Virginius Affair

Virginius Affair

The "Virginius", with portraits of General Bernabé Varona and General William A.C. Ryan, executed by Cuban volunteers at Santiago de Cuba. The Graphic, 1873.
Date	October 30 – November 8, 1873 (1873-10-30 – 1873-11-08)
Location	Santiago de Cuba
Participants	United States United Kingdom Spain
Outcome	Peace negotiation
Deaths	53

The Virginius Affair was a diplomatic dispute that occurred from October 1873 to February 1875 between the United States, Great Britain, and Spain (then in control of Cuba) during the Ten Years' War. Virginius was a fast American ship hired by Cuban insurrectionists to land men and munitions in Cuba to attack the Spanish regime there. It was captured by the Spanish, who wanted to try the men onboard (many of whom were American and British citizens) as pirates and execute them. The Spanish executed 53 men but stopped when the British government intervened.

Throughout the ordeal, there was loose talk that the US might declare war on Spain. During the lengthy negotiations, the Spanish government underwent several leadership changes. US consul Caleb Cushing ended the episode by negotiating $80,000 in reparations to be paid to the families of the executed Americans. The Spanish government compensated British families through negotiation before American compensation. The incident was remarkable for the use of international diplomacy for a peaceful settlement implemented by US Secretary of State Hamilton Fish rather than opting for a costly war between the United States and Spain. The Virginius Affair started a resurgence in the US Navy in the late 19th century. Until then its fleet had been inferior to the warships of Spain.