by R.K.
News of the breakup of Britain's colony in America was received in London with much excitement and mixed feelings. The public had been well prepared for something to happen, although few people expected armed conflict. But the roar of the cannon in Charleston Harbor meant war even though no one had been killed by the heavy bombardment. (42)Many of the people in Europe during the time of the Civil War were too young to remember their own civil war, but some could still remember the French Revolution (Boatner 199). Wars from the English point of view often resulted from a lower class trying to overthrow a higher one. In the American Civil War, though, it was the aristocratic slave holders who were rebelling against the well-to-do people of the North. This made things difficult for Europeans to decide whom to side with. Most of the newspapers in circulation at the time were definitely pro - Southern, the ones that were pro - Northern were small and not very influential.
When this Proclamation was made, it simply made England neutral to the war as a country. This did not mean that no citizen could have an opinion on the war or be able to express it publicly or have it influence their decisions. This also did not mean that ships carrying goods to sell could not be docked in English ports. Only warships were prohibited to these ports. The two sides of the war, the Union of the North and the Confederates of the South, took advantage of this and depended on it heavily as a source of income to help support their armies.
Whenever either side of the American Civil War went to trade or sell in England, this meant that soon they would have more supplies or money to support their cause. The other side of the war then, obviously did not want this to happen. So, blockades were formed.
"A wartime blockade used to mean a naval patrol of an enemy seaport to stop all sea traffic" (Long 76). Ships would set up a barrier in the Atlantic Ocean, meaning that they would make a line to block off any country that the opposing side meant to sell to. If any ship tried to pass the barrier, the blockade would try, and often did, drive them back. They would use force if necessary, since a barrier could not exist on paper. This meant that a blockade had to be enforced, not simply declared.
The ships that were built for blockade-running, that is the breaking through of blockade lines to deliver of receive goods or money, were built for speed. They gave up seaworthiness for this along with maneuverability. They were also built with shallow bottoms so that they could dart into coves or inlets whereas the ships with deeper bottoms could not follow them into shallow water. The ships also were built to be inconspicuous. The boat only rode a few feet above the water and they were often painted a dull gray to blend with the sea. Cargo space was the first consideration.
For the smart blockade-runner of the South, the first stop to make was Wilmington. Located 17 miles up the Cape Fear River, this site was geographically perfect. Smith Island divided the Cape Fear River at its mouth into two channels: New Inlet on the north and the main channel to the south, which were both heavily guarded. After leaving Wilmington, a runner could sail down the river to the town of Smithville. There were then two routes to chose. In order for the Union to blockade and cover Wilmington, a minimum of 50 ships were needed (Time-Life 88).
The profits that a blockade-running ship could make were immense. If a ship made 2 trips the venture was a success, even if on the third it were captured. Companies paid from 500 percent to 1000 percent on their stocks. Once, a stock was bought for $3200 and was sold 6 months later for $6000, while in the meantime, it paid out a dividend of $500. These stocks were of high value, as Coulter demonstrates, "In the fall of 1864 a share of stock in the South Carolina Importing and Exporting Company was sold for $28600." (289)
Even though a stockholder's profits were high, the profits for the actual crews of the ships were higher. A captain would receive $5000 in gold for a single round trip, the chief engineer got $2500, the first officer $1250, and each member of the crew $250. These salaries were not what made this so profitable, though: it was what went on with each of their private cargoes. The crew members could trade whatever they packed into their private cargoes for whatever they wanted. This became extremely profitable.(Keegan 101)
Because all of the money that could by made, it was difficult for people to trade their cotton for just the essentials of much-needed weapons, munitions, salt, iron and coal. Many started trading for frivolous things such as caricatures. This is why President Davis prohibited importation of luxury goods and 50 percent of each ship was to be reserved for governmental use only. Obviously, the blockade-runners did not like this, but as soon as they realized that legislation was powerless to enforce it, they continued on with their own ways.(Keegan 108)
At the end of the war the blockade had been successfully run about 8500 times and had been effective 1500. (Stern 295) All told, the Federal blockade reduced the south's foreign trade by more than two-thirds just when they needed it most. This cut down their supplies and may have ultimately caused them defeat. And even though the Civil War was decided on the battlefield, not on the blockade line, it surely would have been a different war had the Union not stood silent guard along southern coasts.
Return to Index