Presidents at Peace: Ulysses Grant and the Alabama Claims
The Alabama was a Confederate warship that was built in 1862 for the Confederate States Navy. The Alabama was built at Birkenhead, England by the English shipbuilding firm of John Laird Sons and Company. During the Civil War it served as what was known as a "commerce raider". It would attack Union merchant and naval ships in a variety of locations including the Caribbean, South Africa, Newfoundland and the east coast of the United States. Over a two-year period it inflicted significant damage to Union commercial vessels. There were also four other ships which were built for the Confederacy by the British, which performed a similar raiding function, but the Alabama caused the most damage. In June of 1864 the Alabama was sunk in battle by the USS Kearsarge at the naval Battle of Cherbourg outside the port of Cherbourg, France.
The Alabama caused nearly $6,000,000 worth of damage (approximately $123,000,000 in today's dollars). After the war ended, the U. S. Government pursued the "Alabama Claims" against the British Government for the devastation caused, based on international law. The American claim was that Britain had violated its neutrality by recognition and support of Confederate belligerents. It did so by cooperating in the building of the ships, and providing a port for it.
When the war ended, the United States demanded retribution. Initially, the British refused to pay. Negotiations between the two nations continued during the Andrew Johnson Administration, but a sticking point was the claims of "indirect damages" as opposed to the harm directly caused by the five ships. Senator Charles Sumner believed that the United States should seek a $2 billion reward payable in gold or, alternatively, by ceding Canada to the United States.
During the administration of President Ulysses Grant, Secretary of State Hamilton Fish convinced his president that peaceful relations with Britain were more important than acquisition of more territory, and the two nations agreed to negotiate along those lines. Grant allowed Secretary Fish to conclude negotiations with Britain. A commission met in Washington in May of 1871. The British delegation included Sir John A. Macdonald, the first Prime Minister of Canada (which had made the transition from colonies to nation on July 1, 1867.) Those negotiations produced a treaty, known as the Treaty of Washington. It was agreed that an international tribunal would settle the amount of damage owed to the United States by Great Britain. The British admitted "regret", rather than fault. The Senate approved the Treaty of Washington, which also settled disputes over fishing rights and maritime boundaries with Canada. The treaty was approved by a 50–12 vote in the senate.
The following year, at Geneva, the United States was awarded $15,500,000 pursuant to the terms of the treaty, and the British apologized for the destruction caused by the British-built Confederate ships, while admitting no guilt.
The Alabama caused nearly $6,000,000 worth of damage (approximately $123,000,000 in today's dollars). After the war ended, the U. S. Government pursued the "Alabama Claims" against the British Government for the devastation caused, based on international law. The American claim was that Britain had violated its neutrality by recognition and support of Confederate belligerents. It did so by cooperating in the building of the ships, and providing a port for it.
When the war ended, the United States demanded retribution. Initially, the British refused to pay. Negotiations between the two nations continued during the Andrew Johnson Administration, but a sticking point was the claims of "indirect damages" as opposed to the harm directly caused by the five ships. Senator Charles Sumner believed that the United States should seek a $2 billion reward payable in gold or, alternatively, by ceding Canada to the United States.
During the administration of President Ulysses Grant, Secretary of State Hamilton Fish convinced his president that peaceful relations with Britain were more important than acquisition of more territory, and the two nations agreed to negotiate along those lines. Grant allowed Secretary Fish to conclude negotiations with Britain. A commission met in Washington in May of 1871. The British delegation included Sir John A. Macdonald, the first Prime Minister of Canada (which had made the transition from colonies to nation on July 1, 1867.) Those negotiations produced a treaty, known as the Treaty of Washington. It was agreed that an international tribunal would settle the amount of damage owed to the United States by Great Britain. The British admitted "regret", rather than fault. The Senate approved the Treaty of Washington, which also settled disputes over fishing rights and maritime boundaries with Canada. The treaty was approved by a 50–12 vote in the senate.
The following year, at Geneva, the United States was awarded $15,500,000 pursuant to the terms of the treaty, and the British apologized for the destruction caused by the British-built Confederate ships, while admitting no guilt.