Sinking CSS Alabama

The CSS Alabama was a Confederate warship, built in an English shipyard and sold to the Confederates in 1861, the Alabama was a state-of-the-art ship. It was 220 feet long, with a speed of up to 13 knots. During the Civil War in the United States, CSS Alabama was used as a commerce raider. The cruiser was equipped with a machine shop and could carry enough coal to steam for 18 days, but its sails could greatly extend that time. Under its captain, Raphael Semmes, CSS Alabama prowled the world for three years, capturing United States commercial ships. It sailed around the globe, usually working out of the West Indies, but taking prizes and bungling Union shipping in the Caribbean, off Newfoundland, and around the coast of South America. In January 1863, CSS Alabama sunk a Union warship, USS Hatteras, after drawing it out of Galveston, Texas. The Union navy spent an enormous amount of time and effort trying to track down CSS Alabama.

The ship was designed to disrupt Union merchant shipping, and over its two-year career, CSS Alabama captured or destroyed more than 60 Union vessels, making it one of the most successful of the Confederate ships. Nevertheless, as history has proven, no ship is unsinkable. For CSS Alabama, the end came in 1864 when it was sunk by the USS Kearsarge off the coast of Cherbourg, France, in a dramatic naval battle. The wreck of CSS Alabama was not discovered until 1984. It remains a significant historical artifact to this day.

The demise of CSS Alabama came in a rather unusual way. The ship had sailed around South America, across the Pacific, and then docked in India in 1864. By the summer, Captain Semmes knew that after three years and 75,000 miles his vessel needed overhauling in a modern shipyard. So, he sailed around Africa to France, to request dry dock repairs. The French denied him access to a dry dock. With no other option, Semmes moved the ship out of Cherbourg Harbor and immediately found the USS Kearsarge waiting. I’m sure he knew that his fate was sealed at that point. His ship was not in good shape, and he was unprepared for the upcoming fight. In a spectacular battle, the USS Kearsarge bested and sank CSS Alabama. During its career, it is said that CSS Alabama captured 66 ships and was hunted by more than 20 Federal warships.