Hidden History: The role of Great Britain in the American Civil War As told by cultural artifacts

Author

Mary Griffiths, CUNY City CollegeFollow

Date of Award

2017

Document Type

Thesis

Department

History

First Advisor

Adrienne Petty

Second Advisor

John Blanton

Keywords

Civil War, Great Britain, Lancashire, Liverpool, Manchester, Lincoln

Abstract

What do statues and songs tell us about the Civil War? If the monuments are in the United States – a marker on a battlefield for instance- it is easy to decipher the context and historical significance. Soldiers passed their time with song and their lyrics are preserved to this day, performed by both pop artists and living historians. But what if these cultural artifacts reside outside the United States? Why is there a statue of Abraham Lincoln in the city of Manchester? How does a monument dedicated to the martyrs at the Lune Street Riots on Preston, Lancashire relate to the Civil War? Why does a sea shanty about one of the arguably most famous and successful ships in the Confederate Navy make mention of British individuals and geography? The quick answer is that all these fragments reveal the complicated role the British had in the American Civil War.

Recommended Citation

Griffiths, Mary, "Hidden History: The role of Great Britain in the American Civil War As told by cultural artifacts" (2017). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cc_etds_theses/703