Trent Affair

E468854

The Trent Affair was an 1861 diplomatic crisis during the American Civil War in which the U.S. Navy’s seizure of two Confederate envoys from a British mail steamer nearly provoked war between the United States and the United Kingdom.

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All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
Trent Affair canonical 3

Statements (48)

Predicate Object
instanceOf diplomatic crisis
historical event
cause seizure of Confederate envoys from British mail steamer Trent
chronology occurred early in the American Civil War
conflict American Civil War
countryInvolved Confederate States of America NERFINISHED
United Kingdom
United States of America
surface form: United States
describedAs one of the most serious Anglo-American crises of the 19th century
diplomaticOutcome avoidance of Anglo-American war
clarification of U.S. position on maritime rights
maintenance of British neutrality
hasEffect British diplomatic protest against the United States
British military preparations in Canada
heightened tensions between Union and Britain
nearly provoked war between the United States and the United Kingdom
release of Confederate envoys Mason and Slidell
temporary surge of Union public support for Captain Charles Wilkes
involvedPerson Abraham Lincoln NERFINISHED
Charles Francis Adams Sr. NERFINISHED
Charles Wilkes NERFINISHED
Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston NERFINISHED
James Murray Mason NERFINISHED
John Slidell NERFINISHED
Lord Palmerston NERFINISHED
Prince Albert NERFINISHED
Queen Victoria NERFINISHED
William H. Seward NERFINISHED
legalIssue freedom of the seas
neutral rights at sea
status of Confederate commissioners as contraband or diplomats
location Atlantic Ocean NERFINISHED
near Cuba
namedAfter RMS Trent NERFINISHED
opposingParty British Empire NERFINISHED
Confederate States diplomatic mission NERFINISHED
Union (United States) NERFINISHED
partOf foreign relations of the American Civil War
pointInTime 1861
relatedTo British neutrality in the American Civil War
Confederate diplomacy in Europe NERFINISHED
Union blockade of the Confederacy NERFINISHED
resolvedBy U.S. disavowal of Wilkes’s actions
diplomatic negotiations
formal apology to the British government
significantShip RMS Trent NERFINISHED
USS San Jacinto NERFINISHED
startTime 1861-11-08

Referenced by (3)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Charles Wilkes notableEvent Trent Affair
John Slidell notableEvent Trent Affair