THE CHRISTIE AFFAIR IN GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE: BRITISH PRESSURE, THE AMERICAN CIVIL WAR, AND THE ONSET OF BRAZIL’S SLAVERY CRISIS (1860-1864)

Abstract

Scholarship analyzing the Christie Affair proceeds from the premise that events leading to the Christie Affair can be explained exclusively through the bilateral relations between Brazil and Great Britain. Without denying the role of these factors, this paper aims to widen the unit of analysis to consider the role of other historical processes in the 1860s that played decisive roles in the dispute between both countries. Supported by newspaper articles, parliamentary records, and diplomatic letters, the article shows that the Christie Affair was strongly influenced by the broader historical conjuncture opened by the American Civil War, thus drawing attention to its more immediate consequences to the onset of Brazil’s slavery crisis.

Keywords:
Christie Affair - American Civil War - free Africans - slavery - Empire of Brazil