The article was published in Polish. Below is an English translation of its opening. Wersja polska
This article tells the story of the background, course and repercussions of the seizure of the British mail steamer Trent, her unusual passengers and a certain hot-headed officer.
The armed struggle between North and South had been going on for only seven months when an incident with momentous consequences occurred. A single decision by one US Navy officer brought the United States and Great Britain to the brink of war.
Charles Wilkes Seeks Fame
The bold act that echoed loudly on both sides of the Atlantic in November 1861 was committed by a man already notorious as one of the most quarrelsome and insubordinate officers in the American navy: Captain Charles Wilkes (born 1798). At sixteen he decided to join the US Navy, but the war came to an end and with it the need for young officers. Despite lacking the support of his father, who preferred a business career for him, Charles did not give up and began his seafaring adventure in the merchant service. He learned navigation and was not put off by the company of men whose character and manners were far removed from the New York high society in which he had moved until then. Finally, in 1818, he joined the US Navy as a midshipman.
