Atlantic anti-slavery circuit: James Redpath and the Anti-Slavery Conference of Paris, 1867

Abstract

After the end of the American Civil War there was a reordering of anti-slavery positions in the Atlantic world. This article explores the letters on Brazilian slavery of the American abolitionist James Redpath, and two texts presented by Brazilian agents at the Anti-slavery Conference in Paris. The objective is to demonstrate that in both cases, although the main issue was slavery in Brazil, there were other interests coordinating these interventions. This shows that the slave question was only one more element on the international board, and that any analysis that dispenses with the larger context runs the risk of being unable to grasp the real interests in dispute.