I MASTER'S THESIS M ..619 Î 1 I PFAUTZ, James Coleman ! THE AFRICAN SQUADRON OF THE UNITED STATES ! NAVY, 1843-1861: A CRITICAL STUDY. Î r The American University, M.A., 1968 I Political Science, international law and relations University Microfilms, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan THE AFRICAN SQUADRON OF THE UNITED STATES NAVY 1843-1861 A CRITICAL STUDY By James Coleman Pfautz Submitted to the Faculty of the School of International Service of The American University in P artial Fulfillment of The Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS Signature of Committee: Chairman Date: /sT j Dean ofthe^School AMERICAN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY Date: 1968 JUL181968 The American University Washington, D.C. WASHINGTON. O. C TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I. INTRODUCTION . ......................................................................... 1 I I. THE WEBS TER-ASHBURTON TREATY AND ARTICLE EIGHT .............................................................. 5 III. THE AFRICAN SQUADRON.............................................................. 16 Operations of the Squadron......................................................... 16 The Issue of Health ............................................................................. 23 Squadron Equipm ent ........................................................................ 32 Squadron Leadership .............................. 7 .......................... 48 IV . THE BRITISH SQUADRON AND JOINT CR.TTISING . 67 V. CONFLICTS OF INTEREST AND THE SQUADRON MISSION......................................................................................................... 78 VI . ATTEMPTS TO DISSOLVE THE SQUADRON AND ITS EVENTUAL RECALL ................................................................ 89 VH . SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS...............................................................109 BIBLIOGRAPHY..............................................................................................116 APPENDIXES.............................................................................................. 119 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION It is the purpose of this study to evaluate the effectiveness of the United States Navy's African Squadron in the suppression of international slave trade during the years 1843-1861. The African Squadron was formed through the provisions of the Treaty of Washington of 1842, which is also known as the Webster- Ashburton Treaty, Article Eight of that Treaty called for the establish­ ment of an American naval presence of not fewer than eighty guns to patrol the Coast of Africa. ^ This bilateral agreement with Great Britain also required a British force of like description to patrol the African Coast, and, further, implied that "joint cruising" by the two Squadrons 2 would effect suppression of the slave-trade by the two countries. This latter arrangement represented a compromise by the Americans acknowledging their reluctance to permit the right-of-search by the B ritish. ^ ^See Appendix A for the provisions of Article Eight. 2 Soulsby, Hugh G. , The Right of Search and the Slave Trade in Anglo-American Relations. (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins P re s s , 1933), pp. 86-87. ^Ibid. While the United States Navy D epartm ent, in 1843, assigned additional missions to the African Squadron, ^ in charging it with the protection of American commerce as well as the prevention of search of American vessels by other than American warships, this study is limited to a consideration of the overall effectiveness of the American African Squadron in the accomplishment of its mission to suppress the trade in slaves. Other missions are mentioned only when they tended to affect the Squadron's activity in seeking out and capturing slavers. The study commences with a background survey of events leading to the signing of the Webs ter-Ashburton Treaty, followed by a discussion of Article Eight of the Treaty. _ An overview of the operations of the Squadron follows in which the African Squadron is evaluated as a typical naval organization of that period, discharging its assigned mission. The routine operations of the fleet are considered, as is the all-important issue of the physical and mental health of the personnel assigned to the entire Squadron. The various type vessels assigned to the African Squadron are evaluated as to their relative effectiveness. Finally, in analyzing the operational environment, a comprehensive study of the Squadron's leaders and leadership is undertaken. ^Record of Confidential Letters, No. L (Navy Dept. ), p. 24. The all-important question of national interests and their effect on the ability of the African Squadron to discharge its responsibilities is developed. The many varied and frequently-opposing forces, which served to influence the activity of the Squadron, are reviewed. One chapter then considers the early attempts to dissolve the authority for the Squadron, the moves to undercut its congressional authorization, and the conferences held by Southern States to resolve the issue of the bothersome anti-slavery legislation and the Provisions of the Webster- Ashburton Treaty. The eventual recall of the Squadron is covered at the conclusion of this particular chapter. The concluding chapter attempts to summarize the findings and then to draw objective conclusions concerning the effectiveness of the Squadron as a military organization charged with the mission of suppressing the slave trade. Accordingly, it is anticipated that the study will provide answers to several questions which should be considered while undertaking a review of this study. What were the general policies of the United States regarding the African slave trade? What may have been the foundation of those policies? If there were conflicts of interests, both domestically and internationally, whose interests would be best served, or restricted, by the activity of the African Squadron? How effective was the American effort vis-a-vis the British in suppressing slave trade? What were the motives. missions, problems, accomplishments, and failures of the American African Squadron? Did it serve the best interests of the United States Government ? This thesis was undertaken in an attempt to answer questions and provide information concerning a period of history of the United States Navy. Few comprehensive studies of the work of the African Squadron have been written. Ample references are available, however, and the study draws on them in an effort to bring related ideas together. Research materials consisted mainly of ships' logs, captains' letters, and many of the earlier books published in the period 1854-1900 on the subject. All of the materials are available in the National Archives or the Naval Academy Library. CHAPTER n THE WEBS TER-ASHBURTON TREATY AND ARTICLE EIGHT In England, the rising tide of public indignation against slave trade peaked early in the 19th Century. However, it was not until the late 1830s that an aroused citizenry looked to the government to use its whole influence against the noxious practice. There were, to be sure, vast differences of opinion in just how far the government should go in resolving the problem. Would legislative action suffice? Or would diplomacy be necessary to quell the trade? Despite numerous state pronouncements and international decrees against slaving, the practice of hauling slaves for profit flourished as rampantly at any time in history. Conditions for the negro captives were intolerable. Slave-traders packed hundreds of slaves into the holds of vessels to insure that, after the toll extracted by the inevitable "fever", there would still be enough survivors for a handsome profit. Slaves were packed between each other’s legs, chained by the ankle in pairs, with the fetters being riveted, not locked. It was near impossible for the slave to sit upright, the deck planking above him being too low. Kept below during the whole voyage of some 4-6 weeks, slaves suffered the odor of bad air and the accumulation of filth. There is no record of the multitudes who perished enroute to the Western Hemisphere, but it is estimated that only a fifth of those who left the African shores survived to become workers on the plantations.^ Even in those cases where a slaver was captured, the trip to the repatriation grounds of Sierra Leone and Liberia was apt to be a long one, occupying some four to five weeks. Negroes suffered as much, in some instances, as if they had been permitted to continue their journey across the Ocean. Since a ship could be seized only when actually carrying slaves, captains frequently had them thrown overboard as a group, shackled together. Weights were added by crew members in order to make sure the "evidence" would not surface. It has been said that slave ships were sometimes followed by sharks. Diseased slaves were oftentimes thrown overboard to the sharks. ^ While it is true that these practices were prevalent throughout the entire history of slave-trading, they are mentioned here to establish the deplorable conditions which persisted at the time of the Webster-Ashburton Treaty. Some action appeared mandatory. Intending to consolidate the respective agreements made to suppress slave trade, a Quintuple Howard, Warren S., American Slavers and the Federal Law, 1837-1862. (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1963), p. 2. 2 Ibid., p. 3. Treaty was negotiated in December, 1841, among Great Britain, Austria, 3 France, Prussia, and Russia. Slaving was declared to be piracy, and there was unanimous agreement on the right to search each others cruisers in