Naval action of the American Civil War
Naval battles of the American Civil War fought in foreign waters
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The
Battle of Cherbourg
, or sometimes the
Battle off Cherbourg
or the
Sinking of CSS
Alabama
, was a
single-ship action
fought during the
American Civil War
between the
United States
Navy
warship,
USS
Kearsarge
, and the
Confederate States Navy
warship,
CSS
Alabama
, on June 19, 1864, off
Cherbourg
,
France
.
Background
[
edit
]
After five successful
commerce raiding
missions in the
Atlantic Ocean
,
CSS
Alabama
put into
Cherbourg Harbor
on June 11, 1864. The Confederate States
sloop-of-war
was commanded by
Captain
Raphael Semmes
, formerly of
CSS
Sumter
. It was Captain Semmes' intention to drydock his ship and receive repairs at the French port. After 22 months of sailing, the
Alabama
boilers were burned out; machinery needed repairs; loose at every joint and her copper bottom was in rolls.
[1]
[
non-primary source needed
]
The Confederate Navy vessel was crewed by about 149 men and armed with six 32-pounder (15 kg)
cannon
, mounted
broadside
, three guns per side; two heavy
pivot guns
mounted on the centerline and able to fire to either side; one 8-inch (203 mm), 110-pound (50 kg)
smoothbore
gun; and one 7-inch (178 mm), 68-pound (31 kg)
rifled
gun.
Alabama
had been pursued for two years by the
screw sloop
-of-war
USS
Kearsarge
, under Captain
John Winslow
.
Kearsarge
was armed with two 11-inch (279 mm) smoothbore
Dahlgren guns
which fired about 166 pounds of solid shot, four 32-pound guns, and one 30-pounder
Parrott rifle
. She was crewed by around 163 sailors and officers.
Kearsarge
had a form of makeshift armor-cladding, medium-weight chain cable
triced
in tiers along her port and starboard midsections, basically acting as the equivalent of
chain mail
for vulnerable sections of her hull, where shot could potentially penetrate and hit her
boilers
or
steam engine
. This armor protection potentially gave the Union warship a definitive advantage over the Confederate raider; however, the armor was only capable of stopping shots from
Alabama
'
s lighter 32-pound balls; either of her heavier guns could easily penetrate such lightweight protection. In the event, it was a moot point, as
Alabama
only managed to score two hits in this area, both of which were well above the waterline and the vulnerable engineering areas, and would have done little lasting damage even if they had successfully penetrated the hull.
On June 14,
Kearsarge
finally caught up with
Alabama
as she was receiving repairs.
Kearsarge
did not attack, as
Alabama
was in a neutral port; instead, she waited, initiating a
blockade
of CSS
Alabama
in Cherbourg. Union Captain Winslow telegraphed
USS
St. Louis
to request her assistance, but the fighting began before she could arrive. Confederate Captain Semmes used the time to drill his men for the coming battle. On June 19,
Alabama
, with nowhere else to go, ran up the
Stars and Bars
and exited the harbor to attack
Kearsarge
. She was escorted by the
French Navy
ironclad
Couronne
,
[3]
whose mission was to ensure that the ensuing battle occurred outside the French harbor.
Battle
[
edit
]
Chart of Battle Between the CSS Alabama and the USS Kearsarge 1864
Battle of the USS Kearsarge and the CSS Alabama
(1887 lithograph)
Sinking of the CSS Alabama off Cherbourg France 1864
The sternpost of USS
Kearsarge
, with a 100-pound round embedded within it
Captain Winslow spotted the departing Confederate raider, so he turned his ship around to take the impending battle out of French territorial waters. Once out,
Kearsarge
turned about again, hoisted the
United States Navy Jack
, and lined up for a broadside. Captain Winslow ordered his gunners to hold their fire until the range closed.
Alabama
fired the first shots from the 100-pound pivot gun.
[1]
They are not known to have hit. Eventually the range closed to within 1,000 yards (910 m) and
Kearsarge
fired her first shot. The two
warships
maneuvered on opposite courses throughout the battle.
Kearsarge
and
Alabama
made seven spiraling circles around each other, moving southwest in a 3-
knot
(5.6 km/h; 3.5 mph) current. Both Captain Semmes and Captain Winslow attempted to cross each other's bow, hoping to inflict heavy
raking fire
. Three of the
Kearsarge
11-inch shells entered the
Alabama
's 8-inch gun port.
[1]
The
Alabama
gunpowder was damaged and defective; her guns gave out a dull report with thick and heavy vapor while the
Kearsarge
battery was clear and sharp with powder burning like thin vapor.
[1]
[
non-primary source needed
]
The battle continued in this manner for several minutes; in the meantime, on the French coast, hundreds watched the battle.
Kearsarge
'
s armor cladding sustained two hits during the engagement.
[
citation needed
]
The first shell, a 32-pounder, struck the starboard gangway, cutting part of the chain armor and denting the wooden planking underneath.
[4]
The second shot was again a 32-pounder that exploded and broke a link of the chain. Both hits struck the chain five feet above the waterline and therefore did not threaten the boilers or machinery. The gunnery of
Kearsarge
was reportedly more accurate than that of the Confederates. She fired slowly with well-aimed shots, while
Alabama
fired rapidly.
Alabama
fired a total of over 370 rounds during the fighting; it is not known how many
Kearsarge
fired, but it is known that she fired many fewer than the Confederates did. Eventually, after just over an hour of exchanging artillery fire,
Alabama
had received shot-holes beneath the waterline from
Kearsarge
'
s Dahlgren guns and began to sink. Captain Semmes struck the Confederate colors, but still
Kearsarge
continued firing until a white flag was seen, raised by one of the Confederate sailors with his hand. The battle was over, so Captain Semmes sent his remaining
dinghy
to Captain Winslow, to ask for aid.
[
citation needed
]
During the battle, 40 Confederate sailors were casualties (19 killed in action or drowned and 21 wounded). Another seventy or so were picked up by
Kearsarge
. Thirty or so were rescued by
Deerhound
, a
British
yacht
, which Captain Winslow asked to help evacuate
Alabama
'
s crew, and three
French
pilot boats
. Captain Semmes and fourteen of his officers were among the sailors rescued by
Deerhound
. Instead of delivering the captured Confederates to
Kearsarge
,
Deerhound
set a course for
Southampton
, thus enabling Captain Semmes' escape. This act angered the
Kearsarge
crew, who begged their captain to allow them to open fire on the British yacht. Captain Winslow would not allow this, so the Confederates got away and avoided imprisonment. Three men were wounded aboard
Kearsarge
, one of whom died the following day.
[5]
Aftermath
[
edit
]
In art
[
edit
]
For many years after the battle, Confederate Captain Semmes stated that he would never have chosen to test
Kearsarge
had he known of her armor-clad protection.
Alabama
had destroyed or captured dozens of Union merchant vessels during her Atlantic cruises, and when word of
Alabama
'
s sinking reached the northeastern United States, many Northerners were joyful.
Edouard Manet
produced two paintings of the fight,
The Battle of the
Kearsarge
and the
Alabama
, now at the
Philadelphia Museum of Art
, and
Kearsarge
at Boulogne
, now at the
Metropolitan Museum of Art
. American marine artist
Xanthus Smith
painted six versions of the naval battle. The most famous of these, a massive work exhibited at the
1876 Centennial Exposition
, is in the collection of the
Union League of Philadelphia
.
The 37th album of
Les Tuniques Bleues
, titled
Duel dans la Manche
("Duel in the Channel"), takes place during the Battle of Cherbourg, on USS
Kearsarge
.
[6]
The battle was commemorated in the
sea shanty
"
Roll, Alabama, Roll
".
Wreck of
Alabama
[
edit
]
In November 1984, the
French minesweeper
Circe
located the wreck of
Alabama
at a depth of 60 meters (200 ft), a little under 10 kilometers (5.4 nmi; 6.2 mi) north of the western approaches of Cherbourg roads (
49°45′9″N
01°41′42″W
/
49.75250°N 1.69500°W
/
49.75250; -1.69500
).
[7]
Captain Max Guerout later confirmed that the wreck was that of
Alabama
.
In 1988, a nonprofit organisation named the CSS Alabama Association
[8]
was created to conduct a scientific survey of the wreck. Although it now lies in French territorial waters, the U.S. government claimed possession on the grounds that the location where
Alabama
had struck to
Kearsarge
had not been within French territorial waters at the time of the battle. On 3 October 1989, France and the United States signed an agreement recognising the wreck as a common historic heritage for both nations and established a joint scientific team for its exploration.
On 23 March 1995, the CSS Alabama Association and the
Naval History & Heritage Command
signed an agreement to accredit the association for the archeological survey of
Alabama
. In 2002, over 300 samples were recovered, including the ship's bell, guns, part of the ship's structure, furniture, and tableware. In 2004, a human jaw was found under a gun and was subsequently buried in
Mobile, Alabama
.
See also
[
edit
]
Gallery
[
edit
]
-
Captain Raphael Semmes,
Alabama
'
s commanding officer, standing aft of the mainsail by his ship's aft 8-inch smooth bore gun during her visit to
Cape Town
in August 1863. His executive officer, First Lieutenant John M. Kell, is in the background, standing by the ship's wheel.
[9]
-
Deck scene cruiser
Alabama
showing First Lieutenant John M. Kell, by the ships stern during her visit to
Cape Town
in August 1863.
-
Deck scene cruiser
Alabama
in August 1863 - Lts Armstrong and Sinclair at Sinclair's 32-pounder station
[10]
-
USS
Kearsarge,
in an 1861 photograph
-
The deck of
Kearsarge
after her engagement with
CSS
Alabama
-
Crew of the USS Kearsarge in 1864 after the battle; showing both 11 Inch guns pointed to starboard as they were during the battle.
-
Firing the forward 11 inch gun on the Kearsarge
-
The aft 11 inch gun on the Kearsarge used against the CSS Alabama
[11]
-
Sinking of the CSS Alabama
, engraving, Harper's Weekly Magazine, 23 July 1864
-
The Fight between the Alabama and the Kearsarge
, 1864 engraving
-
-
-
The Sinking of the CSS Alabama
, unidentified artist
-
Engraving by
Louis Le Breton
(by 1866)
-
Replica of USS
Kearsarge
on display at the 1893 Grand Army of the Republic national convention in Indianapolis, Indiana
-
-
CSS Alabama
(1961), by J.W. Schmidt,
Naval History and Heritage Command
-
U.S. Navy recruiting poster highlighting
Joachim Pease
, 1970s
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
On authority of CSS Alabama Executive master John McIntosh Kell "Cruise and Combats of the Alabama" Johnson & Buel 1888, Vol. IV, p. 614
- ^
Seaman William Gowin died of wounds; two others wounded. Ref:
Johnson & Buel 1888, Vol. IV, pp. 622?623
- ^
Combat naval a Cherbourg (1864)
, Wikimanche
- ^
Fox, Stephen (2007).
Wolf of the Deep: Raphael Semmes and the Notorious Confederate Raider CSS Alabama
. New York:
Alfred A. Knopf
. p. 211.
ISBN
978-1400044290
.
- ^
Johnson & Buel 1888
, pp. 622?623
- ^
"37. Duel dans la Manche"
.
Les Tuniques Bleues
.
- ^
Epave de l'Alabama, Cherbourg 1864
, Centre europeen de recherches et d'etudes sous-marines
- ^
"CSS Alabama Association"
. Archived from
the original
on 2004-09-24
. Retrieved
2015-09-03
.
- ^
"NH 57256-KN CSS Alabama (1862-1864)"
. Naval History and Heritage Command.
- ^
Sinclair, Arthur, Lt. CSN (1896).
Two Years on the Alabama
. Boston: Lee and Shepard Publishers.
{{
cite book
}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link
)
- ^
"NH 52029 USS Kearsarge (1862-1894)"
. Naval History and Heritage Command
. Retrieved
1 January
2019
.
References
[
edit
]
- Bowcock, Andrew (2002).
CSS Alabama, Anatomy of a Confederate Raider
. London, UK: Chatham Publishing. p. 191.
ISBN
9781861761897
.
OCLC
48931829
.
[
permanent dead link
]
- Delaney, Norman C. (1973),
"
"Old Beeswax": Raphael Semmes of the Alabama"
,
Civil War Times Illustrated
,
XII
(8): 12,
OCLC
671281286
- Gindlesperger, James (2003).
Fire on the Water: The USS Kearsarge and the CSS Alabama
. Shippensburg, PA: Burd Street Press. p. 333.
ISBN
9781572493063
.
OCLC
52071690
.
- Hearn, Chester G. (1992).
Gray Raiders of the Sea: How Eight Confederate Warships Destroyed the Union's High Seas Commerce
. Camden, ME: International Marine Pub. p. 351.
hdl
:
2027/mdp.39015024988779
.
ISBN
9780807121146
.
OCLC
36205979
.
- Johnson, R.U.; Buel, C.C., eds. (1888).
Battles and Leaders of the Civil War
. Vol. IV. New York:
The Century Company
.
- Luraghi, Raimondo (1996).
A History of the Confederate Navy
. Annapolis, MD: U. S. Naval Institute Press. p. 514.
ISBN
1557505276
.
OCLC
682950313
.
- Madaus, H. Michael (1986),
"Rebel Flags Afloat: A Survey of the Surviving Flags of the Confederate States Navy, Revenue Service, and Merchant Marine"
,
The Flag Bulletin
(115), Winchester, MA: Flag Research Center,
ISSN
0015-3370
,
OCLC
185432467
- Marvel, William (1996).
The Alabama & the Kearsarge: The Sailor's Civil War
. Civil War America. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press. p. 337.
ISBN
9780807866900
.
OCLC
47010328
.
- Roberts, Arthur C., M.D. (1999),
"Reconstructing USS Kearsarge, 1864"
,
Nautical Research Journal
,
44
(4), Silver Springs, MD,
ISSN
0738-7245
,
OCLC
194781081
{{
citation
}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link
)
- Semmes, Raphael, Admiral, CSN (1869).
Memoirs of Service Afloat, During the War Between the States
. Baltimore, MD: Kelly, Piet & Co.
OCLC
1455940
.
{{
cite book
}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link
)
- Still, William N. Jr.; Taylor, John M.; Delaney, Norman C. (1998).
Raiders & Blockaders: The American Civil War Afloat
. Dulles, VA: Brassy's, Inc. p. 263.
ISBN
9781574882384
.
OCLC
46768948
.
- Winslow, John A., CAPT USN
(1864). Gideon Welles, Secretary of the Navy (ed.).
Sinking of the Alabama?Capture of the Georgia and Florida: Destruction of the Alabama by the Kearsarge
. Annual Reports of the Navy Department: Report of the Secretary of the Navy, 1864. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 863.
OCLC
2480810
.
{{
cite book
}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link
)
49°45′9″N
1°41′42″W
/
49.75250°N 1.69500°W
/
49.75250; -1.69500
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