"Both countries are also beset by foreign dangers. Both countries throughout the early and mid 19th century are having very contentious relationships with Britain and France. And for Russia this breaks out in the Crimean War in the 1850s shortly before the American War. It's a bloody, very costly war. And what the Russians noticed during that war is that one of the few nations that openly sympathizes with them is the United States. And this has an enormous impact on Russian attitudes towards the United States. So when the civil war breaks out the Russians make it very clear from the outset that they strongly support the survival of the union. . . Now, the attitude of the British and French toward the United States is far different. Because of commercial and geopolitical reasons both the British and French are both very sympathetic to the Southern cause. Throughout the early part of the war there will be a lot of tensions between Britain and the United States. At times it looks that the British may actually intervene against the United States. . . The French Empire under Napoleon III is also very favourably disposed to the Confederate cause. The reason being is they're attempting to install a puppet government in Mexico and they believe that if America gets divided they'll have a far easier time of establishing their influence in other parts of the western hemisphere." 7:00 - 9:32 from the video below.
Video Title: The Imperial Russian Navy in the American Civil War. Source: National Museum of Civil War Medicine. Date Published: September 24, 2021.
