Confederate Admiral: The Life and Wars of Franklin Buchanan

Library of Naval Biography

by Craig L. Symonds

In covering the 55-year career of the Confederate Navy's first admiral, Symonds (naval and Civil War history, US Naval Academy) illuminates US Navy milestones in the antebellum and Civil War eras including Buchanan's pivotal role in the establishment of the Naval Academy and in Perry's campaign to open Japan to Western trade. Includes illustrations of Buchanan (1800-1874), his ships, battles, and residences. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Genres: Civil War, American Civil War, History, Naval History

274 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1999

About the author

Craig Lee Symonds is a retired professor and former chairman of the history department at the United States Naval Academy. He earned both his MA (1969) and Ph.D. (1976) from the University of Florida.

Reviews

[Manray9 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Craig Symond’s Confederate Admiral is a brief biographical account of the life of Franklin Buchanan, the Confederacy’s first admiral. Buchanan was prominent in the antebellum U.S. Navy serving as first superintendent of the U. S. Naval Academy, storming the Mexican fort at Tuxpan, and acting as flag captain during M. C. Perry’s mission to open Japan in 1853. Buchanan went on to fight in the two greatest actions of the nascent Confederate Navy. He commanded CSS VIRGINIA during the first day of the Battle of Hampton Roads in 1862 and led the ironclad CSS TENNESSEE against D. G. Farragut’s fleet at the Battle of Mobile Bay in 1864. He was seriously wounded in both actions. Symond’s biography is not a remarkable example of the biographer’s art, but it is a serviceable book, perhaps mostly of interest to Civil War or naval history buffs. It is worth reading.

[Lance · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of the better biographies I have read in a while. Buchanan is such an interesting person who is present and active in so many of the USN’s defining moments of the 1800s. Whether he was stepping ashore in Japan or fighting the USN in ironclads, Buchanan has not received enough attention for his important role in history. Usually more obscure figures receive lukewarm biographies but Symonds wrote this book well. For me, he brought Buchanan to life, and did a great job of portraying the admirals personality, even the more disturbing parts. Buchanan was a very imperfect man, a living a contradictory life trying to desperately hold onto the things he liked in the past while pushing for advancement in the future. His life is worth putting to the page, and I am glad that I had the opportunity to come across this book in a small store when I visited Annapolis.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Craig Symonds delivers another top notch Civil War biography with Confederate Admiral, but it's not just a Civil War biography. As Symonds writes, "Franklin Buchanan spent fifty years as a naval officer, but he is often best remembered for the five days he spent in command of the ironclad ram CSS Virginia in the spring of 1862." While this is true, there is so much more to Buchanans remarkable naval career. He served under the illustrious Matthew C. Perry, was a member of the board that drew up the first Navy retirement list, was the first superintendent of the US Naval Academy, the first US Naval officer to set foot in Japan, the first (and only) Confederate Admiral during the Civil War, and the Confederate commander at the Battle of Mobile Bay.

Symonds biography captures these events and Buchanans character well. The book is well researched, and gives a fair, entertaining, and occasionally humorous picture of Franklin Buchanans life and career.

[Rose]

B Buc