You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly. You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
alternatehistory.com
(CSA) Extract 1: The Siege of Sumter and the French
Extract from 'A visit to Fort Sumter' by Giuse Blenkinsop. An article in the Manchester Guardian history section, 1993.
The stalemate in Charleston continued throughout the Spring of 1861, until Lincoln was faced with a stark choice: either Fort Sumter would be resupplied or it would fall. On the 14th of April he advised Governor Pickens of South Carolina that an attempt to resupply the fort would be made, and that should it be allowed unmolested, no further effort to resupply with men or arms would be made. The Governor, without consulting Jeff Davis, gave written assurances that, if resupply were “restricted to vitals and such” then he had no objection to the landing. General Beauregard, confederate commander in Charleston, was furious at this development, but Pickens was adamant that he had given his word and Davis felt that he lacked authority and political support to countermand the order.
The resupply on the 20th of April was uneventful, but Confederate military observers noted what looked suspiciously like barrels of blackpowder and shot being unloaded from the Northron sloop. When challenged on the question in a letter dated the 22nd, Lincoln replied that Pickens had specified “vitals” not “victuals”, and therefore minimal military supplies were covered in the agreement. Lincoln would ever more be known as Dishonest Abe.
It was now clear that no further resupply of Fort Sumter would be possible, as Beauregard had vowed he would “fire or be damned” on any ship attempting to reach Sumter. By late June, conditions on the island fort were again becoming uncomfortable, with rations reduced and no end to the siege in sight. Major Robertson declared that, unless resupply was permitted, he would fire on any ship attempting to enter Charleston. On the morning of the 27th, a French steamer, the Medeah, attempted to enter the bay carrying a cargo of Moroccan leather, the fort fired two warning shots. Medeah’s captain, with impressive sang-froid, signalled “understood”, turned tail, and sailed for Savannah.
The French government’s reaction was swift and unambiguous. The ambassador to Washington, Monsieur Mercier travelled immediately to Richmond to present his credentials to Jefferson Davis, leaving his deputy to hand a telegram from France to William Seward, Lincoln’s Secretary of State. The telegram declared that any further aggression against French property would result in the Empire of France declaring war on the United States of America. It further stated that, given France’s economic and cultural ties with the sovereign state of Louisiana, France’s interests required that the port of New Orleans remain open to all shipping. Therefore, his majesty’s government advised, the Gulf of Mexico, from Cape Sable onwards, was now closed to the US navy. This blockade would be enforced by His Majesty's Navy, with whatever force necessary. Any attempt on New Orleans would be considered a declaration of war on the Empire of France.
While histories of the Confederate States focus on Lee’s victory at Fairfax as the foundational act of the Slaver Nation, this telegram did much more to break the Union resolve than that bloody day in August 1861.