The American Civil War Through British Eyes: Dispatches from British Diplomats : November 1860-April 1862

by Barnes, James J.

• ISBN13: 9780873387873
• ISBN10: 0873387872
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2003-06-01
• Publisher: Kent State Univ Pr

Summary

From November 1860 to April 1862 there was only one British Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary in Washington, D.C.--Richard Bickerton Pemell Lyons, Second Baron. Lord Lyons was the highest-ranked British diplomat in Washington, appointed to this post in December 1858 and serving until February 1865. The dispatches included in Volume 1 of The American Civil War through British Eyes offer insight into contemporary Anglo-American relations. This period witnessed the election of Abraham Lincoln, the secession crisis, the formation of the Confederacy, and the first military confrontations of the war. It also raised a host of problems for Great Britain's relationships with both the Union and the Confederacy, such as how the war would affect British nationals residing in the United States, what course official British policy should take regarding diplomatic recognition of the Confederacy, and the effect that the likely interruption of exports might have on British manufacturing. One of Lord Lyon's tasks was to keep London informed of the shifting mood in

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 The Secession Crisis

November 1860 - April 1861

Chapter 2 International Implications of the Civil War

April-June 1861

Chapter 3 The Battle of Bull Run and its Impact on the War

July - November 1861

Chapter 4 The Trent Affair

November 1861- January 1862

Chapter 5 Growing Optimism in the North

January-March 1862