Synthesized answer
The "Alabama" Arbitration aimed to resolve a fundamental conflict over the duties of a neutral nation during wartime. The United States alleged that Great Britain had breached its neutrality by allowing Confederate vessels like the "Alabama" to be built and equipped in British ports, which then attacked Union shipping [3]. The core dispute was over the standard of care a neutral government must exercise to prevent such violations: the U.S. argued for "a diligence commensurate with the emergency," while Britain insisted only on the level of care "governments of civilized states were accustomed to employ" for their own security [5].
The resolution was considered crucial for averting war because the claims were a major source of tension between the two nations. The arbitration, conducted under the Treaty of Washington, provided a peaceful means to settle the dispute, and the passage explicitly calls it "a conspicuous example of the value of arbitration as a means of averting war" [2]. By agreeing to submit the claims to a tribunal and accepting its decision—which found Britain legally responsible and awarded $15.5 million in damages [5]—both sides avoided a potentially devastating…
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From the book
. 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…
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…
d waters, and as to all persons within its jurisdiction to prevent any violation of the foregoing obligation and duties. The arrangements made by the commission were embodied in the treaty of Washington, which was signed on the 8th of May 1871, and approved by the Senate on the 24th of May. Article 1, after expressing the regret felt by Her Majesty’s government for the escape, in whatever circumstances, of the “Alabama” and other vessels from British ports, and for the depredations committed by these vessels, provided that “the claims growing out of the acts of the said vessels, and…
ontended that it must be a diligence commensurate with the emergency or with the magnitude of the results of negligence. The British government maintained that while the measure of care which a government is bound to use in such cases must be dependent more or less upon circumstances, it would be unreasonable to require that it should exceed that which the governments of civilized states were accustomed to employ in matters concerning their own security or that of their citizens. The tribunal adopted the view suggested by the United States. It found that Great Britain was legally responsible…
More questions about this book
- The British government issued a proclamation of neutrality but recognized the Confederates as belligerents. How do these two positions, and the subsequent allowance of Confederate arms purchases and shipbuilding in England, expose potential inconsistencies or complexities in the concept of neutrality during wartime?
- Imagine you are a British legal official in 1862. What specific legal arguments or interpretations of international obligations would you have presented to the Commissioners of Customs to justify or compel the detention of the "Alabama," based on the evidence available at the time?
- The text highlights the "value of arbitration as a means of averting war." Given the events leading up to the "Alabama" Arbitration (e.g., the blockade-running, the construction of the ship), what could have been done differently *before* the arbitration to prevent the escalation of tensions, and what are the implications of these missed opportunities?
- The excerpt is presented under the title "A House Divided." While the main content describes the "Alabama" Arbitration, what conceptual connections or parallels, if any, can you draw between the political divisions and internal conflicts implied by "A House Divided" and the international diplomatic challenges presented by the "Alabama" incident?