B. to win recognition and support from foreign governments
Explanation:
The entry into the war of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland or of France in favor of the Confederation would have greatly increased the chances of the South to gain independence from the Union. This, under the control of Lincoln and Secretary of State William Henry Seward, worked to prevent European powers from getting involved. He threatened that if they recognized the Confederation, this would amount to a declaration of war. Neither the United Kingdom nor France came to recognize the Confederate government as legitimate. In 1861, the Southerners seized all shipments of cotton with the hope of generating an economic depression in Europe that forced Britain to go to war to get cotton. This policy applied to cotton was totally ineffective while the agricultural crisis in Europe from 1860 to 1862 increased grain exports from the northern states to the Old World as they were essential to avoid famine. It was said that "The Corn King was more powerful than the Cotton King" because the cereals of the Union went from assuming a quarter of British imports to being half of them.
When the United Kingdom had to deal with the shortage of cotton, it went to the markets of Egypt and India, where its cultivation was greatly increased. In addition, the war created work in the manufacture of weapons, in the smithies and on British transport ships that transported all kinds of goods to both sides.
Charles Francis Adams, American ambassador to London, displayed intense activity to prevent the British government from abandoning its neutrality, so the United Kingdom was reluctant to challenge the blockade to which the Confederate ports were being subjected. The Confederation bought several warships in British shipyards. The most famous was the CSS Alabama, which caused quite a lot of damage, so it was the cause of several disputes after the war. However, public opinion against slavery led to a feeling of political responsibility among European politicians, especially the British. The war was about to erupt between the United States and the United Kingdom due to the Trent Affair, in which the USS Jacinto unionist approached the British RMS Trent to stop two Confederate diplomats. However, London and Washington were able to soften the dispute when Lincoln released the two prisoners.
In 1862, the British considered mediating the conflict although that offer could have led to war with the Union. Lord Palmerston read Uncle Tom's Cabin three times when he was thinking about the issue of mediation. The victory of the Union in the battle of Antietam led him to delay his decision. The Emancipation Proclamation reinforced the political responsibility of supporting the Confederation. Despite the sympathies for the newly created country, the French invasion of Mexico definitely led France to avoid war with the Union. The offer of the Confederates at the end of the war to abolish slavery in exchange for diplomatic recognition was not taken seriously by London or Paris.
