... among historians. The war did create demand for clothing, armoury and food, but it was also highly destructive, especially in the South. Thomas C. Cochran questions the role of the Civil War on industrial growth in his essay 'Did the Civil War Retard Industrialization?' While acknowledging the Marxian ideology of revolutionary change as complimenting the idea that the war had a major role in promoting industrial growth, he argues that 'neat periodization' was a more likely factor for this interpretation.3 Economic historians in general have tended to downplay the significance of the Civil War. The process of industrialisation was already underway before the war, so by analysing indices of industrial activity before and after, they have concluded that the Civil War actually restricted industry's advance.4 The sudden rise in overall industrial production by 47 % from 1865 to 1870 has been attributed to a sudden release of the growth, which ...

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