures by explaining that their aim was to find British subjects aboard merchant ships. These seizures had also been grounds for the beginning of the War of 1812, but now the roles were reversed.
Following the Trent incident, British troops were sent across the Atlantic and landed in Canada. They were stationed as a reminder to the Union that invasion was still on the table. This threat was relatively short-lived, though. Thankfully, despite some hostilities on both sides, Union and English diplomats were able to settle their differences peacefully and no Brits ever fought alongside Confederates.
Why the Alliance Failed
The alliance between Great Britain and the South never took form for a few key reasons.
The first was the grain shortage in Great Britain. With the last several years yielding lower-than-anticipated harvests on the Isles, the Brits needed imports. The North could not only provide the much needed wheat, but they could also do it rather quickly thanks to improving technologies. Given the British’s dependence on grain products from the northern U.S., there was a silent assurance that there would not be any action taken that may jeopardize the supply.
The next substantial factor was the Battle of Antietam. Up until the summer of 1862, it appeared that a Southern victory was a real possibility. The South had staved off an invasion by Union forces and had cleared nearly all enemies from the state of Virginia by that point. However, tables turned in September of 1862 following the bloody Battle of Antietam, fought near Sharpsburg, Maryland. Though there were severe casualties on both sides, the Union ultimately prevailed. Not only did it show that a Confederate offensive outside of its borders was not going to be easy, it lowered foreign expectations for a speedy end to the conflict.
The largest and most crucial deterrent, however, was rooted in words. Specifically, these were the words of President Abraham Lincoln. Following Union triumph at Antietam, Lincoln felt that it was time to broaden the scope of the war. Instead of simply fighting for the preservation of an idealistic union of states, the North would include the fight for human freedom. On January 1st, 1863, President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation took effect. This declaration freed enslaved peoples in Confederate states and ensured that the Civil War would be remembered synonymously with the fight against the evil institution.
What ensued was effectively a turning up of the nose on the part of European powers. The British now outright refused to take the South’s side with the preservation of slavery officially identified as a war goal.
From this point on, the South’s chance at a European alliance was thoroughly thwarted. The Civil War would concern Americans and Americans only.
Closing Thoughts
It can be interesting to speculate on how the Civil War might have panned out if there really was a direct European intervention on behalf of the South. Certainly, the length and cost of such a conflict would change. Who knows, the United States may have permanently split and remained so even until today.
Thankfully, this is all speculation. Lincoln’s famous decision to issue the Emancipation Proclamation put the final nail in the South’s coffin for an attempt at foreign diplomacy. There would be no alliance and no Europeans engaging in the American Civil War.
Sources
Catton, Bruce, et al. The Civil War. Tess Press, 2009.
