"We Must Have Chihuahua and Sonora" Civil War Diplomacy in the U.S.–Mexico Borderlands

The diplomatic missions of Confederate colonel James Reily in 1862 and U.S. Army major David Fergusson in 1863 attempted to broker alliances with the governors of Chihuahua and Sonora, and each quest was undertaken by local commanders acting independently of national leaders. Army officers on both s...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inThe journal of the Civil War era Vol. 9; no. 2; pp. 196 - 222
Main Author KISER, WILLIAM S.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Chapel Hill University of North Carolina Press 01.06.2019
The University of North Carolina Press
Subjects
Alliances
American Civil War
Armed forces
Armies
Civil War, 1861-1865
Cooperation
Diplomacy
Diplomatic & consular services
Embargoes & blockades
Federalism
Foreign policy
Governors
International relations
Military aspects
Military history
Officials and employees
Political power
Reily, James
Sovereignty
Supplies
United States history
United States
Mexico
France
New Mexico
United States > US
Texas
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Summary:The diplomatic missions of Confederate colonel James Reily in 1862 and U.S. Army major David Fergusson in 1863 attempted to broker alliances with the governors of Chihuahua and Sonora, and each quest was undertaken by local commanders acting independently of national leaders. Army officers on both sides hoped to exploit the precarious dynamics of political power in the U.S.–Mexico Borderlands, recognizing the plurality of sovereignty that the American Civil War and the French Intervention interposed across that vast frontier. With Mexico upended by the European invasion and the United States divided against itself in violent conflict, an environment of contested authority emerged wherein no single entity dominated.
ISSN:2154-4727
2159-9807
2159-9807
DOI:10.1353/cwe.2019.0026