Hello everyone! I'm Megan Brett. I work with Abby on Consolation Prize, and I was also a guest on ep 2.

If you're not entirely sure what a consul was in the 19th century, take a peek at our bonus episode which addresses that exact question. There's both audio and a full transcript at the link. tl;dr Consuls were responsible for commerce and the welfare of US American sailors, and less involved with formal diplomacy between state leaders.

Hi! Thanks for doing this AMA with us. I've got a couple of questions based on my (somewhat limited) familiarity with US foreign policy in China during the 1850s-60s.

1. How far was there tension between consuls and other parts of the US' foreign presence? I've read that there were significant tensions between US commissioner Humphrey Marshall (admittedly a commissioner rather than a consul) and Commodore Perry in 1853/4 over whether the US should pursue a China- or Japan-centred strategy in the Pacific, and I wondered whether that sort of inter-service tension existed in other American overseas spheres.

2. How much did the personal political leanings of consuls impact their decision-making, and how personally invested did they get in the local and regional politics where they were assigned? Apparently part of the reason for the aforementioned rivalry was that Marshall was a pro-Qing Southerner while Perry was a pro-Taiping Northerner, and again, I'm wondering how far consuls also acted based on personal politics, and how widespread this may have been?

What factors led you to choose the narrative, more scripted way of organizing the podcast, rather than a straight-up interview or discussion-based one? It sounds great this way, although I'd imagine that it takes a bit more work. For that matter, why specifically a podcast, rather than, say, a blog, YouTube channel, etc.? And on a related note, it looks like you have a lot of contributors and no external funding. What was the process for both getting those contributors on board and getting whatever higher-up support you needed to get this started?

I'd imagine a lot of academics have had similar ideas, so I'm sure your process for actually getting this off the ground would be useful for other potential projects.

EDIT: Also, do you have a favorite Gian Carlo Menotti opera?

Hi Abby, thanks for doing this AMA!

How long did it take for the US to normalise diplomatic relations with other European States? Did other colonial empires give them the cold shoulder to try and dissuade their own empires from having thoughts of independence? Did non-colonial countries see much benefit in diplomacy with such a far flung state?

Hi Dr. Mullen, thanks for doing this!

Did consuls bring American racial ideas/politics with them to other countries or would they follow the norms at their assigned post? How did consul reports from other continents inform American ideas about race abroad?

This sounds like a fascinating way to travel through time. Almost getting META, perhaps, but how did the importance of the US Consuls evolve through the 19th century, and how might it reflect on the growing stature of the US as an emerging power?

Hello, thank you for such a neat looking AMA!

Living North of the border I'm always curious to see how the history of our Southern neighbour has affected or involved us. What would an early posting for a consul like be in Canada? Or in the late 1860's after Canada gets its independence? I have a feeling it wouldn't be considered as prestige as a posting to someplace exciting like Paris.

As a second question; Do you have any tips on how to make an audio only history lesson fun? I really like the idea of the narrative style and how you talk about it in one of your other comments here. Any good methods to draw people (Especially laypeople) in and make it exciting? History tends to suffer from a reputation for boring lecture style speeches, and I'd love to be able to get any tips to avoid that when I talk about it myself!

What got you into history, and then a more niche subject like consuls?

Hi Abby and Megan! Thank you for doing this AMA!

How much leeway was there for consuls to make independent on-the-spot decisions in the early and mid-1800s? I would imagine the time needed to deliver instructions across the Atlantic or Pacific would be far too long for anything of urgency before the laying of underwater telegraph cables.

Extra question: where would you want to be a consul at during the 1800s?

What can you tell me about the Consul of Trieste or other consuls the US sent to the Holy Roman Empire? I've gotten a surprising amount of interest in the subject.

How did US consuls view and handle relations with Latinamerican countries before, say, the Escuela de las Americas? Were the relationships as manipulative and exploitative as they were in the second half of the 20th century.

Hi Abbey, thanks for this AMA and I love the look of the podcast.

Could you write at all about the kind of credentials looked for in consuls and how that changed? Especially early on would it be career diplomats or just popular speakers/government workers?

Other than your podcast what would you say is the best way to learn more about American consuls, naval agents, etc. of the 19th century?