Naval Strategies of the Civil War

Naval Strategies of the Civil War PDF Author: Jay W. Simson
Publisher: Cumberland House Publishing
ISBN: 9781581821956
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 244

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Book Description
"I am satisfied that, with the means at our control. and in view of the overwhelming force of the enemy at the outset of the struggle, our little navy accomplished more than could have been looked or hoped for...and, yet, not 10 men in 10,000 of the country, know or appreciate these facts." --Confederate Secretary of the Navy Stephen R. Mallory One of the most overlooked aspects of the American Civil War is the naval strategy played out by the North and the South. Only recently have documents come to light that reveal the forgotten story of Confederate efforts to secure naval assets in Europe that could not be secured at home in the face of Federal advances on Southern coasts and waterways. Much is said of the ironclad initiatives played out at Hampton Roads and on the Mississippi in the spring of 1862, and some attention is given to the commerce raiders and blockade-runners. In general, however, the ships and sailors of the Civil War have been overshadowed by the soldiers who fought at Manassas, Shiloh, Antietam, Gettysburg, Vicksburg, and other locations. In this overview of the Civil War navies, Jay W. Simon looks first at the two men who determined the policies of their respective governments: Stephen R. Mallory and Gideon Welles. He portrays Welles as a component of a unified Federal war strategy who knew when to adapt and improvise in order to overcome the enemy. Mallory, however, is forced to constantly rethink, refine, and rework his resources at home and abroad. Interestingly, Mallory found a workable scheme by adopting several measures devised by Robert E. Lee during the general's early tenure as overseer of the coastal defenses of South Carolina and Georgia. The evolving Confederate strategy also introduced most of the modern roles carried out by commerce raiders, submarines, and naval mines. A keen distinction between Mallory and Welles is apparent in terms of the cooperation they received from their army counterparts. For the North, this led to several successful army-navy operations along the Southern coast and on the Mississippi. For the South, the lack of resources boded ill for such inter-departmental efforts. In the end, Simson finds that flexible organization tended to succeed whereas desperate, although creative, measures usually failed.

Naval Strategies of the Civil War

Naval Strategies of the Civil War PDF Author: Jay W. Simson
Publisher: Cumberland House Publishing
ISBN: 9781581821956
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 244

Get Book Here

Book Description
"I am satisfied that, with the means at our control. and in view of the overwhelming force of the enemy at the outset of the struggle, our little navy accomplished more than could have been looked or hoped for...and, yet, not 10 men in 10,000 of the country, know or appreciate these facts." --Confederate Secretary of the Navy Stephen R. Mallory One of the most overlooked aspects of the American Civil War is the naval strategy played out by the North and the South. Only recently have documents come to light that reveal the forgotten story of Confederate efforts to secure naval assets in Europe that could not be secured at home in the face of Federal advances on Southern coasts and waterways. Much is said of the ironclad initiatives played out at Hampton Roads and on the Mississippi in the spring of 1862, and some attention is given to the commerce raiders and blockade-runners. In general, however, the ships and sailors of the Civil War have been overshadowed by the soldiers who fought at Manassas, Shiloh, Antietam, Gettysburg, Vicksburg, and other locations. In this overview of the Civil War navies, Jay W. Simon looks first at the two men who determined the policies of their respective governments: Stephen R. Mallory and Gideon Welles. He portrays Welles as a component of a unified Federal war strategy who knew when to adapt and improvise in order to overcome the enemy. Mallory, however, is forced to constantly rethink, refine, and rework his resources at home and abroad. Interestingly, Mallory found a workable scheme by adopting several measures devised by Robert E. Lee during the general's early tenure as overseer of the coastal defenses of South Carolina and Georgia. The evolving Confederate strategy also introduced most of the modern roles carried out by commerce raiders, submarines, and naval mines. A keen distinction between Mallory and Welles is apparent in terms of the cooperation they received from their army counterparts. For the North, this led to several successful army-navy operations along the Southern coast and on the Mississippi. For the South, the lack of resources boded ill for such inter-departmental efforts. In the end, Simson finds that flexible organization tended to succeed whereas desperate, although creative, measures usually failed.

War on the Waters

War on the Waters PDF Author: James M. McPherson
Publisher: UNC Press Books
ISBN: 0807837326
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 288

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Book Description
Although previously undervalued for their strategic impact because they represented only a small percentage of total forces, the Union and Confederate navies were crucial to the outcome of the Civil War. In War on the Waters, James M. McPherson has crafted an enlightening, at times harrowing, and ultimately thrilling account of the war's naval campaigns and their military leaders. McPherson recounts how the Union navy's blockade of the Confederate coast, leaky as a sieve in the war's early months, became increasingly effective as it choked off vital imports and exports. Meanwhile, the Confederate navy, dwarfed by its giant adversary, demonstrated daring and military innovation. Commerce raiders sank Union ships and drove the American merchant marine from the high seas. Southern ironclads sent several Union warships to the bottom, naval mines sank many more, and the Confederates deployed the world's first submarine to sink an enemy vessel. But in the end, it was the Union navy that won some of the war's most important strategic victories--as an essential partner to the army on the ground at Fort Donelson, Vicksburg, Port Hudson, Mobile Bay, and Fort Fisher, and all by itself at Port Royal, Fort Henry, New Orleans, and Memphis.

The Civil War at Sea

The Civil War at Sea PDF Author: Craig L. Symonds
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 0199931682
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 258

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Book Description
Continuing in the vein of the Lincoln-prize winning Lincoln and His Admirals, acclaimed naval historian Craig L. Symonds presents an operational history of the Civil War navies - both Union and Confederate - in this concise volume. Illuminating how various aspects of the naval engagement influenced the trajectory of the war as a whole, The Civil War at Sea adds to our understanding of America's great national conflict. Both the North and the South developed and deployed hundreds of warships between 1861 and 1865. Because the Civil War coincided with a revolution in naval techonology, the development and character of warfare at sea from 1861-1865 was dramatic and unprecedented. Rather than a simple chronology of the war at sea, Symonds addresses the story of the naval war topically, from the dramatic transformation wrought by changes in technology to the establishment, management, and impact of blockade. He also offers critical assessments of principal figures in the naval war, from the opposing secretaries of the navy to leading operational commanders such as David Glasgow Farragut and Raphael Semmes. Symonds brings his expertise and knowledge of military and technological history to bear in this essential exploration of American naval engagement throughout the Civil War.

Civil War Naval Chronology, 1861-1865

Civil War Naval Chronology, 1861-1865 PDF Author: United States. Naval History Division
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : United States
Languages : en
Pages : 56

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Book Description
Part IV of the Civil War Naval Chronology - a summary of significant events from 1861-1865.

Wolf of the Deep

Wolf of the Deep PDF Author: Stephen Fox
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 0307498824
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 392

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Book Description
The electrifying story of Raphael Semmes and the CSS Alabama, the Confederate raider that destroyed Union ocean shipping and took more prizes than any other raider in naval history. In July, 1862, Semmes received orders to take command of a secret new British-built steam warship, the Alabama. At its helm, he would become the most hated and feared man in ports up and down the Union coast—and a Confederate legend. Now, with unparalleled authority and depth, and with a vivid sense of the excitement and danger of the time, Stephen Fox tells the story of Captain Semmes's remarkable wartime exploits. From vicious naval battles off the coast of France, to plundering the cargo of Union ships in the Caribbean, this is a thrilling tale of an often overlooked chapter of the Civil War.

Blue & Gray Navies

Blue & Gray Navies PDF Author: Spencer C Tucker
Publisher: Naval Institute Press
ISBN: 161251359X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 476

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Book Description
A longtime military history professor at Virginia Military Institute and prolific author, Spencer Tucker examines the important roles played by the Union and Confederate navies during the Civil War. His book makes use of recent scholarship as well as official records and the memoirs of participants to provide a complete perspective for the general reader and enough detail to hold the interest of the specialist. Tucker opens with an overview of the U.S. Navy's history to 1861 and then closely examines the two navies at the beginning of the war, looking at the senior leadership, officers and personnel, organization, recruitment practices, training, facilities, and manufacturing resources. He discusses the acquisition of ships and the design and construction of new types, as well as ship armament and the development of naval ordnance, and North and South naval strategies. The book then takes a close look at the war itself, including the Union blockade of the Confederate Atlantic and Gulf coasts, riverine warfare in the Western theater, Confederate blockade running and commerce raiders, and the Union campaigns against New Orleans, Charleston, Vicksburg, and on the Red River. Tucker covers the major battles and technological innovations, and he evaluates the significance of the Union blockade and the demands it placed on Union resources. Fourteen maps and a glossary of terms help readers follow the text. Extensive endnotes provide additional material.

Divided Waters

Divided Waters PDF Author: Ivan Musicant
Publisher: Booksales
ISBN: 9780785812104
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 506

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Book Description
A military history of the naval aspects of the Civil War, discussing the Union's goal of capturing Confederate ports and the South's determination to break the blockade.

A History of the Confederate Navy

A History of the Confederate Navy PDF Author: Raimondo Luraghi
Publisher: US Naval Institute Press
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 560

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Book Description
Pushing aside the long-held belief that the answers went up in flames when the Confederate Navy archives were torched during the evacuation of Richmond, Luraghi combed fifty archives in four countries and uncovered information that shattered prevailing myths about that service's contributions.

Sea Wolf of the Confederacy

Sea Wolf of the Confederacy PDF Author: David W. Shaw
Publisher: Sheridan House, Inc.
ISBN: 1574092073
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 258

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Book Description
David Shaw is the author of America's Victory and a number of other books. He lives in Maine.

The Spanish Civil War at Sea

The Spanish Civil War at Sea PDF Author: Michael Alpert
Publisher: Pen and Sword Maritime
ISBN: 1526764377
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 350

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Book Description
The Spanish Civil War of 1936-1939 underlined the importance of the sea as the supply route to both General Franco's insurgents and the Spanish Republic. There were attempted blockades by Franco as well as attacks by his Italian and German allies against legitimate neutral, largely British, merchant shipping bound for Spanish Republican ports and challenges to the Royal Navy, which was obliged to maintain a heavy presence in the area. The conflict provoked splits in British public opinion. Events at sea both created and reflected the international tensions of the latter 1930s, when the policy of appeasement of Germany and Italy dissuaded Britain from taking action against those countries’ activities in Spain, except to participate in a largely ineffective naval patrol to try to prevent the supply of war material to both sides. The book is based on original documentary sources in both Britain and Spain and is intended for the general reader as well as students and academics interested in the history of the 1930s, in naval matters and in the Spanish Civil War.