During the American Civil War, British–crewed warships harassed Union merchantmen, sinking a total value of more than $15,000,000 in ships and cargo. Considered pirates by the federal government, these ships and crew were at the center of a largely unknown but fascinating struggle between Commander James Dunwoody of the Confederate Navy, U.S. Ambassador Charles Francis Adams, and Consul Thomas H. Dudley. This history of British assistance to the Confederate Navy covers that story in full and provides a close look at the British seamen who manned warships and blockade runners.

Joseph McKenna is a retired local studies librarian, with over 30 years experience working in the Central Library in Birmingham, England. He formerly sat on the City Council`s Conservation Advisory Areas Committee.

Joseph McKenna
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 292
Bibliographic Info: 56 photos, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2010
pISBN: 978-0-7864-4530-1
eISBN: 978-0-7864-5827-1
Imprint: McFarland

Preface      1
Introduction      3

1. Bulloch      9
2. The Florida      20
3. Semmes      55
4. The “290”      77
5. The Alabama      90
6. The Castigation of Mr. Lancaster      145
7. The Georgia and the Rappahannock      152
8. The Alexandra and the Pampero      161
9. Laird’s Rams and French Rams      165
10. The Tallahassee and the Chickamauga      175
11. The Shenandoah      185
12. Blockade-Runners      203
13. The Men and the Ships That Ran the Blockade      217
14. Tales of Old Men      250

Appendix: The Sinking of the Alabama      257
Chapter Notes      267
Bibliography      273
Index      275

“new information and insights…an excellent book”—Civil War News; “excellent”—The Lone Star;