Synthesized answer
The primary legal argument for detaining the "Alabama" was based on the Foreign Enlistment Act of 1819 [Passage 2]. Law officers advised that if the particulars provided about the vessel's construction and intended purpose were correct, she ought to be detained [Passage 1, Passage 2]. The vessel was nearly completed and obviously intended for a man-of-war, which would likely constitute a violation of this act [Passage 1].
Potential counterarguments or practical difficulties that might have delayed action are hinted at by the commissioners' initial refusal to move despite sworn evidence [Passage 2]. There was also an unexplained delay in the return of papers from the law officers, possibly connected to the illness of the queen's advocate [Passage 2]. This delay allowed the vessel to sail before instructions to seize her could be effectively implemented [Passage 2]. The passages do not explicitly state the commissioners' counterarguments, but their initial inaction despite legal advice suggests a hesitation or a belief that the evidence was not yet sufficient or clear-cut for detention, or perhaps a concern about the diplomatic implications of detaining a vessel that was not yet…
Synthesized from the book passages below. Chat with the book on Feynman for follow-up.
From the book
tes on the 13th of April 1861. On the 19th of April President Abraham Lincoln declared a blockade of the southern ports. On the 14th of May the British government issued a proclamation of neutrality, by which the Confederates were recognized as belligerents. This example was followed shortly afterwards by France and other nations. The blockade of the southern ports was not at first effective, and blockade-running soon became an active industry. The Confederates established agencies in England for the purchase of arms, which they despatched in ordinary merchant vessels to the Bahamas, whence…
was laid before the law officers, who advised that, if these particulars were correct, the vessel ought to be detained. On the 21st of July sworn evidence, which was supplemented on the 23rd of July, was obtained and laid before the commissioners of customs (who were the proper authorities to enforce the provisions of the Foreign Enlistment Act of 1819), but they declined to move. On the 23rd of July the same evidence was laid before the law officers, who advised that there was sufficient ground for detention. By some accident, which has never been satisfactorily explained, but was probably…
rpool in two British ships. Captain Semmes there took command of her under a commission from the Confederate government. After a most destructive career she was sunk off Cherbourg by the “Kearsarge” on the 19th of June 1864. On these facts the United States government alleged against Great Britain two grievances, or sets of grievances. The first was the recognition of the Southern States as belligerents and a general manifestation of unfriendliness in other ways. The second was in respect of breaches of neutrality in allowing the “Alabama,” the “Florida” (originally the “Oreto”, the…
. With respect to the “Alabama” claims the British commissioners suggested that they should be submitted to arbitration. The American commissioners refused “unless the principles which should govern the arbitrators in the consideration of the facts could be first agreed upon.” After some discussion the British commissioners consented that the three following rules should apply.
← Alabama 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica , Volume 1 "Alabama" Arbitration by Montague Hughes Crackanthorpe Alabama River → See also Alabama Claims on Wikipedia ; and our 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica disclaimer . 244259 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica , Volume 1 — "Alabama" Arbitration Montague Hughes Crackanthorpe “ALABAMA” ARBITRATION. —This is one of those arbitrations on pecuniary claims, made by one state, on behalf of its subjects, against another state, which are referred to in the article Arbitration, International . The case is important, both from a historical and a juridical point of…
More questions about this book
- How would you explain, in simple terms, the specific actions and international circumstances that led to the vessel “Alabama” becoming a central point of contention between the United States and Great Britain?
- Analyze the significance of the British government's proclamation of neutrality in 1861. How did this proclamation, coupled with the ongoing construction of vessels like the “Alabama” in British shipyards, create a complex legal and diplomatic challenge for Britain?
- The text states the “Alabama” Arbitration "affords a conspicuous example of the value of arbitration as a means of averting war." If you had to teach someone the *process* by which this arbitration helped avert war, what specific elements of the dispute and the decision-making process would you emphasize to illustrate this value?
- Considering the Confederates' established agencies in England and the British government's initial response to information about the “Alabama,” what potential geopolitical or legal risks was Britain taking by *not* immediately acting on the US consul's initial letter?