John Bull, Uncle Sam, and King Cotton: Conflicted Friendships

At this meeting of the Knoxville Civil War Roundtable, the naval historian Kent Wright will address the British “X” factor in the war. Backed by 30 years of research, Kent will discuss how British interests were tied to the war from start to finish and how these interests affected major policy decisions and the handling of one crisis after another on both sides of the Atlantic. Kent is an authority the role of the US and CS Navies in the Civil War, having written many articles and given many lectures. The Civil War may have been a distinctly American affair, but the guns that rocked America shook the world. In England and on the continent, the war touched close to home as vested interests clashed, bonds of friendship frayed, and business ties were torn asunder. What Jefferson Davis’s foreign policies meant for Southern independence and ties to Europe, and, conversely, what Lincoln’s policies meant in preventing Southern independence and keeping Europeans at bay is one of the least understood and potentially most consequential aspects of the war. Because the navies were the primary instruments for projecting power in the nineteenth century, international conflict often played out on the high seas.

The lecture will begin at 7:30 PM on Tuesday, February 13th, 2018, at Bearden Banquet Hall, 5806 Kingston Pike. The cost of the lecture is $5 and students are free. Dinner is at 6:30PM and it costs $17 and includes the lecture. Please RSVP BY NOON Monday February 12th at 865-671-9001.