THE TRENT AFFAIR: A POSSIBLE 3rd WAR BETWEEN THE US & GREAT BRITAIN WAS AVERTED 153 YEARS AGO ON DECEMBER 26, 1861 WHEN PRESIDENT LINCOLN & HIS CABINET AGREED TO RELEASE CONFEDERATE ENVOYS, JAMES MASON & JOHN SLIDELL, FROM PRISON. ~ On Nov 8, 1861, without the sanction of the US Government, a passionate Union Commander, Charles Wilkes (in photograph), captain of the USS San Jacinto ordered the British mail ship, RMS Trent, to stop in the waters of the Caribbean. ~ Wilkes knew Mason and Slidell (Confederate emissaries) were passengers on the Trent, who were on their way to England & France to plead the Confederacys case in the Civil War. ~ Wilkes ordered the Trent be boarded and illegally had Mason & Slidell removed, along with their secretaries. The men were then imprisoned. ~ It would have been legal IF Wilkes had also captured the ship after removing the men, and then in maritime court had his actions legally scrutinized - yeah or nay. ~ Wilkes was a hero at first... Congress awarded him a gold medal and the Sec of the Navy personally thanked him. ~ The US had thumbed its nose at the Confederacy & at England (which was thought to have Southern sympathies). ~ Of course Britain claimed neutrality and DID NOT see it that way. ~ The state of affairs escalated, when in retaliation, England sent thousands of troops to Canada, in addition to sending a dispatch via the British Embassy that made it clear there would be repercussions IF the four men were not released and IF there was no apology from the US government. ~ After six weeks of posturing, Sec of State Wm Seward held two days of face-to-face meetings with the Brits on December 25 & 26, 1861, at which point, Seward was then able to convince Lincoln, and the rest of his Cabinet, to release the four men and apologize to Great Britain. ~ Mason & Slidell and their secretaries were released on January 1, 1862, at which point they resumed their journey to England & France, thereby avoiding a 3rd war with Great Britain.
Posted on: Mon, 29 Dec 2014 12:45:00 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015