MANAGING DISCORD IN THE AMERICAS Great Britain and the United States 1886-1896 GERER LA DISCORDE DANS LES AMERIQUES La Grande-Bretagne et les Etats-Unis 1886-1896 A Thesis Submitted To the Division of Graduate Studies of the Royal Military College of Canada By Charles Robertson Maier, CD, MA In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy April 2010 ©This Thesis may be used within the Department of National Defence but copyright for open publication remains the property of the author Library and Archives Bibliotheque et 1*1 Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de I'edition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 OttawaONK1A0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-69195-3 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-69195-3 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non­ L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library and permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par I'lnternet, preter, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans le loan, distribute and sell theses monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, sur worldwide, for commercial or non­ support microforme, papier, electronique et/ou commercial purposes, in microform, autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. The author retains copyright L'auteur conserve la propriete du droit d'auteur ownership and moral rights in this et des droits moraux qui protege cette these. Ni thesis. Neither the thesis nor la these ni des extraits substantiels de celle-ci substantial extracts from it may be ne doivent etre imprimes ou autrement printed or otherwise reproduced reproduits sans son autorisation. without the author's permission. In compliance with the Canadian Conformement a la loi canadienne sur la Privacy Act some supporting forms protection de la vie privee, quelques may have been removed from this formulaires secondaires ont ete enleves de thesis. cette these. While these forms may be included Bien que ces formulaires aient inclus dans in the document page count, their la pagination, il n'y aura aucun contenu removal does not represent any loss manquant. of content from the thesis. 1+1 Canada ABSTRACT MANAGING DISCORD IN THE AMERICAS Great Britain and the United States 1886-1896 Maier, Charles Robertson Ph.D. Royal Military College of Canada Dr. Norman Hillmer & Dr. Brian McKercher From the mid-1880s through the mid-1890s, a series of disputes erupted involving Great Britain and the United States in locales across the Western Hemisphere. The diplomatic settlement achieved earlier in the nineteenth century broke down, leading to a succession of confrontational situations that created discord between these two powers, with implications for regional security. Managing Anglo-American discord became a process, which eventually promoted a degree of accommodation, informing the foreign policies of each, and in turn facilitating a trajectory towards rapprochement. Three analytical concepts are used to assess the events discussed in this dissertation. First of all, Anglo-American discord was based in local disturbances that were crucial in their impact on the workings of the broader relationship. Secondly, the Western Hemisphere was an interconnected region of prime importance to the development of Anglo-American relations. Thirdly, Anglo-American discord in its various guises generated processes that ultimately moved Anglo-American relations in the direction of accommodation. The thesis examines the controversial British presence in the strategic isthmian area of Central America, especially in relation to the Mosquito Reserve, as well as the Brazilian naval revolt and British annexation of Trinidad Island in the South Atlantic. The thesis also considers the disputes over the North Atlantic fishery and the right to harvest seals in the Bering Sea. Some economic factors, including reciprocal trade relations are assessed, as are the relative expansion of British and American naval forces in the region. The study concludes with an examination of particular aspects of the pivotal Venezuelan boundary dispute, and it addresses how that crisis contributed to Anglo- American discord and reconciliation. In an endeavour to manage the discord created by these situations and factors, British policy-makers let it be known that the leadership role their country had enjoyed for many years in Western Hemispheric affairs, arguably by default, was one their government was prepared to relinquish. At the same time, American leaders made clear their country's determination to act as the leading power in the region. This study analyses the process by which the management of these sources of discord contributed to the transfer of hemispheric leadership from Britain to the United States, and steered Anglo-American relations in the direction of rapprochement. IV ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The writing of this thesis has been made easier because of the help of many people. I would like to thank the Marquesss of Salisbury for permission to access the papers of his illustrious ancestor, the third Marquess. I am most grateful to Ms. Diana Makgill for permitting me to use the surviving papers of her grandfather, Lord Pauncefote. I also received extensive assistance from the staff of the Library of the Venezuelan Department of Foreign Affairs, and I would like to express my sincere thanks to them and to Mr. Vicken Koundakjian, who as Counsellor at the Canadian Embassy in Caracas did so much to pave the way for this aspect of my research. I am also most appreciative for the professionalism, help and assistance I received from staff members of those great research institutions I worked at in compiling this thesis: Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa; The National Archives, Kew; the British Library, London; the Library of Congress and the National Archives and Records Administration, Washington; the Bodelian Library, Oxford; and Churchill College Archives Centre, Cambridge. I wish to thank Dr. Dwayne Winseck for reviewing an early draft of the chapter concerning cable communications and Brazil. I would like to express my gratitude to those on my supervisory team who helped to steer me through the course work and research which have contributed so much to this thesis, including Professors Brian v McKercher, Barry Gough, and in particular I want to thank Professor Norman Hillmer, whose tireless support, consummate professionalism, and careful criticism helped to mould my historical understanding, while his encouragement ensured that this thesis reached completion. I am also deeply obliged to family and friends without whose help the research for this thesis could not have been undertaken. I wish particularly to mention Stuart and Meriel Cashman, and Jeremy Coke-Smyth and Melissa Morbeck, whose homes in Isleworth, Middlesex provided supportive and ideally situated bases from which I was able to pursue my studies in Great Britain. These acknowledgements would not, however, be complete without my attempting to express the deep and abiding debt of gratitude I owe to my wife Valerie, who has contributed to the writing of this dissertation in countless ways, most importantly by her faith in the project, which never wavered. VI TABLE OF CONTENTS SIGNATURE PAGE ii ABSTRACT iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS v INTRODUCTION 1 I. The Return of Discord 1886-1889 21 The Ideological Ground 23 Growing Discord in Central America 27 Growing Discord in North America 33 The Forces of Discord 41 Discussing Discord in Washington 48 Conclusion 61 II. Competition and Discord 1889-1894 63 Competition and Pan-Americanism 64 Competition and Navalism 67 Discord in Chilean Waters 72 Competition and Reciprocity 76 Discord in the Bering Sea 82 Conclusion 98 III. The Struggle to Accommodate 1894-1895 101 A Background of Discord 102 The Affair at Bluefields 108 The Mosquito Rebellion 125 The Corinto Landing 131 Conclusion 148 vn IV. Cables and Confrontation in Brazil 1894-1895 151 The Brazilian Naval Revolt 153 The Annexation of Trinidad 165 Conclusion 186 V. Venezuela and the Boundaries of Discord 1895-1896 188 Confrontation Along the Boundary 193 Confrontation Between the Capitals 197 The New Year Resolution 224 Conclusion 233 CONCLUSION 238 BIBLIOGRAPHY: 251 Vlll INTRODUCTION The decade preceding the Venezuela boundary crisis of 1895-1896, saw a series of disputes erupt involving Great Britain and the United States in locales across the Western Hemisphere. Working through these discordant situations enabled the two powers, one with extensive worldwide interests, the other with a determination to dominate the Americas, to develop an understanding of the extent to which they could move beyond rivalry and mutual antagonism. Managing their discordant relations became a process which itself created a degree of accommodation informing the foreign policies of each, and in turn facilitating the trajectory towards rapprochement. The period since the signing of the Treaty of Washington in 1871 was one of relative calm in Anglo-American relations, but this changed in the mid-1880s.1 An interrelated series of disputes flared up involving access to the North Atlantic fishery, the right to harvest seals in the Bering Sea, the traditional British presence in the strategic isthmian area of Central America, and British actions in relation to the territorial integrity 1 R.B. Mowat The Diplomatic Relations of Great Britain and the United States, (London: Edward Arnold, 1925). Mowat titles his chapter concerning the period between the conclusion of the Treaty of Washington and the inauguration of Grover Cleveland as President in 1885 'Inactive Relations', noting that 'After the Alabama Arbitration the relations of Great Britain and America were of an uneventful nature for twenty years.' Seepage 221. Similarly the chapter on this period in H.C. Allen, Great Britain and the United States, (New York: St.