If England had recognised the Confederate States?

[cedarstripper]

Originally Posted by SpiritofPickett

The South abolishes Slavery. It makes the war a 'States Rights' issue.

The confederacy implodes, lacking enough support for disunion from its own quarter.

Cedarstripper

[MobileBoy]

It is important to remember that the CSA never had problems with draft riots like the north did.Why in the world would they(the yeomen farmers who did most of the fighting and by the way weren't nearly the living in shacks poor white trash barely surviving they are stereotyped as rejoin the Union).Late in the war once inflation was making it very difficult to obtain food and everyday supplies and the battlefield wasn't going great either the Southern will collapsed.Before those situations occurred only a very tiny minority of Confederates even considered the Union their country still probably less than 10 percent.If you look at enlistment records into both armies from Confederate states it was significantly less than that.Now friends with Britain on the South's side(which of course would include France as Napoleon the third made clear he was willing to back the CSA when Britain did) that situation would never happen.The CSA would be very well supplied.Other than the minimal effect of the few Confederate raiders the Northern economy was booming in the war from what I've ascertained.With the British and French navies it's conceivable that the Union's Atlantic seaboard could be blockaded.The commerce on the Great Lakes could also be severely disrupted and no doubt many of the Northern populace would see war up close and personal on their own territory.That's a lot different having your property seized and or destroyed in some cases than reading about it in the newspaper.Without dominace of the waterways the entire war changes.The Union swift advance using the rivers may or may not have occurred in the West.Certainly a large number of Union troops would have to be stationed along the Canadian border and along the Atlantic seaboard.Those Northern citizens would have to fear war coming to their doors.Britain could have easily bombarded coastal cities.Would the Union have been able to defend California and keep its vast gold?About the Irish they couldn't have kept coming over and enlisting in the Union army with the royal navy preventing their enterance.An effective blockade of the North may have spurred patriotic feeling or it may have swayed the majority of the populace to let the South go.Would it really have been worth all that trouble to everyone to force the Confederacy to be a part of their nation especially in a war that may be a stalemate at best for the Union?I don't think so but of course it's all just an educated guess.Maybe an economist wiser than I can chime in about what effects the British and French navy would've had on Northern shipping and economy.

[unionblue]

MobileBoy,

Sorry, but the Confederate Army had a tough time keeping men in the ranks and had to employ armed men to go get those who had been drafted or who had deserted. In some areas of the South, a recruiting officer took his life in his hands if he went looking for draftees or tried to enlist men for the Confederate cause.

Many civilian authorities pleaded with Richmond to send troops to round up deserters, tories, and others who would not go quitely into that good cause.

And, you can find most of this trouble beginning when the South instituted a draft, before the Union ever did as I am sure you are aware.

Don't focus on one area and you will find both sides had problems and no side was without 'sin.' The idea that every person in the South was solidly behind secession, etc., is one of the biggest myths in the entire war.

Sincerely,
Unionblue

[Will Posey]

Originally Posted by ole

Laws proposed before the shooting started hint that the CSA was quite class conscious and anticipated creating an "aristocracy." I don't believe the yeoman farmer or middle-class would have long put up with that.
Ole

The aristocracy still exists today. It's just a fact of life that the present day middle class puts up with.