Dialectic of the Union Blockade during the Civil War Essay -- U.S. His

The Civil War in the United States from 1861 to 1865 serves as a blue-blooded reminder of how disjointed a nation can become over issues that persistently cause heated debate among party factions. Most students that have interpreted courses in American history understand the disadvantage possessed by the Confederate States of America as they fought against the powerful Union army for what they perceived as a necessary institution of slavery. Historians have debated over the effectiveness of the blockade and if it was important in creating the failures faced by the Confederate States of America. This debate has generated the contested fountainhead of Did the Union blockade succeed in the American Civil War? The blockade, whether considered a success or an absolute failure on the part of the Union, holds solemn significance in the history of the United States. The increased development in the Unions naval department correlates directly with the necessity of possessing ships that cou ld withstand the scourge of blockade running. This dialectic will focus on two opposing theses on the matter of how successful the Union blockade was in guaranteeing a supremacy for the Union. Within Reassessment of the Union Blockades Effectiveness in the Civil War, M. Brem Bonner and Peter McCord make an argument for the success of the blockade by assessing statistical data comprised from the efforts of blockade-runners to breach the hindrance caused by the Union. The authors frequently employ the objecting side of the effectiveness argument when discussing the legality of the blockade and the successes some blockade-runners had in smuggling goods in and out of the Confederacy. On the opposing side of the argument, Daniel OFlaherty condemns the blockade as ineffecti... ...he historian who reviews the event. The Confederates were able to continue blockade running up until the conclusion of the fight, slice the Union strengthened its navy in order to compensate for the imbalanc e of ship maneuverability. If the blockade proved completely effective, the supplies Confederate soldiers possessed throughout the war would have unobtainable via blockade running. It would also distort the history of the Civil War to name the blockade as the main reason for the Souths deterioration, when it only aided to existing problems leading to the conclusion to the war after the Souths surrender.Works CitedBonner, Michael Brem and Peter McCord. Reassessment of the Union Blockades Effectiveness in the Civil War. The North Carolina Historical Review (2011) 375-395.OFlaherty, Daniel. The Blockade that Failed. American Heritage 6.5 (1955).