What was the Trent affair in 1861?

Answer 1

The Trent Affair reflected the uneasy state of international relations created by the war. The Confederacy hoped that England or France, even both, would come to its aid. The importance of cotton in the international marketplace was such, southerners argued, that the industrial powers of Europe could not long afford to allow the northern navy to enforce its blockade. The Trent affair was settled through diplomatic evasion and maneuvering, but the international situation remained tense throughout the war. Leaders of both the north and the south could imagine situations in which England or France would intervene with the weapons and supplies, foreign intervention loomed as a fervent hope for the confederacy and a great fear of the north. Anger over the Trent Affair was balanced by resentment of southern assumptions about British dependence on cotton.

The Trent Affair was an international diplomatic incident that occurred during the American Civil War. On November 8, 1861 the USS San Jacinto, commanded by CaptainCharles Wilkes, intercepted the British mail packeTrent and removed two Confederate diplomats,James Mason and John Slidell. The envoys were bound for Great Britain and France in order to press the Confederacy's case for diplomatic recognition by Europe. The Trent Affair was an international diplomatic incident that occurred during the American Civil War. On November 8, 1861 the USS San Jacinto, commanded by CaptainCharles Wilkes, intercepted the British mail packeTrent and removed two Confederate diplomats,James Mason and John Slidell. The envoys were bound for Great Britain and France in order to press the Confederacy's case for diplomatic recognition by Europe.
This issue created conflict, and almost started a war, while the US was already in the civil war.
On-board the British mail steamer Trent were two Southern envoys, one destined for England and the other for France, to try to get those two countries to grant official recognition to the Confederacy and send military aid.

When a US vessel fired across its bows and arrested the two envoys, the British threatened war, and some of Lincoln's cabinet were ready to meet the challenge. (In that event, the Trent affair would have done a great deal indeed for the South.)

However, Lincoln himself was not ready to fight two wars at once, and was prepared to listen to diplomatic overtures.

Curiously, the last public act of the dying Prince Albert was to edit a key telegram to be sent to Washington, as he felt the language ought to be toned down. In this way, he may have been the man who kept Britain out of the American Civil War.