Synthesized answer
The "Alabama" was originally built as "No. 290" by Messrs. Laird at Birkenhead, England, and was nearly completed by June 1862, obviously intended as a man-of-war for the Confederates [2]. After being launched, Captain Semmes took command under a Confederate commission, and the ship had a destructive career until sunk by the "Kearsarge" off Cherbourg on June 19, 1864 [1]. The United States alleged that Great Britain breached neutrality by allowing the "Alabama" and other Confederate vessels to be built and equipped on British territory [1].
Historically, the dispute arose from the U.S. government's grievances over Britain's recognition of the Confederacy as belligerents and its failure to prevent the construction of Confederate warships in British shipyards [1][2]. The British government had issued a neutrality proclamation in May 1861, but the "Alabama" was built despite U.S. protests; the law officers advised detention if the vessel's character was confirmed [2]. Juridically, the case became significant through arbitration: in 1871, a commission agreed to submit the claims to arbitration under three rules [5]. The tribunal found Great Britain legally responsible for the…
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From the book
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…
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…
← 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…
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…
. 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.
More questions about this book
- What were the immediate and potential long-term consequences of the British government's proclamation of neutrality and recognition of the Confederates as belligerents, particularly concerning the international legality of vessels like the "Alabama"?
- Given the British government's declared neutrality, analyze the complexities and potential conflicts of interest that might have allowed a warship intended for the Confederacy to be built in a British shipyard.
- How does the "Alabama" Arbitration, as described, exemplify the role of international arbitration in averting war, and what specific elements contributed to this outcome?
- If you were the British law officer receiving the U.S. consul's evidence, what specific legal arguments or interpretations of international law would you apply to determine if the "Alabama" should be detained, considering the context of neutrality?