Naval Role in the Civil War Three days after the bombardment of Fort Sumter, on April 15, 1861, Lincoln called for seventy-five thousand volunteers to enlist for three months. Soon after he called for additional forty-two thousand men to sign on for three years, and provided large increases in the army and navy budgets. With an unlimited budget for both army and navy, lack of planning in the North and poor resources in the South meant that …showed first 75 words of 2333 total…

…showed last 75 words of 2333 total…flourish. In the end the Union Navy?s use of the blockade slowly strangled the Confederacy and kept out desperately needed supplies. It took some time, however, before the true effect of this slow process could be seen. Nevertheless, Union forces could not have won that dreadful war if the South had not finally surrendered to the relentless attacks of the Union Army and the subtle but definite pressure exerted by the United States Navy.