Cindy Vallar's Blog - Posts Tagged "us-navy"

Inside the US Navy of 1812-1815 by William S. Dudley

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Near the end of this book, Dudley writes: “The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the importance of logistics for the US Navy in the War of 1812. Logistics were important in all the far-flung campaign areas, and it was as true for the British forces as it was for the American. Those in charge had to have a proper grasp of logistics in order for the navy’s operations to succeed. Logistics included all the elements of naval war except the fighting – administration, communications, finance, shipbuilding, acquisition of timber, hemp, and sailcloth, recruitment, training, supply (requisitions, provisions, and material), transportation, ordnance (guns, powder, related equipment), medical necessities, and competent leadership.” (290)

When President Madison declares war in June of 1812, the United States is ill prepared. Six months earlier, the US Navy numbered just over 7,000 men. Comparing the number of their ships with those of the enemy is akin to a goldfish confronting a whale. Dudley, by viewing the war through a different lens, masterfully succeeds in demonstrating how and why administration and logistics were so key. He draws on period documents, some of which are quoted within the text, to showcase how Paul Hamilton and William Jones, the two civilians who hold the post of Secretary of the Navy during this period, do their jobs without sufficient staff and with limited funds. The task before them isn’t easy and each has his own challenges to deal with, but in spite of some losses and failures, the US Navy holds its own against a battle-hardened, veteran maritime force. By the time war ends, more than 15,000 men serve and the navy is on a far better footing than when hostilities began.

Paul Hamilton is Madison’s first Secretary of the Navy, serving as such from March 1809 until the end of 1812. His background – serving in the Revolutionary War and South Carolina’s legislature, as well as being governor of that state, and his knowledge of finances and having congressional friends – provides administrative experience, but he lacks actual expertise in ships and sailing. William Jones, on the other hand, is a former privateer during America’s first war with Britain, has sailed to a number of foreign ports as captain of merchant ships, and personally knows officers who serve in the navy.

The book is divided into fifteen chapters that interweave the logistics and administration of the navy with what occurs in the war. What follows is a summary of what each chapter encompasses.

“The Resources for Naval War” discusses the infancy of the US Navy and the establishment of the Navy Department, its participation in the Quasi-War with France and war with Tripoli, initial aspects of logistics – navy yards, ships, personnel, pay, rations, and weaponry – and contentious encounters that are harbingers of the War of 1812 (the Chesapeake-Leopard Affair and the Little Best Incident).

Paul Hamilton’s tenure as Secretary of the Navy is the focus of chapter two. Aside from medical needs of the navy and Jefferson’s gunboats, Hamilton’s interactions with his staff and Congress, Isaac Chauncey’s command of the navy yard at Sackets Harbor, and naval patrols between June 1812 and April 1813, are explored.

“William Jones’s Challenge” shows how he is chosen to serve as the chief administrator of the Us Navy and how he reforms his department. One quandary he has to face is that of a second front. Not only do his ships and men sail the seas, they also have to fight on the Great Lakes, including participation in two joint amphibious operations (York and Niagara).

Oliver Hazard Perry, the Battle of Lake Erie, and the Lake Huron Expedition are the primary foci of chapter four. The logistics of manning the navy’s ships, competition with privateers, and where munitions are obtained in order to arm naval vessels are discussed in the fifth chapter.

“The British Blockade of 1813-1814” analyzes the enemy’s experience with and effect of blockading American seaports along the Atlantic coast. Additional topics include smuggling and the cruise and loss of the USS Essex.

Supplies, provisions, agents, pursers, and medical needs on ships at sea are spotlighted in chapter seven, while the subsequent chapter focuses on innovation and inventions, especially Robert Fulton and his experiments in undersea warfare.

“Chauncey’s War on Lake Ontario” returns to the Naval Base at Sackets Harbor and campaigns on the Great Lakes during 1814, as well as plans for continued fighting in the new year. Afterward, Thomas Macdonough’s activities on Lake Champlain, smuggling, and the two opposing naval forces are discussed in chapter ten.

The spotlight on the war moves from the Canadian theater to that of Maryland, Virginia, and Washington in chapter eleven. Primary emphasis is placed on Joshua Barney and the US Navy’s Chesapeake Flotilla, but the British invasion of Washington, the ransom of Alexandria, the successful defense of Baltimore, and the Royal Navy’s withdrawal are reviewed.

After the attacks on the nation’s capital and Baltimore, attention shifts to the southern seaports in chapter twelve. Particular attention is placed on Britain’s new objective – capturing New Orleans and controlling the Mississippi River – and the role the US Navy plays in protecting the area both before and during the Battle of New Orleans.

To better understand what it is like to serve on navy ships during this time period, “Sailors’ Life and Work” examines everyday life at sea, discipline and punishment, and casualties. Also covered are Blacks in the US Navy and what happens when sailors become prisoners of war.

The last two chapters – “War Finance and the Blockade” and “Renewal of the US Navy” – pertain to Albert Gallatin and the country’s war debts, the impact of the Royal Navy’s blockade, peace negotiations, Washington in the aftermath of the British invasion, William Jones’s legacy, demobilization, and the final naval engagements at sea.

Dudley includes illustrations, maps, and tables that help to put a human face on the US Navy in the second decade of the nineteenth century. Notes, which include full source citations, and an index complete the study. The only drawback in this addition to Johns Hopkins Books on the War of 1812 series, is the font; if it was larger or darker, it would cause readers less eye strain.

Inside the US Navy of 1812-1815 serves a vital function, illuminating an aspect of the war that is often glossed over in other studies. Dudley makes a compelling and engaging argument for the importance of administration and logistics, which, in turn, makes this book an invaluable resource for anyone interested in the second war between the United States and Great Britain.




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Sailing the Graveyard Sea: The Deathly Voyage of the Somers, the U.S. Navy's Only Mutiny, and the Trial That Gripped the Nation by Richard Snow

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


In 1804, Richard Somers was one of eleven men who volunteered to navigate a fire ship to its target during the First Barbary War. Unfortunately, he and his men died when the vessel exploded. Decades later, the United States Navy named a new brig-of-war in his honor and intended it to be a school-ship, one where novices would learn to become capable sailors. When she set sail on 13 September 1842, the majority aboard the USS Somers were between thirteen and nineteen years of age. Only thirty of the 120 men aboard were older.

One man, who was eighteen at the time, was Acting Midshipman Philip Spencer, whose father served as secretary of war for President Tyler. John Spencer, a lawyer and politician, was successful, uncompromising, ill-tempered, and determined. Philip strove to please him but never succeeded. His favorite book, published in 1837, was The Pirates Own Book, and perhaps it fueled his desire to head West and try his hand at unlawful adventures on the Mississippi. Trouble at college convinced his father that a better option would be for Philip to join the US Navy, which is how he eventually landed aboard the Somers.

Alexander Slidell Mackenzie entered the navy at age eleven and rose from midshipman to command the USS Somers. He came from wealth and he had connections, one of whom was his brother-in-law, Oliver Hazard Perry. Commander Mackenzie was pious and followed the rules and he expected his men to do likewise. When they did not, he was known to have them flogged.

Philip didn’t fit in easily with his fellow officers, so he gravitated to those who worked the ship. He bribed them with forbidden brandy, tobacco, and tales of misadventure at sea. Two favorites were Boatswain’s Mate Samuel Cromwell and Seaman Elisha Small. Together, they hatched nefarious plans.

Commander Mackenzie initially laughed at the improbability of their scheme. But all was not right aboard Somers, and before she returned to New York, three would hang from the yardarm. The resulting scandal would captivate the nation as cries for justice were heard far and wide.

Snow raises interesting questions as he recounts events, such was why Spencer chose to confide in the purser’s steward, a man beholden to Mackenzie. Details about life at sea and in the navy are interwoven with the principal story, helping readers to gain a better understanding of how and why events unfolded as they did. He provides key information about those involved to allow readers to see the individuals as actual people complete with their foibles and virtues. Combining the views of well-known contemporaries with the historical elements of what transpired permits readers to form their own opinions as to where the truth lies. Snow also ably demonstrates how resolutions don’t always satisfy everyone, even in the past.

Sailing the Graveyard Sea has all the attributes of a sea thriller: mutiny, piracy, intrigue, murder, opposing forces, and newsworthy vilification. The book includes a map that shows the voyage of the Somers during the last quarter of 1842, illustrations of ship life and those involved in the mutiny, a bibliography, and index. What became of the participants, how the events impacted their lives, and a summary of later accounts on this period in naval history round out this absorbing, well-researched story of an incident few readers have ever heard of.


(This review originally appeared at Pirates and Privateers: http://www.cindyvallar.com/RSnow.html)




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A Return to Duty by William C. Hammond

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Separated when their ship wrecks, followed by desperate struggles to survive, Richard and Anne Cutler reunite in New South Wales in the fall of 1845. The reasons that originally brought them to this part of the world have been successfully concluded without them. The British Royal Navy will work with the United States Navy to suppress piracy in Asian waters with Imperial China’s approval. Now, the Cutlers return home to family and friends, and to decide what course their lives will take after their ordeals.

Richard secures leave from the Navy, while he and Anne work on a joint writing venture that will share their story with American readers. He also steps into the role of director of Cutler & Sons, after his predecessor was lost at sea while in the Far East. In his new role, he agrees with the older members of the family that under no circumstances will Cutler ships import opium into the United States. Some younger family members don’t agree with this since the importation is legal.

Before he decides whether to resign his commission and take full control of the family business, Richard needs to return to the Far East and confer with their agents there. He will also work with the American and Royal Navies in their attempt to stop the pirates from seizing merchant ships and to rescue their captives, many of whom are American sailors. His journey reunites him with two of his men from the shipwreck, both of whom played crucial roles in their survival after the disaster. One is Lieutenant Jonathan “Jonty” Montgomery, who now serves aboard Columbia. He’s become smitten with Daisy Cutler, whose father is the director of the Asian segment of the company. An encounter with pirates leads to a severe injury, but Jonty is determined not to let it end his naval career. He’s just as certain that he and Daisy will marry one day.

The other survivor is Jack Brengle, Richard’s former executive officer and now a captain in his own right. He commands the steamship that will take Richard to the Far East. First, though, the pair must track down Richard’s niece, Lucy Seymour, who has mysteriously disappeared. It’s possible that her disappearance is connected to Harlan Sturgis, who was romancing Richard’s mother until she realized all he wanted was information about the company to use to his advantage.

A Return to Duty is the eighth offering in the Cutler Family Chronicles. It centers around the lucrative trade of the highly addictive opium that resulted in war between China and Great Britain, and the brutal and persistent marauding of Chinese pirates on foreign shipping. The characters are expertly drawn and they pull you into the story with a full gamut of emotions. Hammond deftly weaves his research into his tale without ever allowing you to notice that he’s done so. Instead, he breathes life into a world that no longer exists and yet seems real enough to touch. He masterfully crafts unsettling action involving sharks, fire ships, bomb vessels, and boarders in a gut-wrenching climax that is tempered with love and reunion.

(Review originally appeared at Pirates and Privateers: http://www.cindyvallar.com/WHammond.h...)



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