Foreign Policy, Gladstone Flashcards
During Gladstone’s First Ministry, what were his 3 foreign policies?
1) Franco-Prussian War, 1870-1
2) Russia and the Black Sea Clauses, 1870
3) The Settling of the Alabama Dispute, 1872
What happened during the Franco-Prussian War?
- Gladstone judged neutrality
- Bismarck manipulated war against France, but France declared the war and so was the aggressor
- Gladstone intervened to make sure that both sides respected Belgium neutrality
- Germany defeat France and become more powerful
What happened concerning Russia and the
Black Sea Clauses?
- Bismarck encouraged the Tsar to pull out of the Black Sea clause of the Treaty of Paris
- Foreign secretary called a conference of the Great Powers
- It was agreed no country had the right to withdraw from part of a treaty
- Gladstone was perceived as weak
What 4 foreign issues did Gladstone deal with during his Second Ministry?
1) Egypt, 1881
2) The Sudan, 1883-5
3) Transvaal and the Boers, 1881
4) Afghanistan, 1885
What went on concerning the Alabama Dispute?
- Britain was deemed to have broken a promise of neutrality during the American Civil War
- Gladstone agreed to pay £3.25m to America through the principle of arbitration
- Gladstone perceived as weak again
What happened in the Sudan?
- A religious extremist, the Mahdi, forced the Khedive of Egypt to send a force into the Sudan to suppress him, the force was trapped and ambushed
- Gladstone expressed his sympathy for the Mahdi, but this view had little sympathy
- Gladstone sent an evacuation force out, but there was an unnecessary delay to send more troops to help and an officer was killed
- Gladstone reached the peak of his unpopularity
What was Gladstone’s issue in Egypt?
- In 1881, an Egyptian army officer led a nationalist rebellion
- Gladstone sanctioned the navy to join France and send warships, at the last minute the French withdrew
- Britain invaded alone and captured the rebel
What happened in Afghanistan?
- Gladstone wanted to withdraw from Afghanistan but was dissuaded by the Indian Viceroy who was anxious not to create unrest
- Gladstone agreed but was unsure as he did not think that Britain had the necessary control to ensure success
- Russia seized a town, Britain threatened violence and Russia withdrew
What were the aims of Gladstone’s foreign policy?
1) He believed that it was his moral duty to maintain peace and avoid war at all costs
2) He believed that the great European powers should act together and preserve the peace and maintain a balance of power in Europe
3) He felt morally bound to respect the rights of other nations, even though this mount conflict with Britain’s interests
When was the Franco-Prussian War?
1870-1
When was the settling of the Alabama Dispute?
1872
What was public opinion of Gladstone’s foreign policy?
There was little sympathy or understanding of Gladstone’s foreign policy, which often appeared contradictory (Afghanistan - threatened violence), and so even his successes were met with criticisms
When were the troubles in Egypt?
1881
When were troubles in the Sudan?
1883-5
What was the issue in the Transvaal?
- Gladstone stalled on the issue of giving the Boers independence as he was considering a South African Federation
- In result of this, a fight broke out between the Boers and Britain and the Boers inflicted a humiliating defeat on the British
- Gladstone chose a compromise of independence with the British crown maintaining sovereignty, but this was soon dropped when the Boers disagreed again, and in 1884 the British government finally recognised the South African Republic
