Elephants for Mr. Lincoln : American Civil War-era diplomacy in Southeast Asia
Author(s)
Bibliographic Information
Elephants for Mr. Lincoln : American Civil War-era diplomacy in Southeast Asia
Scarecrow Press, 2006
- : pbk
Available at 3 libraries
  Aomori
  Iwate
  Miyagi
  Akita
  Yamagata
  Fukushima
  Ibaraki
  Tochigi
  Gunma
  Saitama
  Chiba
  Tokyo
  Kanagawa
  Niigata
  Toyama
  Ishikawa
  Fukui
  Yamanashi
  Nagano
  Gifu
  Shizuoka
  Aichi
  Mie
  Shiga
  Kyoto
  Osaka
  Hyogo
  Nara
  Wakayama
  Tottori
  Shimane
  Okayama
  Hiroshima
  Yamaguchi
  Tokushima
  Kagawa
  Ehime
  Kochi
  Fukuoka
  Saga
  Nagasaki
  Kumamoto
  Oita
  Miyazaki
  Kagoshima
  Okinawa
  Korea
  China
  Thailand
  United Kingdom
  Germany
  Switzerland
  France
  Belgium
  Netherlands
  Sweden
  Norway
  United States of America
Note
Includes bibliographical references (p. 137-146) and index
Description and Table of Contents
Description
This is the story of American merchants, diplomats, and missionaries in Southeast Asia prior to and during the US Civil War. American relations in Southeast Asia had begun in the prewar years with the work of these individuals and-with subtle variations in duty-would continue throughout the war years. During those years, trade on US vessels had plummeted due to high Union tariffs and fear of Confederate raiders in Asian waters. On the diplomatic front, the turnover rate for consular agents was high, and they lacked naval support from the East Asian Squadron. In contrast, American missionaries in Burma and Thailand-who still served despite reduced budgets, food shortages and ill health-provided a crucial bridge to America. In fact, by making steady achievements in education, medicine, and publishing, the American missionaries, who transcended regional and global differences in Siam and Burma, were the key to closing the knowledge gap, promoting good will, and representing the US abroad. Within these pages, readers can find myriad accounts of American relations with Southeast Asia. Everything is contained in this book: from the King of Siam's letter to President Lincoln offering white elephants to aid the Union (unfortunately, the letter didn't arrive until after the war had ended) to the recounting of Paul Revere's daughter, the wife of a merchant consul in Singapore, of how she rang the bell made by her father to remind sailors of the nightly curfew to former President Ulysses S. Grant's world tour in 1870 during which he promised to improve diplomatic ties with Siam. These accounts of commerce, treaties, and mission work are a testament to the enduring human spirit, enterprise, and pragmatic attitude of these early pioneers of American Diplomacy.
Table of Contents
Part 1 Acknowledgments Chapter 2 1. Introduction Chapter 3 2. Establishing Early Contacts Chapter 4 3. Along Burma's Rivers Chapter 5 4. King Mongkut's Guests Chapter 6 5. The World of Commerce during the U.S. Civil War Chapter 7 6. Diplomacy during the War Years Chapter 8 7. Epilogue Part 9 Selected Bibliography Part 10 Index Part 11 About the Authors
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