Abstract
The ascent and downfall of Napoleon had a major impact in Europe, but it also affected the new democracy across the Atlantic Ocean, the United States of America. From 1804-1815, the American republic was caught in a diplomatic dilemma, as it attempted to remain neutral in the face of enormous pressure from Europe. Both France and Great Britain, who were at war with each other, hoped to force the United States to become involved in their struggle and waged economic warfare against American trade and shipping. The American economic representatives in France, the consuls faced enormous obstacles as they tried to assist their fellow Americans engaged in commercial ventures across the Atlantic. Over the years, the consuls engaged in skirmishes with French officials over the atrocities committed against American shipping as well as diplomatic battles with American foreign ministers and even their fellow consuls. In “Dereliction of Diplomacy: The American Consulates in Paris and Bordeaux during the Napoleonic Era, 1804-1815,” the role the consuls played in the care of American citizens abroad and the facilitation of their consular duties is examined. While the consuls remained low-level American officials, they did influence American foreign policy by keeping the leaders in Washington D.C. apprised of the economic realities of trading with Napoleonic France.
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