shadow of britain

Chapter 813 Bonus Chapter: Arthur Hastings' Letters (Civil War Edition)
Situation report regarding the Trent incident

Date: 1861/11/16

Category: Confidential Notice - Circulation within the Diplomatic System Only
In light of the rapidly changing situation in North America, Her Majesty's Government hereby issues the following notification for the consideration of all diplomatic missions abroad, and to determine local policy guidelines:

On November 8, the USS San Jacinto, a cruiser belonging to the United States Navy, intercepted the Chinese cruise ship Trent in the Bahamas without a declaration of war. The ship was en route from Havana to Liverpool, carrying Confederate diplomats James Mason and John Sladell, who were on their way to Europe for diplomatic contacts.

Following the interception, United States Navy Commander Chavins Wilkes ordered armed boarding and forcibly removed the two men, causing widespread panic among the crew and passengers of the Trent. Although there were no casualties, the legal implications were severe and an insult to the national dignity of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

Her Majesty's Government convened an emergency meeting of the Privy Council and the Cabinet on the day it received the report. The preliminary opinion of the Legal Advisory Group is that this action constitutes a serious infringement on the freedom of navigation rights of our merchant ships. It must be pointed out that this action by the United States was not a routine patrol, but a coercive act against British civilian vessels. There was no declaration of war, no legitimate reason given, and no notification was given to our side, which is a clear provocation.

Prime Minister Viscount Palmerston has summoned Charles Adams, the American Minister to Britain, to lodge a strong protest with the United States regarding the Trent incident. He has also instructed the Navy and the War Department to immediately activate combat readiness deployments and demanded that the Naval Commission immediately study and formulate a plan to blockade American port cities and submit feasible solutions on how to break the blockade of American ports by the United States.

Foreign Secretary Lord John Russell instructed the U.S. Ambassador to the United States, Lord Richard Lyons, to deliver a formal diplomatic note in person to President Abraham Lincoln of the United States, demanding that the United States government immediately release the detainees and issue a public apology.

First Lord of the Navy, the Duke of Somerset, ordered the West India Fleet to sail west from Bermuda to the waters off Nova Scotia to closely monitor American ships traveling on the Boston-Cuba route and to maintain a state of high alert in the Atlantic and North American regions.

Secretary of War Sir George Lewis ordered the 16th, 17th, and 60th Infantry Regiments and the Royal Artillery Company to be drawn from Gibraltar, Malta, and Jamaica and immediately depart for Canada, where they would be assembled and deployed along the Halifax-Quebec line in preparation for a possible war with the United States of America.

Colonial Secretary, the Duke of Newcastle, wrote to the Governor General of Canada, Viscount Monk, authorizing him to urgently conscript and organize local volunteer companies, compile a list of militia members, and immediately repair the fortresses of Montreal, Kingston, and Fort Saint-Jean.

Given the turbulent emotions across the political spectrum and the divergent opinions among the members of both houses of government, the Cabinet's position is as follows:

First, upholding the freedom of navigation of neutral countries is our bottom line that we will not compromise on.

Second, if the US handles the situation promptly and properly, the escalation can be temporarily suspended.

Third, if the U.S. refuses to make concessions, Her Majesty's Government will not rule out taking further measures.

In light of the discussions already taking place in European countries and the unclear stance of the United States, Her Majesty's Government urges Your Excellencies to respond to media inquiries with care. If questioned, please state our position as set forth in this letter. Whether to contact the foreign ministries of other countries is at Your Excellencies' discretion.

If any ambassadors stationed abroad obtain information about local public opinion, political or military developments, they must immediately and confidentially report it to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for record-keeping.

Sir Arthur Hastings
Secretary General of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland

Whitehall draft
……

Sir Arthur Hastings to Napoleon III

Paris, addressed to His Majesty.

His Majesty Napoleon III, Emperor of the French Empire:

As I was working at my desk tonight, a sudden thunderstorm broke out outside the window, which stirred up many old memories, reminding me of the time when I had the privilege of working with His Majesty at Scotland Yard.

Since our trip to Paris that year, where we discussed the fate of Europe, it has been many years since Your Majesty and I had a long, heart-to-heart talk. Since ascending the throne, Your Majesty has been burdened with numerous affairs of state, managing countless matters daily. When Your Majesty and I were together in the Eastern District back then, neither of us could have imagined that one of us would one day rule the Empire, and the other would sit in Whitehall.

As people get older, they inevitably become more talkative, enjoying reminiscing about the past and reminiscing about their prime.

Please forgive my old age and loss of mind, Your Majesty, for my abruptness and presumption.

I am writing this today not merely to reminisce about old times, but because the current situation is critical, and only the full cooperation of my dear friends can turn things around.

The Trent incident needs no further recounting. We originally did not wish to escalate the matter, but the Northern Secretary of State Seward was utterly rude; this young upstart spoke with an arrogance surpassing even that of his Puritan ancestors. He even dared to publish in the newspapers that we were merely using this as a pretext to interfere in the affairs of other countries.

In this matter, I must first apologize to our Ambassador to the United States, Lord Lyons. Lord Lyons is a mutual friend of His Majesty and me. As early as when Lincoln took office and appointed Seward as Secretary of State, Lord Lyons warned Whitehall that this was a very dangerous appointment, because Seward's view of Anglo-American relations had always been that it was good material for making political capital.

While I don't think Mr. Seward truly intends to go to war with Britain, he's likely to resort to his old tricks, using a tough stance against Britain to garner domestic support. At this point, I think Your Majesty probably already guessed what I'm going to say. Yes, I think Seward might be aiming to become the next Palmerston in North America.

Since the 1840s, the Washington government has practiced mob rule, tolerating mob behavior in exchange for votes, as they did in the Oregon border dispute. Whitehall has long exercised restraint towards the rudeness of these outcasts, but this pointless tolerance has only emboldened these Yankees. Therefore, I hope this lesson will teach them that from now on, Americans should abandon the old notion that British patience is limitless. To be honest, the speed at which Whitehall distanced itself from the Americans this time was somewhat unexpected; it seems that both the Senate and the House of Commons have reached their limit with those hillbillies.

In particular, our current prime minister is Palmerston, and I think Americans probably still don't understand the difference between Palmerston as prime minister and Russell or Peel as prime minister. Perhaps someone should tell them that Palmerston's temperament and way of thinking are exactly the same as their bunch of American mobs.

I would especially like to express my respect to His Majesty for one matter: immediately after the Trent incident, His Excellency Edward Tuvernell, your Foreign Secretary, sent a telegram to London expressing his full agreement with our country's claims to the right of navigation for neutral countries and urging the United States government to abide by the Paris Declaration and reiterate the view that no neutral vessel shall be subject to force by another country for the sake of its personnel and cargo.

In fact, this stance is not only in Britain's interest, but also concerns the international order and financial credit. Speaking of "credit," Your Majesty probably already knows what topic I'm about to move on to, doesn't he?
Yes, I was referring to the issue of Mexico.

Britain, France, and Spain are the top three holders of Mexican government bonds. However, the Mexican government has publicly announced a suspension of debt repayments and a two-year extension on all foreign debt. This action goes beyond simple default; it is a blatant challenge to the international financial order.

If Your Majesty were to ask me what my opinion is, my answer would probably not surprise you.

Yes, I support sending troops.

A government that issues bonds in London, Paris, and Madrid while simultaneously vacationing on the beaches of Veracruz is unworthy of sovereignty. Anyone who breaks the rules in the bond market is not entitled to the national dignity and prestige granted to them by the international order.

Our warships were originally built to maintain trade routes, and our fleet wasn't intended for waging war against debtor nations. But, unfortunately, there are always some debtor nations that need warships to remind them of the spirit of contracts!
Of course, I'm not saying this because I personally invest in Mexican government bonds and railway bonds; please don't blindly believe the reports in the *Constitution*. As you know, like in London, Paris has its share of malicious people who enjoy making disparaging remarks about decent gentlemen. Most people in this world can't stand anyone being innocent, so they're always looking for an opportunity to smear others.

However, on another note, I urge Your Majesty to consider this matter carefully. Mexico's debt default is likely not solely due to financial difficulties, but also to political calculations. The current Mexican liberals have frequent dealings with Washington; the flow of funds, the coordination of public opinion, and the opening of borders are not things that can be accomplished overnight.

The British mission to Mexico has reported several times in recent months that, despite the differing policies of the Mexican liberal forces, their exchanges with the northern camp along the border remain frequent and noteworthy. While no evidence of large-scale military coordination has yet been found, there are indications that military supplies such as firearms and ammunition are being frequently circulated through civilian channels along the South Texas border, and Mexican local outposts are largely turning a blind eye to such activities without making any significant obstruction.

Your Majesty should know that this so-called "Civil War" sweeping across North America is no longer merely an internal affair of the United States, but rather a matter of dividing the future of the entire Western world. If the North of the United States prevails today, the tide of republicanism will surely return. If we stand idly by today, and wait until Washington reclaims the Southern states, reforms the finances, and resumes expansion, the influence of Britain and France throughout the New World will likely vanish.

In this situation, if Your Majesty were to launch a military campaign against Mexico without simultaneously restraining its financial backers, it would be like thunder striking only the eaves while the old beams and pillars inside remain firmly in place. The storm may have raged for a while, but once the rain stops, the parts we wanted to collapse will remain intact.

Therefore, combating Mexico's debt default and curbing the expansion of mobs in the United States are two sides of the same coin. Maintaining dynastic order and upholding the spirit of contracts can only be achieved by addressing the root causes once and for all.

Your Majesty may have already noticed that since the Northern government implemented the so-called "total blockade" around Charleston and Wilmington, not only are the southern states deeply mired in trade difficulties, but the cotton textile industries at all levels in Britain and France are also approaching the critical point.

Textile factories in Manchester have begun to limit production, and layoffs and shutdowns are gaining momentum in towns and cities across Lancashire. Recently, it has been reported that weaving workshops in northern France, particularly in Roubaix and Lille, have also experienced three consecutive weeks of shutdowns. If local officials hadn't used up their stockpiled old materials in advance, many factory owners would likely have already petitioned Paris for government subsidies.

Whitehall had already discussed this summer whether to establish a "neutral corridor" to connect the Cotton Ships to Liverpool. However, the proposal was shelved due to Foreign Secretary Lord Russell's concerns about a possible strong response from the North.

At this moment, with the Trent incident looming, if your country takes the lead on the cotton issue and lifts the blockade of the Charleston-Mobile line under the pretext of "protecting the supply lines for the war in Mexico," I am confident that I can take advantage of the situation in Whitehall to advance this issue and, by taking advantage of Mexico's debt default, persuade Whitehall to agree to join France in sending troops to intervene.

If Your Majesty could provide the Confederate States of America with some degree of moral support in diplomacy amidst the Mexican war, or allow Confederate envoys to be stationed in Paris, even without explicitly recognizing the Confederate regime, the effect would be enough to throw Washington into disarray.

Ultimately, since the United States has consistently maintained that the Civil War was an internal affair of the United States, refusing to recognize the Southern government as a belligerent party and merely identifying them as Southern rebels, we need not respect Washington's blockade as an act of war. If they refuse to acknowledge the name of war, why should we take their blockade seriously?

The cotton trade may seem trivial, but it's actually a delicate matter with far-reaching consequences. Businessmen are pragmatic; if the empire can't protect its businesses, then those businesses won't remain loyal to the empire forever.

Therefore, in the name of an old friend, I humbly request Your Majesty to consider this matter. Lifting the blockade of the southern ports is both a righteous act and a practical benefit, both a matter of good faith and a strategic move for the future. A simple tacit approval, a port access permit, and a naval patrol order would be enough to relieve the immediate crisis facing the entire European textile industry and to show Washington what true civilization is.

If Your Majesty has other plans, please reply and let us know.

With the highest respect and sincerest friendship.

Your old colleagues, old friends, and most loyal servants.

Sir Arthur Hastings
Secretary General of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland

In December 1861, at Whitehall

(End of this chapter)