Browse Items (19 total)

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…

Secretary Seward was a driving force behind much of the North's international messaging over the course of the Civil War. Known as one of the most outspoken and active members of Lincoln's cabinet, Seward was a staunch Unionist who regularly…

This document not only established Great Britain's stance concerning events in the brewing conflict between the North and South, but also recognized the belligerent status of the two combatants. In the aftermath of its release, the provisions of the…

This print combines caricature with photography to express the artist's view of the events surrounding the Trent Affair. Here, the figures of Confederate diplomats James Murray Mason and John Slidell stand aboard a ship travelling to England. There,…

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…

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…

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,…

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…

King Cotton - interpreted here as a caricature of European-style monarchs, displaying elements of the British government - recieves a dangerous gift from Union General George McClellan. The illustration mocks British reliance on southern cotton while…

From his position as the British envoy to Washington D.C., Lord Lyons served as a vital avenue of communication between the U.S. and U.K. Often meeting with Secretary of State Seward to discuss matters lying between their respective nations, it was…