CHAPTER XXV

BLOCKADE

187. Blockade-Its Extent and Effectiveness. By blockade we mean maritime blockade and as a war operation alone. Blockade of an enemy's port in time of war is a belligerent right and may be still considered as a major naval operation. It must be established between legal belligerents. A sea blockade may be for purely military purposes, to mask or contain a naval force of the enemy and prevent it operating upon the high seas; or it may be purely commercial, for the purpose of the stoppage of all trade and commerce of the port and the export and import of commercial products and supplies as well as foodstuffs and munitions of war. A blockade duly established may of course combine in its aims both military and commercial purposes.

A maritime blockade exists not only before the entrances to a port but includes its approaches, its neighboring marginal waters, and the high seas near by. As, ordinarily, the port, its marginal waters, and the high seas are used by vessels of all nations, a sea blockade is one closely touching the trade and shipping of neutral nations; in fact, as a rule, those who are generally engaged in the evasion of blockade in vessels of any size are apt to be neutral subjects in neutral vessels and the questions concerning sea blockade are hence questions largely international in law and scope.1

The conditions of a blockade are treated in one phase or another by the first seven articles of the declaration of London, though amplifications also follow later.2

Stockton, "Manual for Naval Officers," p. 235. 'Declaration of London, chap. I, Appendix IV.

It is provided, first, that a blockade must not extend beyond the ports and coasts belonging to or occupied by the enemy, which Article 18 amplifies by stating that the blockading forces must not bar access to neutral ports or coasts. Ports of a neutral and belligerent may easily be so placed geographically that without care a blockade may interfere with the entry to and trade of a neutral port; in fact, such proximity may compel a limitation in blockading operations affecting it in both area and efficiency. The neutral rights to innocent free trade and passage compels, in cases of this kind, such limitations. There is another reason for the ruling just given, and that is that neutral port may be a port of departure and supplies of blockade-runners and yet within the zone of blockading operations. In this case too close supervision of such a port may be beyond belligerent rights and injurious to the commerce of the port. Such cases arose during the American Civil War which led to almost a Federal blockade of Nassau, in the Bahamas, and the Bermudas, and caused the denial of the use of Nassau to Federal cruisers.1

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In accordance with the declaration of Paris, of 1856, a blockade, to be binding, must be, first of all, effective; that is to say, it must be maintained by a force sufficient, really, to prevent access to the enemy coast-line." This is reiterated by the declaration of London. The declaration of Paris binds by accession or as original signatory almost all of the maritime states, while in the case of the United States it not only has accepted, in principle, the declaration of Paris but is, in fact actually bound by the declaration of London.2

The question of effectiveness is a serious one and much disputed; it has to be decided as a fact on the merits of each case by proper judicial authority, which at present is the national prize-courts of the captor-eventually, we hope, as a last resort, by the proposed international prize-court. At times the feeling prevails that the national prize-court of the captor is 1 Declaration of London, Art. 2. 2 Declaration of London, Art. 3.

apt to consider a blockade effective if so declared by its national government.

At present, when a neutral desires to contest decisions of a belligerent prize-court in which it is interested, the matter is apt to be finally settled either by diplomatic discussions, by decisions of mixed commissions, or by temporary tribunals of The Hague.1

A blockade must be continuously maintained; if it is withdrawn or raised it must be re-established with the formalities of its original establishment. By usage, however, a blockade is not regarded as raised when in stress of weather the blockading forces are temporarily withdrawn. This is less likely to happen in these days of full-powered steamers. If a blockade is withdrawn or raised by the force of arms or the approach of a superior force it must, as just mentioned, be formally reestablished in all its effectiveness.

A blockade must be impartially applied to the ships of all nations. The commander of a blockading force may, however, give permission to a neutral war vessel to enter and subsequently to leave a blockaded port. Although the senior officer of the blockading force must act impartially, as just stated, the accompanying report of the declaration of London states that, "nevertheless, the mere fact that he has let a war-ship pass does not oblige him to let pass all neutral war-ships which may desire to enter. It is a question of judgment. The presence of a neutral war-ship in a blockaded port may not have the same consequences at all stages of the blockade, and the blockading commander must be left free to judge whether he can be courteous without making any sacrifice of his military interests."2

This question has been at times a seriously disputed one. During the Spanish-American War of 1898 it was a source of

1 James Brown Scott, "The Declaration of London," etc., A. J. I. L., vol. VIII, no. 2, pp. 276-7.

2 General report accompanying the declaration of London, p. 36, Parlia mentary Papers, no. 4, 1909.

considerable irritation and friction at Manila by the assumption on the part of the German naval forces of a right to entry and stay within the blockading lines in Manila Bay. One of the best opinions upon the matter which was quoted authoritatively at that time is that of Ferguson, a Dutch authority. He says: "During the continuance of the state of blockade, no vessels are allowed to enter or leave the blockaded place without special license or consent of the blockading authority. Public vessels or vessels of war of neutral powers are equally bound by the same obligation to respect the blockade. When the public vessel of a neutral state is allowed to have communication with a blockaded place, the neutral commanding officer is obliged to observe strict neutrality and to comply with the conditions under which such permission has been granted to cross the lines of the blockading belligerent. The impartiality which must be the prevailing feature of an effective blockade prohibits, except to public vessels, permission to enter the blockaded place to be given except in extreme cases of positive necessity. Diplomatic agents and consular officers of a neutral state are also allowed the amount of communication necessary for the fulfilment of their official duties."1

In case of distress, which must be verified by an officer of the blockading force, a neutral vessel may enter a place under blockade and subsequently leave it, provided that she has neither discharged nor shipped any cargo there. The accompanying report to the declaration of London says that "it is needless to say that a blockading squadron which insisted on preventing a vessel in distress from passing might do so if she (it) afforded her the help which she needed."3

188. Declaration and Notification of Blockade.-A blockade, to be binding, must be duly declared and notified in accordance with the rules that follow. By the declaration of a blockade is

1 Ferguson, 1884, vol. II, pp. 486, 487.

2 Declaration of London, Art. 7, Appendix IV.

'Parliamentary Papers, no. 4, 1909, p. 38, Appendix IV.

meant the official statement by the competent authority, which may be the chief ruler of the blockading power or the commander of the squadron, that a blockade is or is about to be established under certain specified conditions. The notification is the action on the part of the competent authority in bringing the declaration of blockade to the knowledge of the neutral powers and certain other authorities.1

The period

The declaration of blockade, whether made by the power concerned or by the naval authority acting in its name, should specify (1) the date when the blockade begins; (2) the geographical limits of the coast-line under blockade; and (3) the period within which neutral vessels may come out. just spoken of must be allowed and be reasonable in duration. If the operations of the blockading power, or of the naval authorities acting in its name do not tally with the first and second specifications, which, as numbered above, must be inserted in the declaration of blockade, the declaration is void, and a new declaration is necessary in order to make the blockade operative.2

The notification of the declaration of blockade is made (1) to neutral powers by the blockading power by means of a communication addressed to the governments direct or to their representatives accredited to it, and (2) to the local authorities of the blockaded port by the officer commanding the blockading force. The local authorities will, in turn, inform the foreign consular officers at the port or on the coast-line under blockade as soon as possible.3

It is the duty of the neutral governments when duly advised of the declaration of blockade to publish this intelligence especially to their seaports. The notification to the local authorities of the blockaded port places upon them the obligation of notifying the foreign consular officials within the district

IV.

1Declaration of London, Art. 8, and accompanying report, Appendix 2 Declaration of London, Arts. 9 and 10, Appendix IV.

3 Declaration of London, Art. 11, and accompanying report, Appendix