The War in Words
What did British officers think of the American Civil War as it was happening?
The American Civil War burned itself into the American identity as the Union and Confederacy fought across large swathes of the country and an estimated 600,000 people died, more US casualties than in any war before or since.
For the rest of the world, the stakes were much lower. The US had not yet fully grown into the economic and military power it would become in the 20th century. While its internal conflict was often reported in the global press and was the subject of academic interest, it was not a vital national security concern. What did outside observers, particularly those in the UK, think of the conflict?
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