Browse Items (17 total)

The Trent, a British packet ship transporting to England two Confederate diplomats, James Mason and John Slidell, had left Havana, Cuba on November 7th, 1861. Captain Charles Wilkes of the USS San Jacinto became aware of the diplomats' movements and…

Former President Fillmore's letter to the current executive reflects the growing view among prominent American politicians that war with Britain, increasingly probable as the Trent Affair continued, was undesriable and disadvantageuous to the…

In this letter, the Union agent - and friend to Secretary of State William Seward - informs the secretary of efforts made by the British government to strengthen the security of their Canadian territories. In response to the Trent Affair's escalation…

Accompanying the formal British response to the Trent Affair, which was edited and toned down by Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, Foreign Minister Earl Russell included additional instructions for Lord Lyons. Desiring an explanation from…

Pursued by Union warships after its final cruises in the Far East, the Alabama is cornered in the French port of Cherbourg by the USS Kearsarge. Captain Raphael Semmes moves to damaged ship into a final engagement, where it soon sinks. The Deerhound,…

Written after the resolution of the Trent Affair controversy, this letter summarizes the American minister to Britain's perspective of the event. Noting the legal arguments surronding the case, particularly regarding the right of search. It reflects…

Union concerns over the building of ironclads in Britain for use in the Confederate navy led to increased pressure upon the British government to intervene and halt their construction. In this letter, acting Secretary of the Navy Gustavus Fox doubts…

This letter from the Wisconsin Senator was written at the height of the controversy over the Trent. Though the exact parameters of the diplomatic dialogue was still unknown to the majority of the American public, its tense nature was not lost. At the…

Relating to the matter of British shipbuilding for the Confederate Navy, this letter from Governor Andrew to the president reflects American concerns of the persistence of this practice. Occuring even as news of the career of the raider Alabama's…

The impact of the Trent Affair shook public attitudes in Northern society, with some clamoring for war with Britain and others cautioning against the risks of such a confrontation. The Prince de Joinville, a son of French nobility residing in the…