When Diplomacy Fails Presents

Britain goes to war

An in-depth examination of the British Empire from the closing stages of the Victorian era

to the opening phases of the First World War and beyond.

Section 2 Background

Part A

The Golden Age

Chapter 13

The problem which greeted Benjamin Disraeli and his ministers, as the new parliamentary season of autumn, 1876 approached, was a complex one.

Somehow, the Eastern question had to be resolved in Britain's favour without empowering Russia, which meant, in the normal case, supporting the Ottomans.

But Disraeli was somewhat hindered in his ability to follow the normal course,

thanks to the emergence, growth and explosion of the so-called atrocitarian movement,

which had began over the summer.

This movement, backed politically by William Gladstone,

Disraeli's arch-rival, and enjoying the support, or at least the sympathy of much of the population, seemed to demand a resolution to the crisis which would save lives, ensure peace, and above all bear witness to an honourable, morally defensible British foreign policy. To do this, atrocitarian proponents argued, one had to

abandon the previous policy of supporting Turkey, since the Turks, by way of their hideous massacre

of Bulgarians and the ill-treatment of other Balkan peoples against whom they fought, had voided

their right to govern and must feel the full force of British moral vengeance.

That, in a nutshell, was the problem the Israeli faced. He was damned if he supported Russia,

since as far as he could tell, Turkey would then collapse and Russia's position of strength would

be overwhelming, but he was also damned if he supported Turkey, since the reputation the Turks

had now accrued meant that they were persona non-grada in the diplomatic sphere.

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