How Did Lincoln's Struggle During The American Civil War

Lincoln knew that to keep the European influence out of the American Civil War, the Union needed to look competent to foreign entities by stopping the southern rebellion. Unfortunately, this didn’t start well when the Union suffered a crushing defeat at the Battle of Bull Run in 1861, causing Lincoln to feel a sense of “humility” and “embarrassment” towards European nations (Peraino, 2013). As a recommendation from the military, Secretary of State, Henry Seward, and Lincoln approved the Anaconda Plan, blocking southern U.S. ports to prevent foreign trade. Around that time, Lincoln signed a bill that “actively pushed for innovations in the navy… to develop a fleet of ironclads” due to the fact that the blockade was a “life and limb” that must
Lincoln’s primary goal was to “raise the flag back up” (Monaghan, 1945). Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation not only ended slavery, but also encouraged similar actions around the world. He added “that all persons held as slaves within said designated States, and parts of States…henceforward shall be free…” (Teal, 2013). Immediately following the signing, Seward released the document to diplomats around the world. Charles Adams, an American envoy in London, was told to use the Proclamation as a way to strengthen ties with the Royal Court. Seward added that “the President has issued a proclamation in which he gives notice that slavery will be no longer recognized in any State which shall be found in armed rebellion on the first of January next year” (Teal, 2013). Adams reported that the proclamation drew “the line with greater distinctness between those persons really friendly to the United States and the remainder of the community, and to test the extent of the genuine anti-slavery feeling left in the country” (Teal, 2017). The working-class of Europe was excited for the end of slavery, as England had formally abolished it in 1833. Europeans began pouring their congratulations across the Atlantic, showing their support towards the end of slavery in the United States (Lincoln, 1907). This also played useful in a U.S.-British agreement to abolish slave trading, by stopping and searching vessels along the coast of Africa. The Lincoln administration agreed to the treaty, providing it originated in Washington (Peraino, 2013). He recognized that a bold, moral demand would infuse the Union war effort with purpose and meaning–both at home and abroad (Peraino,