Before the Trent Affair, the Confederates were actively seeking foreign help for their cause and Great Britain was increasingly leaning towards supporting the Confederates.  Great Britain, although they were abolitionist, still needed their cotton to power their economy, which is why they wanted to side with the confederates.  After the Trent Affair, the likelihood that Great Britain and other foreign nations would have supported the south decreased because of the diplomatic crisis that ensued.  The Confederates’ further efforts to court the British would be unsuccessful, as they decide to stay neutral in the Civil War.   

If the USS San Jacinto didn’t stop the two Confederates, they could have successfully reached Britain and persuaded them to recognize the Confederate as an independent nation. If the British recognized the Confederate as a real nation, then the rest of the world would have to recognize the Confederate (as Britain was the most influential nation at the time). This would have made the Union’s battle to retake the South so much harder, because they would now have to make sure they didn’t disrupt European trade with the South (because the Europeans could enter the war aligned with the South in the event that the Union blocks transcontinental trade).  

Where: USS San Jacinto and the HSM Trent, a British mail steamer
What

It was a great victory for Union forces at Chancellorsville. When General Robert E. Lee had marched in from Virginia to Gettysburg, on July 1st, they were trying to get advantage onto the union. They met at the Gettysburg. The second day consisted of heavy fighting as the confederate attacked the union from left and right. The last day of battle, came out of his order was an assault known as Pickett's Charge. It had managed to pierce the Union lines but then it failed and costed many lives. After that, Lee had withdrawn his army back to Virginia. 

Picture of the battle 

Date: January 1st 1863 

BRIEF Explanation: All slaves inside of seceded slave territories are now free. Protected the loyal border states use of slavery. 

What makes it a turning point?

The south lost one of their best generals in battle. After his death, the Lee hires Longstreet, which he doesn’t trust that much. The next battle is the Battle of Gettysburg, in which the south loses, partially due to the loss of Jackson and the miscommunication of Longstreet.

The mindsets of the armies changed afterwards

Confederate leadership was unorganized

It would set up the second Battle of Bull Run later and would signify a lengthy war. 

McClellan’s patience was evident in this battle and the fitness of the union soldiers was questionable leading to a demand for new leadership. 

Election of 1864

November 8th, 1864

U.S. 

Abraham Lincoln was running against George B. McClellan, a Democrat who was an important Civil War General. McClellan promised to end the war and negotiate with the Southern Confederacy, whereas Lincoln wanted to continue the war. Lincoln won 212-21 in electoral votes. Many of Lincoln's own party members were discontent with the way Lincoln was handling the war effort and many politicians created a sub-party called the Radical Democracy Party whose goal was to end slavery quicker and more aggressively. In the end, Lincoln won the nomination for the presidency and then beat McClellan for the presidency seat.  

What was different BEFORE and AFTER the event?

Before: The North had dissenting opinions, such as the copperheads (who despised Lincoln). The Democratic party tried to gain popularity by promoting peace. This dissent leads to an unorganized war effort which causes the tide of the war to shift in favor of the South.

After: War continued after the re-election of Lincoln allowing the North to reorganize and regroup. This leads to the re-energizing of the war effort. Also, it improves the north’s morale for the war and increases the support for the war by the citizens, changing the tide of the war in favor of the North.