战争与通信延迟

author: 辉格

【2020-07-29】

1812-15年的英美战争好像完全是因为通信速度太慢才打起来的，当时)英国以枢密院令（Orders in Council）对法国实施禁运，阻止中立国商船前往法国港口，激怒了美国，可是，就在美国宣战前几天，英国外交部已经通知国会准备暂停执行枢密院令，一周后，枢密院令被正式撤销，问题是，在当时的通信条件下，这一信息无法及时传达给美国人。

而同时，美国的宣战决定41天后才传到伦敦，英国闻讯后，起初只采取了一些较克制的措施，不想把事情闹大，另一方面，撤销枢密院令的消息向西走的更慢，50天后才传到麦迪逊耳朵里，但此时，他已不愿收手，因为他知道此时伦敦已得到宣战的消息，而他不知道伦敦的反应会是什么，故而不想放弃先手优势。

The British made their greatest concession to the United States in June 1812. On 16 June 1812, two days before the United States declaration of war, Lord Castlereagh, the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs announced in Parliament that the Order in Council would be suspended.[2]

On the very day that the Minister took his formal leave from the United States[clarification needed], 23 June 1812, a new British Government headed by Lord Liverpool provisionally repealed the Order in Council.[3]

Forty-one days after the United States Congress declared war, the news reached London on 29 July 1812. Two days later, the Ministry ordered its first counter-measures. It forbade British ships to sail except in convoys, and restrained American ships in British ports. The Orders in Council had been repealed on 23 June 1812, but the ministers did not intend to take additional measures until they could learn the American reaction. Word of the repeal of the Orders did not reach President James Madison until 12 August 1812, some fifty days later. Even then he refused to halt hostilities because he did not know how Britain had reacted to the declaration of war.[4]

我在一篇旧文中也曾讲过，1879年的祖鲁战争也是因为通信迟缓才打起来的，殖民部根本不想打，可是以当时的通信节奏，殖民部无法从伦敦有效的指挥驻地长官的行动，更有趣的是，这一状况其实很快就要改变了，当时电报线已经铺到德班，只是还没铺到开普敦。