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Dread filled the USS Minnesota’s crew on the morning of March 9, 1862. Throughout the

previous day, they had been helpless to prevent the rebellion’s metal monster from effortlessly

destroying Congress and Cumberland, its armoured hull deflecting all return fire. They’d grounded

hard and only escaped destruction through falling tides and darkness. Approaching smoke announced

that Virginia was returning to finish the job. Salvation had supposedly arrived, but Minnesota’s

sailors were doubtful. How could a cheesebox on a raft hope to withstand Virginia’s fury?

The sailors didn’t realize they were about to witness one of the seminal clashes in the history

of naval warfare. Join us for this interlude on the naval theatre of the American Civil War.

The Naval Theater’s Importance Civil wars are inherently internal

affairs. Consequently, navies rarely matter in terms of their outcome—the American Civil War

was an exception. The Confederacy’s economy was entirely based on overseas trade, making open sea

lanes critical to the war effort. Additionally, eastern America has numerous navigable rivers

and inlets that allow for the rapid movement of troops and supplies. Therefore, both sides knew

that achieving both brown and blue water naval supremacy was critical to victory. The Union Navy

was tasked with enforcing a complete blockade of southern ports, taking control of the inland

waterways, and fighting rebel ships wherever they were found. The Confederate Navy sought to protect

Southern ports and break the blockade. While the Union had a harder job, it was also better

positioned to accomplish its missions. Starting Position

Prewar, the US Navy registry had 90 ships; 42 were in active service, and 48 were in various states

of mothballing. Many, including all its largest ships, were outdated sailing ships, and many

steamships had new-technology design flaws. It had neither a formal fleet doctrine nor admirals,

and squadrons existed mostly for administrative efficiency. Individual cruising captains patrolled

the sea lanes, protecting American shipping and suppressing piracy on their own initiative.

When larger formations were needed, the seniormost captain would be temporarily

appointed commodore to lead the mission. The higher rank of flag officer was seldom used.

As the secession crisis loomed, the navy moved all its useful ships and naval stores to safer ports.

Consequently, the secessionists only captured a handful of mothballed ships and the Pensacola

Naval Yard prior to Fort Sumter. This proved to be no prize, as Federally held Fort Pickens closed

Pensacola’s harbour. The Union Navy left no doubt of this by bombarding and destroying the Yard,

Fort McRee, and, unintentionally, nearby Warrington in late 1861. Gosport Shipyard,

modern-day Norfolk, was taken by Virginian secessionists via subterfuge on April 21,

1861, with its stores intact. This would be the Union Navy’s biggest loss of the war.

Relative Strength Both sides quickly began

appropriating civilian steamers for military use until purpose-built warships were ready,

but the South couldn’t match the North in expertise or tonnage. Most American shipping was

crewed and based out of Northern ports. Moreover, the majority of oceangoing ships were built in New

England, New York, or Philadelphia, while Saint Louis produced the most riverboats. The numerous

Southern ports were designed primarily for receiving import/export traffic and minor repairs.

Although 25% of the Navy’s personnel joined the South, there were never enough ships for them,

and the Confederate Navy would only commission 101 vessels throughout the war. The Confederacy’s

first Secretary of the Navy, Stephen Mallory, was fully aware that the South lacked the industry to

match Union numbers. Thus, he intended to beat them on quality and innovation. He would fail.

The Confederacy paid for five casemate ironclads on the Mississippi River in mid-1861. Three were

burned to avoid capture by approaching Union forces before being finished. The Louisiana

was so poorly designed and built that it couldn’t steam against the current. It was briefly used as

a gun barge before being burned to avoid capture by approaching Union forces. Only the Arkansas

ever saw service as a gunboat. It launched on April 25th, 1862, after 8-months of construction

and successfully evaded Union squadrons on both the Yazoo and Mississippi rivers. Then,

it was burned to avoid capture by approaching Union forces in August. Meanwhile, the seven

shallow-draft City-class ironclads, which formed the core of Union naval power on the Mississippi

River, were designed, built, and launched in 100 days, entering service in January 1862. They first

saw action on February 6 and fought in every naval action thereafter. Five survived the war.

The Blockade Abraham Lincoln’s blockade declaration on April

19th, 1861, was unprecedented in world history. No navy had ever been asked to close 180 ports along

3500 miles of coastline. However, the Union Navy rose to the challenge, embarrassing the army with

its industriousness. Fort Pickens was reinforced, and Pensacola’s closure was confirmed on April

11th. By April 24th, the few available ships were on station and intercepting Confederate shipping.

The four blockade squadrons were organized in May. By June, the large freighters the cotton trade

depended on had all been seized or had learned to stay away from the blockade lines, a process

helped along by the Southern Cotton Embargo. In August, the navy won the North’s first significant

victory, capturing the batteries on Cape Hatteras Inlet with minimal casualties. By November,

80 steamers and 60 sailing ships had been added to the fleet and Port Royal and South Carolina

was captured in the same fashion. Port Royal and Cape Hatteras were built up as support bases for

the blockade squadrons, a process repeated on Gulf Coast islands . By February 1862, only the

ports of Galveston, Mobile , Savannah, Charleston, and Wilmington remained open to blockade runners.

Blockade Running Under international law, blockade

running was legal so long as the ships weren’t armed. The only repercussions for captured runners

from non-belligerent nations were confiscation of the ship and cargo. The crews were returned home.

Thus, blockade running was a low-risk, high-profit business enterprise. Numerous, primarily British,

firms were established to run contraband through the Union blockade. As the blockade tightened,

traditional cargo ships were abandoned for purpose-built, shallow draft, narrow,

and stealthy blockade runners with smokeless anthracite coal powering cutting-edge steam

engines. Firms legally bought goods in Europe before legally shipping them to Bermuda, the

Bahamas, or Havana. They would then legally load them onto the blockade runners, who’d wait for

suitably dark nights to illegally race past the Union Navy to Southern ports. Once they arrived,

the smugglers then traded their goods for cotton before running back. A single round trip would

pay all expenses and make a handsome profit. The impact of these blockade runners on the

war is debated. On the one hand, over 80% of known blockade-running attempts succeeded,

with the runners delivering at least 600,000 Enfield rifles and countless tons of desperately

needed military supplies to the Confederacy. On the other hand, the Union captured or destroyed

over 1500 runners. Only a handful of known runners survived the war, and their deliveries of military

arms were far below what the Confederacy actually needed. A full cargo of ammunition

was only sufficient to supply one division for one battle. Additionally, most cargos weren’t meant

for the Confederate military. Luxury goods fetched far higher prices, especially women’s fashion,

and the firms responded accordingly. The Confederate government first legislated runners

having to dedicate cargo space for military supplies, then bought its own runners purely

for gunrunning when the firms didn’t comply. The bottom line is that Southern trade fell 95% from

1860 to 1865 thanks to the blockade, which caused shortages that the runners didn’t alleviate.

Confederate Response Realizing that the Union

Blockade was an existential threat, Mallory was determined to break it, but was undermined at

every turn. Many of the Gosport naval guns were diverted for coastal defence or army usage.

Many states retained ships and resources for their own use rather than giving them to the

Confederate Navy. Worse, Jefferson Davis called for privateers to attack the Union on April 17th,

1861, which further dispersed resources and decentralized naval operations among numerous

private captains. This would prove extremely detrimental in the Mississippi theatre.

With his authority and resources severely undercut, Mallory placed all his hopes on

superior technology. The British and French had already built armoured ships, which were normal

steam and sail ships with armour plating, and Mallory intended to build on that development. He

dreamed of purpose-built, steam-powered, ironclad gunboats with thick armour and powerful cannons

to sink the blockade squadrons with impunity. Unfortunately, building them was a struggle.

The Confederacy only had one foundry capable of producing armour plates or engine parts,

and it was severely overtaxed, making other war materials. It also had few experienced steam

engineers and machinists and a little extra iron to work with. With the construction of

new ships rapidly falling behind schedule, Mallory placed his hopes on a salvage job.

Building the Virginia Federal forces burned and

scuttled nine ships when they abandoned Gosport. The old sailing ships were completely destroyed,

but the relatively modern screw-frigate Merrimack was only burned to the waterline, leaving its

engines and lower hull intact. Mallory ordered the Confederacy’s first ironclad, the Virginia, to be

constructed atop Merrimack’s wreckage to speed up construction. The Merrimack’s burned timbers were

cut away and replaced with an armoured casemate. However, construction immediately went wrong.

While Virginia was designed as a river and coastal gunboat, Merrimack was an ocean cruiser,

and its deep draft hull meant Virginia couldn’t actually operate in rivers. Much of the armour

plating was of poor quality or missing. Originally designed for 4 inches of armour, only 2 inches

(51mm) were installed, and the gunport shutters never arrived before it went into action.

Worse, Merrimack’s engines were notoriously fragile and temperamental, which is why it

had been mothballed in the first place. A year idle, a month underwater, and almost an extra

ton of weight didn’t help their performance. Virginia could barely make 5 knots and had a

mile-wide turning circle. Its maneuverability was further hindered by installation of a ram.

Ramming was back in fashion after the privateer icebreaker-turned-ironclad Manassas attacked and

lightly-damaged three Union warships off New Orleans in December . Additionally,

the North knew about Virginia and was building its own ironclad to counter

it. Virginia’s guns probably wouldn’t penetrate another ironclad’s armour,

but its ram might. Battle of Hampton Roads

The North Atlantic Blockade Squadron knew that Virginia would be coming for them.

Flag officer Goldsborough planned to have his wooden-hulled frigates form a semi-circle outside

the mouth of the James River, using crossfire to pound the metal monster to death. However,

he was in North Carolina when the battle came on March 8th, 1862. Recently appointed Confederate

flag officer Franklin Buchanan ordered Virginia and five converted civilian steamers toward

Hampton Roads that morning. However, Virginia didn’t reach Union lines until 13:30. The Sloop

USS Cumberland and frigate USS Congress were on station. They opened fire as frigates Minnesota,

Roanoke, and St. Lawrence attempted to join the battle, only for the latter two to hit sandbars.

While the steamers held back, Virginia ploddingly steamed toward Cumberland, seemingly unbothered by

converging cannon fire. At 14:00, Virginia rammed Cumberland, bursting her hull open.

This was almost a fatal error, as the ram stuck fast. Virginia would have followed Cumberland

to the bottom had its prow not snapped off. Virginia ponderously turned towards Congress. Not

knowing the ram was gone, Congress deliberately ran aground to prevent another attack. Instead,

it became a sitting duck as steamers joined Virginia’s attack. Congress surrendered around

16:00. Buchanan emerged from Virginia to accept the surrender, only to be wounded

by a sharpshooter on shore. Congress was set ablaze in retaliation. By this time,

Minnesota had arrived but also grounded. The steamers attacked but were severely outgunned,

and Virginia couldn’t close due to falling tides. She and her squadron retreated to

Gosport, intending to return the next day. Virginia hadn’t escaped the battle unscathed.

Damaged smokestacks reduced its speed to under 3 knots. Two cannons had been destroyed, and most

of the armor plate was bent and loose. The crew spent the night on emergency repairs and sailed

out at dawn under Lieutenant Jones to finish off Minnesota. As she laboriously steamed into the

Road, a strange ship steamed to intercept her. It was the USS Monitor, John Ericsson's brainchild,

which had arrived the previous night to defend Minnesota. Specifically designed to operate in

coastal waters, Monitor had a shallow draft and low profile, with only its pilothouse and

an innovative revolving turret showing above the waterline. It was protected by 8 inches (200 mm)

of armour and mounted the largest guns Ericsson could find on short notice, 11-inch Dahlgrens.

The two ironclads spent four hours pounding away at each other, with Minnesota adding occasional

broadsides. Virginia’s gunners could only target Monitor’s turret, which rotated the guns

into firing position, then rotated again to only present the armour. By 10:00, the sheer weight of

Monitor’s shots were bashing gaps into Virginia's armour, which was temporarily grounded. Then,

one of Monitor’s guns was disabled by a misfire. After freeing itself, Virginia attempted a ramming

attack, which Monitor easily dodged. However, a shot skidded in front of Monitor’s pilot house,

sending sparks and splinters into the captain’s eyes. Monitor circled over a sandbar so command

could be transferred, which Virginia interpreted as a retreat. Badly damaged,

she turned to return to Gosport, unaware that Monitor had turned back to reengage. Consequently,

both sides claimed victory. The Battle of Hampton Roads was an unexpected naval watershed. It was

the first battle between metal ships in history and the death knell for wooden warships. However,

neither combatant ever fought again. McClellan’s arrival at Fort Monroe prompted the Confederates

to evacuate Norfolk on May 9th. As Virginia couldn’t escape up the shallow James River or

to sea, she was burned to avoid capture. Monitor was lost in a storm on December 31st while being

towed to the Carolinas. The Mississippi Theater

Out west, the Union achieved naval supremacy on the Mississippi after winning the only

fleet actions of the war. Due to logistics and bureaucracy , the Western Gunboat Flotilla was

under army control despite being officered and crewed by naval personnel. Western

theater commander Major General Henry Halleck was unconvinced about the flotilla until Flag Officer

Andrew Foote explained to him the value of joint operations to take control of river systems. Foote

proved the concept alongside US Grant by taking Forts Henry and Donelson in February. In March,

he steamed to Island Number 10 in support of John Pope’s siege of the fortress which blocked Union

access to the Mississippi below Cairo. Here, another significant naval first was achieved

when Foote ran gunboats past the batteries, a feat considered impossible during the age of sail. The

garrison surrendered on April 8th. Capture of New Orleans

At the opposite end of the river, Flag Officer David Farragut and the West Gulf Squadron took

note of Foote’s actions. Despite being closed to Gulf traffic, New Orleans remained a major

port for Mississippi river traffic and coastal shipping through Lake Pontchartrain . Taking

the city would deprive the Confederacy of not only its largest city and trade hub but would open the

lower Mississippi to further operations. He just had to get past Forts Jackson and St. Philips.

It was now clear that fixed fortifications couldn’t concentrate enough fire against

steamships to sink them, a complete reversal from the age of sail. Farragut believed that a

nighttime run would let him take New Orleans. However, his orders were to coordinate and

attack with Benjamin Butler’s army and Commander David Porter’s mortar boats . Farragut ignored

the obstinate Butler, but Porter was his foster brother and had to be given a chance.

The Confederates noticed the buildup, but there was little to be done. The New Orleans defences

had been stripped of both men and cannons to support operations further north, believing the

forts and a chain between them were sufficient protection. Still, 13 warships were dispatched,

although they would only be of a little help. Two ships were from the Louisiana State Navy,

and five were Confederate Navy ships, including Manassas, the unfinished Mississippi,

and the unsteerable Louisiana. The other six were cottonclad rams from the River Defense

Fleet. These were privateers operating steamers with bulkheads filled with compressed cotton for

armour, which were organized under the Confederate Army but didn’t answer to them or the Navy. There

was no command structure or battle plan. Battle of Forts Jackson and St. Philips

Beginning April 18th, Porter’s 21 mortar ships began bombarding the forts. However,

they did no meaningful damage, and by the 20th, Farragut decided just to run the guns. That night,

three gunboats successfully broke the chain. Porter’s bombardment continued until April 23rd,

when Farragut’s 17 ships, separated into three squadrons, were ready. At 03:00 on April 24th,

Farragut ordered full steam ahead. The fleet was spotted passing the chain, but panicked

Confederate fire couldn’t meaningfully damage the fleet as expected. The rear three ships

turned back as dawn broke before they passed the forts. Louisiana couldn’t effectively engage and

was bypassed. Manassas attempted to engage but was too lumbering to attack effectively. It

lightly damaged the USS Mississippi and Brooklyn before being forced aground and set ablaze.

As the fleet steamed forward, a fire raft damaged Farragut’s flagship while the Confederate ships

attempted to engage. They attacked piecemeal and individually and were consequently torn

apart by concentrated Union gunfire. Two rams chased and sank USS Varuna in shallow water,

but there were no other Union losses. A single cottonclad escaped to New Orleans to be scuttled

alongside Mississippi as Farragut arrived on April 25th. The officers of Forts Jackson and St. Philip

intended to resist Butler’s advance, but their men mutinied and surrendered on April 29th. Louisiana

was burned the same day. The Mississippi Delta was lost to the Confederacy, and Farragut became

America’s first Rear Admiral. Battle of Plum Point Bend

Back upriver, Foote and Pope had intended to continue downriver to Fort Pillow and

Memphis when Pope was diverted for the Corinth Campaign. Unable to take the fort himself,

Foote stationed six City-class gunboats and one converted steamer at Plum Point Bend to

protect a mortar boat which bombarded the fort every day starting April 12th. The dreary daily

routine of unchallenged bombardments and Foote departing the squadron to recover from wounds

let complacency set in. This was the opportunity the surviving River Defense Fleet was looking for.

They’d been waiting downstream from Pillow for an opportunity to attack, and now the Union squadron

was ripe for ambush. The plan was to intercept and sink the guard gunboat and mortar boat. When

the rest of the squadron came to their aid, they’d be overwhelmed and sunk, returning the

river to the Confederacy. The fleet got underway on May 9th to attack on May 10th. That morning,

USS Cincinnati was preparing for guard duty when the Confederates appeared around the Bend. Unable

to retreat due to lack of steam pressure, Cincinnati opened fire on the lead cottonclad

General Bragg. Bragg struck a glancing blow, which sent the ships spinning 180 degrees after the ram

got stuck. Cincinnati fired multiple point-blank volleys into Bragg, finally disabling her tiller

after the two ships separated. Additional cottonclads arrived and rammed Cincinnati,

which sank into the mud. By now, the rest of the squadron was steaming to help . Two cotton-clads

retreated due to boiler damage, but General Earl van Dorn successfully rammed USS Mound City,

grounding it on the riverbank. At this point, the gunboats retreated to water that was too

shallow for the rams. Facing cannon fire they couldn’t match and targets they couldn’t reach,

the cottonclads retreated. Naval Battle of Memphis

While Confederate papers claimed a great victory, the bombardment continued the next day, and both

sunk gunboats were refloated and back in action by June. The fall of Corinth on May 30th rendered Ft.

Pillow and Memphis indefensible. All forces were to retreat towards Vicksburg, but there wasn’t

enough coal for all cottonclads to make the trip. While their captains argued about what to do, the

surviving gunboats from Plum Point Bend, bolstered by four rams, arrived on June 6th. Lacking other

options, the cottonclads steamed out for battle. The battle began with the lead Union ram Queen

of the West ramming Colonel Lovell before being rammed itself. A melee broke out, the details of

which are unclear as every account of the battle contradicts the others. The only certainty is

that only General Earl van Dorn escaped downriver to be scuttled a few weeks later. This final fleet

engagement confirmed Union brown-water supremacy. Naval Technology and Commerce Raiders

It was clear to Mallory by June 1862 that he couldn’t challenge the Union Navy in any

conventional fashion. There were now more monitors than total Confederate warships. Therefore,

he shifted focus to new technologies and overseas shipyards. The Confederacy made extensive use of

torpedoes and naval mines in modern terminology. Static torpedoes were used to protect waterways,

while spar torpedoes were used offensively. A number of Union ships were lost to torpedoes

during the war, but they failed to impact any campaign. The most famous of the Confederacy’s

naval experiments were submarines . H.L. Hunley was building experimental submersibles for the

Confederacy in New Orleans before it fell. Afterward, he relocated to Mobile and built

the submarine which bore his name, though he really shouldn’t have. Deployed to break

Charleston’s blockade, the craft killed 13 men in training accidents, including Hunley. It was still

sent to attack the USS Housatonic in Charleston Harbor on February 17, 1864, and wasn’t seen again

until its wreck was discovered in 1995. Hunley had sunk Housatonic and itself with its spar torpedo,

instantly killing its eight crewmen due to the physics of underwater explosions and shockwaves

in confined spaces. Commerce Raiders

Far more successful were the commerce raiders. Davis’ privateers were defeated by late 1861,

but Mallory acquired actual warships with trained crews. A loophole in British and

international law allowed neutral nations to build warships for belligerent nations so long as they

didn’t arm them themselves. Therefore, Mallory had Confederate agents, helped by sympathetic

British officials, pay British shipyards to build and crew commerce raiders for the Confederacy.

They’d be sailed to the Azores, take on Confederate officers and cannons, and then be

set loose on Union shipping. While these raiders did considerable damage, they’d all be destroyed

by Union cruisers or seized before launching. The most famous raider, Alabama, captured 65

ships before being cornered and sunk in Cherbourg harbour by USS Kearsarge on June 19, 1864. The

Florida was seized from under the Brazilian navy’s nose in Port of Salvador. The US and Britain

almost came to blows when the Laird Shipyard began constructing turreted rams for the Confederacy.

The confrontation forced the government to quietly buy the rams and stop turning a blind eye toward

pro-Confederate activities. Battle of Mobile Bay

The naval theatre was effectively concluded in August 1864. Only Mobile and Wilmington remained

open to blockade runners, and Farragut intended to close Mobile. Defended by three forts , a

minefield, three gunboats and the ironclad Tennessee, the position was formidable. However,

Farragut was confident in his fleet, bolstered by four monitors for the operation. At dawn on August

5th, Farragut approached the entrance to the bay. His wooden ships were lashed together in pairs

while the monitors took the inside track to shield them from cannon fire. The Confederate fleet under

Franklin Buchanan prepared to meet them behind the minefield. The Monitor Tecumseh opened the firing

at 06:47. The fort guns were quickly suppressed, but Tecumseh strayed into the minefield and was

sunk. Confusion reigned until Farragut issued an order that mythmakers shortened to “Damn the

torpedoes! Full speed ahead!” and led the fleet over part of the minefield whose torpedoes were

too waterlogged to detonate. The gunboats were quickly dispatched, but Buchanan intended to fight

Tennessee to the death. However, Tennessee was too slow to ram the mobile Union fleet, and its guns

were too weak to do much damage. After two hours of concentrated pummelling, Tennessee surrendered.

The army closed Wilmington in January 1865 by capturing Fort Fisher. In four years,

the Union Navy had grown to 671 active-duty ships and completely isolated the Confederacy.

The Confederate navy had never stood a chance, yet ironically, it was also the Confederacy’s

last holdout. Commerce raider Shenandoah fired the war’s final shot in June 1865 and didn’t surrender

until November. Join us next time as we rewind the clock to 1861 for the start of the Western

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