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Civil War

Sarah Parker Redmond Emancipation Proclamation
Sarah Parker Remond: Citizen Diplomacy and the Emancipation Proclamation as Foreign Policy
 Sarah Parker Remond: Citizen Diplomacy and the Emancipation Proclamation as Foreign Policy 1024 576
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When Civil War erupted in April of 1861, President Abraham Lincoln and Secretary of State William Seward’s official reason for the war was to preserve the union of states, not abolish slavery. In the end, emancipation did in fact become a war objective. What changed? How did the Emancipation Proclamation affect European nations’ refusal to…

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President Abraham Lincoln's 1861 Cabinet
The Trent Affair: Diplomacy, Britain, and the American Civil War
 The Trent Affair: Diplomacy, Britain, and the American Civil War 600 455
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In 1861, as the Civil War was beginning at home, U.S. diplomats faced a unique dilemma. The United States needed to maintain relationships abroad. At the same time, the self-proclaimed Confederate States of America sought foreign recognition as an independent nation. Domestic politics and international relations became intertwined when Confederate diplomats were taken prisoner from…

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