French Newspaper Opinion on the American Civil War

by George M. Blackburn

Overview

During the American Civil War, political ideology was the most important determinant of French jourbanalistic attitudes. Conservatives usually supported the South while Liberals usually supported the North. Provincial newspapers, however, less consistently followed ideological patterns than their Parisian and big-city colleagues. Slavery was not a determinant of French attitudes, since all French were opposed to slavery; rather, both Conservatives and Liberals used the issue of slavery as a device to garner support. While Conservatives remained firm in believing that the South would prevail until the very end, Liberal jourbanalists sometimes despaired of a Union triumph in the face of Northern military defeats.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780313302619
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	04/22/1997
Series:	Contributions in American History , #171
Pages:	176
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.44(d)
Lexile:	1480L (what's this?)

About the Author

GEORGE M. BLACKBURN is Professor Emeritus of History at Central Michigan University.

Table of Contents

Introduction
France in 1861
The 1860 Election and Secession
The Trent Affair
Changing Military Fortunes and Emancipation
The Cotton Crise
French Official Actions through Mediation
1863 and 1864
The End of the War
Bibliographical Essay
Index

Editorial Reviews

After outlining the French government, society, economy, and press in the 1860s, describes the attitudes of specific newspapers to various aspects of the US Civil War. Among them are the causes and early stages, the "Trent" affair, the economic impact on France, French efforts to mediate, and events in the final years. Also explains why France of Napoleon III tended to be more sympathetic to the Confederacy than to the Union. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

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