ne hundred and fifty years ago this month, the American Civil War ended, dashing the plans of southern U.S. elites for an independent Confederate States of America.
Though Union forces compelled the surrender of the Confederate army in April 1865, the Confederacy forfeited, by mistake and misfortune, the one potential asset that could have turned the tide much sooner: international recognition from an initially sympathetic Europe. In that regard, the Confederacy lost the war in London and Paris as much as it lost it in Gettysburg and Appomattox. Americans today of all backgrounds should be delighted that the United States didn’t cleave into two countries, and the Union’s victory cleared the way for constitutional revisions that brought the United States closer to closing the gap between the idealism of its founding premise and the ugly realities of slavery and racial inequality. While there are many lessons from the wrenching five-year war, the Confederacy’s failures amount to a parable about the importance of diplomacy for young and emerging nations. When leaders of independence movements develop strong regional and international links, it can make the difference between success and failure.
Even before the halfway point of the war, Confederate leaders had lost the opportunity, through errors largely of their own making, to achieve recognition from Great Britain, France and other countries in Europe and even Latin America. That, in turn, could have paved the way for vital financing and material support that could have ended the war sooner—and in the Confederacy’s favor. Southern leaders failed in at least three aspects.
