RE: Civil War 150th (Full Version)

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Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/12/2011 8:34:24 PM)

150 Years Ago Today:

President Davis had selected James Mason and John Slidell to be the "commissioners" to Britain and France. Mason especially would have his work cut out for him: the United States envoy, known more formally as the envoy extraordinary to the Court of St. James, was Charles Francis Adams. Adams was already gaining influence, helped by the fact that he was American political "royalty". He was the grandson of John Adams, and the son of John Quincy Adams, who had both held the position before they had become President.

But the South's biggest problem was getting its commissioners across the Atlantic. Although Fort Sumter was now in Confederate hands, five Union warships were patrolling the waters off Charleston. And they knew what they were looking for: Northern intelligence had learned of Mason and Slidell.

The steamer Gordon had a shallow enough draught to use the back channels and could make over 12 knots, enough to outrun the great majority of warships at that time. Purchased by a local cotton magnate and renamed the Theodora, the ship left Charleston in the dead of night with Mason and Slidell aboard. She successfully evaded the Union ships, and headed for Nassau.



Perturabo -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/12/2011 9:10:57 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: ilovestrategy

I love reading about these battles that no one knows about. Thanks again Capt. for these posts!




Fred98 -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/12/2011 10:58:37 PM)

If the commissionars reached London and Paris, how would the president comunicate with them?

-



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/13/2011 5:48:25 AM)

quote:

If the commissionars reached London and Paris, how would the president comunicate with them?


A fair question. Ordinarily, ambassadors receive their instructions by messages in diplomatic pouches, which are supposed to be immune from inspection. However, the South's envoys were not recognized as ambassadors, since the Confederate States had not been recognized as a nation by any of the major powers. Therefore, the "despatches" to and from Mason and Slidell were considered military information, like battle plans or warship blueprints. Under international law, neutral vessels were not permitted to carry the despatches of belligerents.

To solve this problem, the Confederacy established a network of international agents/spies to carry various messages and also the money needed for the operations abroad, such as purchasing weapons and other supplies. Women were frequently chosen for this work, since the gallantry of the time meant they were much less likely to be searched. Perhaps the most famous was Rose O'Neil Greenhow, who eventually drowned because she was carrying $2,000 in gold (a hefty sum in those days) when she fell overboard.

[image]local://upfiles/4250/996307D3B76445198772D0460504C468.jpg[/image]



nicwb -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/13/2011 8:54:05 AM)

I'm surprised that the Union's intelligence service picked it up unless that means it was announced in some local Richmond newspaper [8|]- I've seen less about the Union service than the Confederate. I understand McClellan relied on Pinkertons and they habiyually overstated confederate troop numbers.



ilovestrategy -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/13/2011 3:15:14 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: nicwb

I'm surprised that the Union's intelligence service picked it up unless that means it was announced in some local Richmond newspaper [8|]-



That's what I was thinking also.



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/15/2011 5:17:21 PM)

150 Years Ago Today:

Union Intelligence had mistakenly assumed that commissioners Mason and Slidell were aboard the fast steamer Nashville, which was sailing directly to Europe. Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles ordered that the USS James Adger be sent in pursuit. Meanwhile, the Theodora (the ship Mason and Slidell were actually on)had missed a British steamer at Nassau, and had turned towards Cuba, where there was regular British mail service. On this date, the Theodora met with a Spanish warship off the coast of Cuba, which told them that they had just missed the British "packet", the ship carrying mail and passengers. The next one would be in three weeks. But the Theodora's coal bunkers were almost empty, so it was decided to disembark in Cuba and wait. Spanish Cuba was neutral territory, and the Union could do nothing there.

Elsewhere, especially in Kentucky, attitudes about slaves and slavery were slow to change. William T. Sherman received word that one of his regiments was refusing to give up runaway slaves who had made it into their camp. Since Kentucky was now officially a Union state, the Fugitive Slave Act required that such runaways be returned. Sherman, who appears to have been prejudiced against blacks in general, wrote to the regiment's colonel:

The laws of the United States and of Kentucky, all of which are binding on us, compel us to surrender a runaway negro on application of negros owner or agent. I believe you have not been instrumental in this, but my orders are that all negroes shall be delivered up on claim of the owner or agent. Better keep the negroes out of your camp altogether, unless you brought them along with the regiment.

Interestingly, Sherman would change his mind later in the war. It was he who issued Special Field Orders No. 15, the start of "Forty acres and a mule".



ilovestrategy -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/15/2011 6:52:01 PM)

Sherman started that? I did not know that.



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/17/2011 8:37:30 PM)

150 Years Ago Today:

James Mason and John Slidell disembarked from the Theodora onto Cuban soil. Since Cuba at that time belonged to Spain, there seemed to be no need to keep their presence a secret, especially with the U. S. Navy chasing after the Nashville. There was also sympathy for the South in Cuba; slavery there would not be abolished until 1886. Mason and Slidell were welcomed as house guests by a wealthy man named Casanova, whose wife owned a plantation in Virginia, since they had to wait three weeks for the next British mail packet ship.

But in another Cuban harbor, Cienfuegos, was the USS San Jacinto, captained by one Charles Wilkes. He had actually come there in a fruitless chase after the Confederate commerce raider Sumter. Soon he would learn of Mason and Slidell, and he was not a man to be content with doing nothing. Secretary of State Seward had been warned by a friend in the Treasury Department, "He will give us trouble. He has a superabundance of self-esteem and a deficiency of judgment."

[image]local://upfiles/4250/BD8086A6AF1647B09FA04BA4FE3F75EE.jpg[/image]



ilovestrategy -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/19/2011 8:58:44 AM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: Capt. Harlock

150 Years Ago Today:

James Mason and John Slidell disembarked from the Theodora onto Cuban soil. Since Cuba at that time belonged to Spain, there seemed to be no need to keep their presence a secret, especially with the U. S. Navy chasing after the Nashville. There was also sympathy for the South in Cuba; slavery there would not be abolished until 1886. Mason and Slidell were welcomed as house guests by a wealthy man named Casanova, whose wife owned a plantation in Virginia, since they had to wait three weeks for the next British mail packet ship.

But in another Cuban harbor, Cienfuegos, was the USS San Jacinto, captained by one Charles Wilkes. He had actually come there in a fruitless chase after the Confederate commerce raider Sumter. Soon he would learn of Mason and Slidell, and he was not a man to be content with doing nothing. Secretary of State Seward had been warned by a friend in the Treasury Department, "He will give us trouble. He has a superabundance of self-esteem and a deficiency of judgment."

[image]local://upfiles/4250/BD8086A6AF1647B09FA04BA4FE3F75EE.jpg[/image]



Oh, you need to continue this! [&o]



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/19/2011 8:37:00 PM)

quote:

Oh, you need to continue this!


I have every intention, though we will have to wait until the first week in November for that pesky mail ship.

In the meantime, to ratchet up the stakes a bit higher, some background: James Murray Mason (November 3, 1798 – April 28, 1871) was already one of North's most hated men. He had drafted the Fugitive slave Act of 1850 as a Senator from Virgina. (Emerson had described the Act as a "filthy enactment", and Thoreau had compared it to a dung ball.) Mason had also been President Pro Tempore of the Senate, and become one of only 15 men ever expelled from the Senate when he retained his seat and supported the South even after Virginia seceded. Honors and fame awaited the man who could capture him for the Union, and Captain Wilkes knew it.



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/20/2011 8:30:27 PM)

150 Years Ago Today:

The Confederate forces which had been moving closer to Washington, D.C. after First Bull Run had now started to move back towards Richmond. George McClellan received reports that forty miles up the Potomac, there were still a number of Rebel units in the vicinity of Leesburg. He ordered Brigadier General Charles Stone to find out exactly where the Confederates were and whether they could be pushed back, closing with “Perhaps a slight demonstration on your part would have the effect to move them.” Stone obediently moved troops to the river at Edwards Ferry, had his guns fire into the most likely spots for Confederate camps, and briefly sent men up the bluff on the Virginia side of the Potomac, known as Ball's Bluff. No response.

Finally, after sunset, a Union patrol spotted what looked like the tents of a Southern camp about a mile inland from the bluff. (It is not clear whether the inexperienced patrol leader actually saw tents or the tops of pine trees.) General Stone planned an attack for the next day, unwittingly setting the stage for another Union debacle.



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/21/2011 5:33:08 AM)

150 Years Ago Today:

In Missouri, Brigadier General. M. Jeff Thompson had led a 1500-man force into the southeastern area of the state. He burned the Iron Mountain Railroad bridge, which caused predictable annoyance to the Union side. Two columns of troops were dispatched after the Thompson force. Expecting such a reaction, Thompson set up an ambush.

The first part of the plan worked fairly well, inflicting a number of casualties to the advance Northern troops. But the Union's large advantage in manpower was already making itself apparent. More and more Federals arrived, and one of Thompson's regimental colonels who had waited too long to pull his unit back was killed. The regiment retreated in less than good order, taking serious casualties. This exposed the main Rebel artillery piece, an iron 12-pounder, and a troop of Union cavalry made a charge for the gun. They were driven back by Thompson's main force, but at the cost of revealing the rest of the ambush.

The main body of Union infantry now surged forward, and Thompson could see that he was outnumbered. He ordered a withdrawal, but had to abandon the 12-pounder. Most of his infantry retired in good order, but some of his cavalry was routed. Final losses were 7 killed and about 60 wounded from the Union side, and 25 killed, 40 wounded, and 80 captured from the Confederate side. The Union had re-established control of southeastern Missouri.

In Virginia, however, it was the Northern side that lost a colonel, and with more terrible results. General Stone's attack across the Potomac failed to find a Confederate camp, but finally succeeded in getting the Southerners' attention. Some skirmishing began after noon and gradually built to heavy fighting by 3:00 pm. As the combat increased, Colonel Edward D. Baker crossed the river and took command of most of the Union troops. Unfortunately, Baker tried to concentrate the Federals at, creating a bottleneck as an inadequate number of boats ferried his men across the river just below Ball's Bluff. At about 4:30 pm, a Rebel bullet killed Baker. The Federals began to fall back.

A fresh Confederate regiment (the 17th Mississippi) arrived, and with its aid the Southerners mounted a major assault that turned the Northern retreat into a rout. Tragic scenes took place: some Union soldiers jumped off of hillsides and impaled themselves on the bayonets of the men below, while others desperately tried to climb into the few boats available and overturned them. At least one was being used to carry wounded, and they drowned, unable to swim. It is estimated that 223 Federals were killed, 226 were wounded, and 553 were captured, which was more than half of the 1,700-man force. The Confederates lost 36 killed, 117 wounded, and 2 captured.

Washington was shocked. Some of the drowned men floated down the river and washed up on the banks of the city. More, Colonel Baker had also been one of the Senators from Oregon, serving while Congress was in recess. For the first and so far only time, a sitting U.S. Senator had been killed in action.

[image]local://upfiles/4250/76426BFD53E44D28A0881271CE308BDD.jpg[/image]



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/22/2011 9:31:06 PM)

150 Years Ago Today:

The Confederacy created the Department of Northern Virginia, commanded by General Joseph Johnston. It was divided into three districts: the Potomac District, under General Beauregard, covered the area around Washington. (His army was still called the Army of the Potomac, which is confusing when you consider the the Union army of the same name.) The Aquia District incorporated the southern part of the Potomac. The Valley District was the Shenandoah Valley, between the Blue Ridge and Allegheny Mountains. Its commander was General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, and his campaigns in this area would transform his reputation from famous to legendary.



ilovestrategy -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/23/2011 6:07:39 AM)

And thus Jackson's nickname becomes a household word.



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/24/2011 5:19:41 AM)

150 Years Ago Today:

In western Virginia, the vote called for by the Wheeling Convention was held. Apparently, the Union soldiers in the area were allowed to vote (whether they had residences in the area or not) and not surprisingly, the vote went decisively in favor of creating a new state.

In addition to his highly controversial proclamation for shooting Confederates and emancipating slaves, General John Frémont had run the military campaign in Missouri in questionable fashion. A visit from Secretary of War Simon Cameron had found considerable cronyism and inefficiency, and Cameron was not the most efficient administrator himself. But the last straw was that Fremont had built his army up to 40,000 men, far surpassing the combined forces of Sterling Price and Benjamin McCulloch, and yet could not seem to drive either out of the state.

At last, Fremont received General Order No 18, written by General-in-Chief Winfield Scott:

“Major General Frémont, of the United States’ Army, the present commander of the Western Department of the same, will, on the receipt of this order, call Major General Hunter, of the United States’ Volunteers, to relieve him temporarily in that command, when he, Major General Frémont, will report to general head quarters, by letter, for further orders.”

Scott himself was by this time clearly on the way out: he was overweight and developing health problems, and no longer had the energy needed for the top job.

Even further west, the final segment of the transcontinental telegraph was completed by the Overland Telegraph Company. (The Pacific Telegraph Company had completed its part two weeks before.) The first message was from President Lincoln himself, congratulating those involved.


[image]local://upfiles/4250/B150B0F8F27647C18288D5875DCE6BD2.jpg[/image]



ilovestrategy -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/24/2011 10:13:34 AM)

It has never ceased to amaze me that Winfield Scott was still on the scene after all those decades. That's incredible!



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/26/2011 7:46:03 PM)

150 Years Ago Today:

The Pony Express ceased operations, having run for only 18 months and 23 days. It had carried the news of Lincoln's election to California in only seven days and 17 hours after the East Coast papers, an unrivaled feat at the time. But it had never operated at a profit, and now the telegraph could deliver a message in minutes.

In Cienfuegos, Cuba, Captain Wilkes of the USS San Jacinto read in a local newspaper that the Confederate envoys Mason and Slidell were heading to Havana. (Kudos to nicwb for his thought about Union intelligence.) He immediately ordered his ship to weigh anchor and sail for Havana, hoping to intercept the blockade runner Theodora.



ilovestrategy -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/27/2011 4:42:15 AM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: Capt. Harlock


In Cienfuegos, Cuba, Captain Wilkes of the USS San Jacinto read in a local newspaper that the Confederate envoys Mason and Slidell were heading to Havana. (Kudos to nicwb for his thought about Union intelligence.) He immediately ordered his ship to weigh anchor and sail for Havana, hoping to intercept the blockade runner Theodora.




I love this type of stuff! [&o]



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/28/2011 5:13:20 AM)

150 Years Ago Today:

Missouri was officially still in the Union, but the "facts on the ground" were much more complex. St. Louis was firmly in Union hands, the southwestern quadrant was firmly in Rebel hands, and the rest of the state was seeing regular armies and marauding guerillas come and go. (Lexington was now back under Northern occupation, after Sterling Price had pulled back after the Battle of Fredericktown.)

Missouri governor Claiborne Jackson (the elected, pro-Southern one) decided on a more legalistic approach. He set up a provisional capital in the town of Neosho in southwest Missouri, and called the legislature into session. There is still controversy over whether or not Jackson's legislature had a quorum to permit it to convene, and as a result many historians consider it a "rump" legislature. (The Senate's journal was recently found at the Wilson's Creek National Battlefield, but the House journal with its roll call remains undiscovered.)

The legislature took up a bill for Missouri's secession from the Union, citing various "outrages" committed against the state and the overthrow of its government by the late Nathaniel Lyon.


On this date as well, the Cherokee approved their Declaration of Causes, a remarkably eloquent document (and also prescient):


Declaration by the People of the Cherokee Nation of the Causes
Which Have Impelled Them to Unite Their Fortunes With Those of the
Confederate States of America.

       When circumstances beyond their control compel one people to sever the ties which have long existed between them and another state or confederacy, and to contract new alliances and establish new relations for the security of their rights and liberties, it is fit that they should publicly declare the reasons by which their action is justified.
       The Cherokee people had its origin in the South; its institutions are similar to those of the Southern States, and their interests identical with theirs. Long since it accepted the protection of the United States of America, contracted with them treaties of alliance and friendship, and allowed themselves to be to a great extent governed by their laws.
       In peace and war they have been faithful to their engagements with the United States. With much of hardship and injustice to complain of, they resorted to no other means than solicitation and argument to obtain redress. . .
       Throughout the Confederate States we saw this great revolution effected without violence or the suspension of the laws or the closing of the courts. The military power was nowhere placed above the civil authorities. None were seized and imprisoned at the mandate of arbitrary power. . .

       But in the Northern States the Cherokee people saw with alarm a violated Constitution, all civil liberty put in peril, and all the rules of civilized warfare and the dictates of common humanity and decency unhesitatingly disregarded. In States which still adhered to the Union a military despotism has displaced the civil power and the laws became silent amid arms. Free speech and almost free thought became a crime. The right to the writ of habeas corpus, guaranteed by the Constitution, disappeared at the nod of a Secretary of State or a general of the lowest grade. The mandate of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court was set at naught by the military power, and this outrage on common right approved by a President sworn to support the Constitution. War on the largest scale was waged, and the immense bodies of troops called into the field in the absence of any law warranting it under the pretense of suppressing unlawful combination of men. The humanities of war, which even barbarians respect, were no longer thought worthy to be observed. Foreign mercenaries and the scum of cities and the inmates of prisons were enlisted and organized into regiments and brigades and sent into Southern States to aid in subjugating a people struggling for freedom, to burn, to plunder, and to commit the basest of outrages on women; while the heels of armed tyranny trod upon the necks of Maryland and Missouri, and men of the highest character and position were incarcerated upon suspicion and without process of law in jails, in forts, and in prison-ships . . .

       Whatever causes the Cherokee people may have had in the past, to complain of some of the Southern States, they cannot but feel that their interests and their destiny are inseparably connected with those of the South. The war now raging is a war of Northern cupidity and fanaticism against the institution of African servitude; against the commercial freedom of the South, and against the political freedom of the States, and its objects are to annihilate the sovereignty of those States and utterly change the nature of the General Government.
       The Cherokee people and their neighbors were warned before the war commenced that the first object of the party which now holds the powers of government of the United States would be to annul the institution of slavery in the whole Indian country, and make it what they term free territory and after a time a free State; and they have been also warned by the fate which has befallen those of their race in Kansas, Nebraska, and Oregon that at no distant day they too would be compelled to surrender their country at the demand of Northern rapacity, and be content with an extinct nationality, and with reserves of limited extent for individuals, of which their people would soon be despoiled by speculators, if not plundered unscrupulously by the State. . .

       In now carrying this resolution into effect and consummating a treaty of alliance and friendship with the Confederate States of America the Cherokee people declares that it has been faithful and loyal to is engagements with the United States until, by placing its safety and even its national existence in imminent peril, those States have released them from those engagements.
       Menaced by a great danger, they exercise the inalienable right of self-defense, and declare themselves a free people, independent of the Northern States of America, and at war with them by their own act. Obeying the dictates of prudence and providing for the general safety and welfare, confident of the rectitude of their intentions and true to the obligations of duty and honor, they accept the issue thus forced upon them, unite their fortunes now and forever with those of the Confederate States, and take up arms for the common cause, and with entire confidence in the justice of that cause and with a firm reliance upon Divine Providence, will resolutely abide the consequences.

Tahlequah, C. N., October 28, 1861.
THOMAS PEGG,
President National Committee.
JOSHUA ROSS,
Clerk National Committee.
Concurred.
LACY MOUSE,
Speaker of Council.
THOMAS B. WOLFE,
Clerk Council.
Approved.
JNO. ROSS.

The complete document is available at:
http://www.civilwarhome.com/cherokeecauses.htm



ilovestrategy -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/29/2011 10:01:43 AM)

Wow! What a document!



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/30/2011 12:58:23 AM)

October 29, 1861 (I missed the cut-off time for the date by an hour):

Emulating the pro-Southerners in Missouri, delegates from 68 of Kentucky's counties met at the Clark House in Russellville, Kentucky, and began to work on an ordinance of secession.

It had become clear that Union naval patrols off the Southern ports could not completely stop the fast, shallow draft blockade runners. The major harbors would have to be captured, one by one. On this date, a Northern fleet of 77 vessels of various sizes and types sailed from Hampton Roads, headed for Port Royal, South Carolina. In command was Captain Samuel Francis Du Pont, promoted to flag officer although his being named Rear Admiral would not happen until July 1862. The almost 13,000 infantry embarked were under the command of a Sherman, but this one was General Thomas W. Sherman.



ilovestrategy -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/30/2011 9:52:55 AM)

Most people don't realize that the Union fleet grew to a huge size during the war. The European powers had to have noted that.



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (10/31/2011 5:19:13 AM)

150 Years Ago Today:

Missouri Governor Claiborne Jackson signed the ordinance of secession. (Missouri_Rebel posted the text way back on January 25.) In practical terms, it only affected the southwestern corner of the state. Nonetheless, the request for admission into the Confederacy went to Richmond.

Captain Charles Wilkes and the USS San Jacinto arrived at Havana, Cuba. Wilkes was too late to catch the blockade runner Theodora, and as he would later report:

I found she had departed on her return, and that Messrs. Slidell and Mason, with their secretaries and families, were there and would depart on the 7th of the month in the English steamer Trent for St. Thomas, on their way to England.

But Wilkes was an experienced man at reading charts as well as commanding a ship. He realized that the Trent was not a blockade runner, but a ship built for long ocean voyages. Therefore, she would take the Bahama Channel, the only deep-water route from Havana to St. Thomas.

Lastly, in Washington D.C., Winfield Scott stepped down as overall commander of the Union Armies. "Old Fuss and Feathers" was no longer physically up to the job, and there were numerous complaints from Congress over why the war was taking so long. These complaints had grown louder since the debacle at Balls Bluff.

[image]local://upfiles/4250/21C7511CBD794CE8BF6EEFC2587B6036.jpg[/image]



ilovestrategy -> RE: Civil War 150th (11/1/2011 9:44:41 PM)

I always felt that Scott got a bad rep. There is just no way to build up a military and win a war that fast. Was he up to the job? Of course not. But it took his successor years to finish the job too.



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (11/2/2011 5:36:31 AM)

150 Years Ago Today:

As Captain Wilkes of the San Jacinto would later report:

I made up my mind to fill up with coal and leave the port as soon as possible, to await at a suitable position on the route of the steamer to St. Thomas to intercept her and take them [Mason and Slidell] out.

On the afternoon of the 2d I left The Havannah, in continuation of my cruise . . .


Interesting note: St. Thomas was at that time a Danish possession. In the 17th century it had been one of the major stops for the African slave trade, and some of the largest slave auctions in the world had been held there. But when Denmark abolished slavery in 1848, the sugar plantations there were no longer competitive. Proposals to sell the island to the U.S. were made for some time. Finally, in 1917, the U.S. Virgin Islands were purchased, largely to set up bases to patrol against German U-boats.

[image]local://upfiles/4250/78EB91DA97484A589517584EC6323295.jpg[/image]



nicwb -> RE: Civil War 150th (11/2/2011 12:26:13 PM)

quote:

I always felt that Scott got a bad rep.


That has to be correct - after all wasn't it Scott's "Anaconda Plan" that ended up being the winning strategy for the Union ? Ithink he may also have been one of the few who didn't think the whole thing would be "over by Christmas".



SLAAKMAN -> RE: Civil War 150th (11/3/2011 10:10:20 PM)

The South is gonna do it again!
http://dixienet.org/rights/index.shtml
[image]http://dixienet.org/rights/images/header.jpg[/image]
[image]http://img822.imageshack.us/img822/4656/49664062.jpg[/image]



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (11/4/2011 8:23:14 PM)

150 Years Ago Today:

The Union fleet sent to capture the forts and harbor at Port Royal had run into trouble. A gale had scattered many of the ships, and two had actually gone down, including a transport with 300 marines on board. Heroic rescue work by some of the other vessels had saved all but seven men.

On this date, enough of the fleet had staggered into position off Port Royal to begin the necessary work of surveying where the shallows were. The Coast Survey vessel Vixen, escorted by gunboats Ottawa, Seneca, Pembina and Penguin, entered the harbor and confirmed that the water was deep enough for all ships in the fleet. Confederate Flag Officer Josiah Tattnall took his small command, consisting of the gunboats CSS Savannah, Resolute, Lady Davis, and Sampson out to interrupt the operation. It was soon evident that the Union gunboats mounted heavier cannon than the Southerners (three of the rebel vessels were converted tugboats), and Tattnall retreated to fight another day.

Elsewhere, "Stonewall" Jackson had been ordered to take charge of the Shenandoah Valley, but his beloved Stonewall Brigade was to stay near Manassas. On horseback, Jackson delivered a tearful goodbye speech to his men:

You were the First Brigade in the Army of the Shenandoah, the First Brigade in the Army of the Potomac, the first Brigade in the Second Corps, and are the First Brigade in the hearts of your generals. I hope that you will be the First Brigade in this, our second struggle for independence, and in the future, on the fields on which the Stonewall Brigade are engaged, I expect to hear of crowning deeds of valor and of victories gloriously achieved! May God bless you all! Farewell!



Capt. Harlock -> RE: Civil War 150th (11/5/2011 9:14:49 PM)

150 Years Ago Today:

The Union fleet continued to straggle in off Port Royal, and a displeasing discovery was made. The cargo ships that had arrived had not been combat-loaded; in fact, the ammunition for the troops was at the bottom of the holds. It could not be unloaded until the ships had unloaded everything else. The capture of Port Royal would have to be primarily a naval operation.

Happily, the spirit of the Federal sailors was not lacking. Six Northern gunboats sailed to the entrance of the harbor, challenging the Confederates. Southern Flag Officer Tattnall's little flotilla came out to meet them, and again were sent in retreat. This time the Union vessels followed until they were under fire from the two Southern forts on either side of the harbor entrance, Fort Walker and Fort Beauregard. The Northern ships turned their guns on the forts, and gave considerably better than they got.

Encouraged, Union Flag Officer DuPont decided to move the rest of his fleet in. Unfortunately, his flagship Wabash, which drew 22 ft (6.7 m), grounded on a shoal. Working her free took nearly until sunset, so the attack was called off until the following day.

One final event affecting the battle happened elsewhere on this date. The coasts of South Carolina, Georgia, and East Florida were constituted a military department by the Davis administration. The man chosen to command was none other than Robert E. Lee, who had been pulled from western Virginia after it became clear the Union forces there could not be driven out.



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