70 



BLOCKADE. 



BLOCKADE. This closing of a port of an en- 

 emy to all commerce, which has been defined 

 by some writers as the conquest by a belliger- 

 ent of the naval territory of his enemy around 

 the place or port which he wishes to close to 

 commerce, was reduced to precision by the Con- 

 gress of Paris. That body, consisting of the 

 representatives of the principal powers of Eu- 

 rope, after discussion, pledged their Govern- 

 ments to observe this principle relative to 

 blockades : " Blockades, in order to be binding, 

 must be effective ; that is to say, maintained by 

 forces sufficient really to prevent access to the 

 coast of the enemy." This principle first be- 

 came a part of maritime law in the war declared 

 by Great Britain and France against Kussia in 

 1854. 



In a declaration relative to neutral rights, 

 concerted between the cabinets of Paris and 

 London, and officially published on the 29th of 

 March, 1854, they proclaimed their rights, as 

 powerful belligerents, to prevent neutrals from 

 violating every effective blockade which should 

 be maintained by a sufficient force before the 

 forts, harbors, and coasts of an enemy. So far 

 as regards the manner of conducting the block- 

 ade, it was determined as follows : " Every 

 blockade, to be respected, should be effective," 

 etc. The violation of the blockade consisted as 

 well in an attempt to enter the port as in an at- 

 tempt to go out from the same, after the dec- 

 laration of the blockade, except, in the latter 

 case, that this should not embrace a vessel light 

 or loaded before the blockade, in the interval 

 fixed by the commander of the blockading 

 squadron an interval which should always be 

 sufficient to protect, in good faith, the interests 

 of navigation and commerce. Besides, a block- 

 ade was not to be considered as known by a 

 vessel approaching the blockaded port, until a 

 special notice thereof had been inscribed upon 

 the vessel's register or papers by one of the 

 vessels forming the blockade. The consequences 

 of this agreement between the two cabinets 

 were, that any point of an enemy's territory 

 could be blockaded ; that a notice of the block- 

 ade should be given to each neutral vessel at- 

 tempting to enter a blockaded port, although 

 her Government should have been previously 

 formally notified thereof ; and that every block- 

 ade should be maintained with sufficient force. 

 Thus paper or cabinet blockades were sup- 

 pressed. These consisted in a simple diplomatic 

 notice, declaring that such or such a place was 

 blockaded. 



This form of blockade was first introduced 

 by Holland as far back as 1584. For the last 

 one hundred and fifty years that she has enjoyed 

 the first rank at sea, Great Britain has followed 

 the same system, but developing it for her own 

 benefit, so that, whenever she happened to be 

 at war, the position of neutral nations became 

 more precarious than that of the enemy himself. 

 The right of blockade had also received exten- 

 sion in complete opposition to the most fun- 

 damental principles of international law. 



In her wars with Napoleon I., the whole 

 French coast was declared under blockade by 

 Great Britain. 



The proclamation was notified to all the neu- 

 tral nations, who thenceforth must abstain from 

 any trade with the territory thus placed under 

 interdict. Such is what has been described as 

 the paper blockade. 



The proclamations of President Lincoln, de- 

 claring the ports of the seceded States block- 

 aded, were issued on the 19th and 27th of 

 April. 



The Courts of Great Britain and France de- 

 termined to assume a strict neutrality. The 

 Queen issued her proclamation, and the Empe- 

 ror also made a public notification thereof. As- 

 suming this ground, both North and South 

 were regarded as belligerents, and treated as 

 such. Hence it became the duty of those na- 

 tions to respect the blockade, if it was consist- 

 ent with the principles promulgated by them 

 in 1854, and subsequently ratified by the Euro- 

 pean powers in 1856. 



In the case of Great Britain, letters were ad- 

 dressed by merchants of Liverpool to Lord 

 John Eussell on the 29th of August and 4th of 

 September, stating that they held it in'contem- 

 plation to fit out a number of vessels for the 

 purpose of trading with the port of New Or- 

 leans and other ports of the United States of 

 America ; and that, looking to the undisturbed 

 state of friendly relations between her Majesty 

 and the United States, they apprehended that 

 British ships had a right, under the law of na- 

 tions, upon the strict principle of reciprocity, 

 to enter into and depart from the ports and 

 harbors of the United States. 



They also asked and expressed the hope that 

 these vessels- would be protected by her Majes- 

 ty's cruisers ; but that, if sueh protection, from 

 reasons of State policy, should be withheld, they 

 would be prepared to defend themselves as best 

 they might in the pursuit of their legitimate 

 trade, and that all parties hindering them in the 

 same would become responsible for the conse- 

 quences. 



They contended that the blockade of certain 

 ports of the United States, as against the ships 

 of Great Britain, was an infringement of inter- 

 national law, nugatory and unavailable, and 

 claimed the protection of their Government, 

 and at the same time asked permission to de- 

 fend themselves in case of need. 



Lord John Enssell, through his secretary, re- 

 plied in these words : 



Understanding, from the tenor of your letters, that 

 the ports to which your vessels are to proceed are ports 

 which are or may be blockaded by the naval forces of 

 the United States, Lord Russell directs me to warn you 

 of the serious consequences which the measures con- 

 templated, as stated in your letters, will entail on all 

 concerned therein, and to inform you that her Majesty's 

 Government will not afford the slightest protection or 

 countenance to the projected enterprise. 



The United States and the so-called Confederate 

 States are engaged in a civil war, and her Majesty's 

 Government have recognized that state of things, and 

 have taken up a position of neutrality between the 



