February 24, 1864 – No CSS Stonewall for the South

This day 150 years ago in Rebel Raiders’ History

-Dedicated to Civil War episodes, battles, people and ships that also appear in my game, GMT’s Rebel Raiders on the High Seas.

February 24, 1864 – No CSS Stonewall for the South

Historical Event:  On this date 150 years ago the French government intervened to halt the transfer to the Confederacy of the ocean-going ironclad ram under construction at the port of Bordeaux.  The nearly 1,400-ton warship, which was to have been commissioned as CSS Stonewall, was instead ordered sold to the Danish government.  Confederate agents, however, convinced the Danish buyers to secretly sell the vessel back to the South, and the “Yankee Nightmare” as it was dubbed at the time was commissioned into the Confederate States Navy in January 1865.  Although the Union warships USS Niagara and USS Sacramento shadowed her as she slipped into a Spanish port in late March and then headed across the Atlantic to Havana, by the time she reached Cuba the war was over.   The CSS Stonewall never fired a shot on behalf of the South – although she went on to become the pride of the Japanese fleet, first as the Kotetsu, and finally as the Azuma.

Game Connection:  The mighty ocean-going ironclad ram CSS Stonewall is represented in Rebel Raiders by a unique counter and CSN Card 74.  The intervention by the French government that prevented her from getting into the war in time to fight is also represented in the game by USN Card 55 – Diplomatic Pressure.  The Confederate player normally builds his Raiders (of which the CSS Stonewall is one of the most powerful in the game) overseas.  They are placed there during the Build Phase, which gives the Union player time to either set up some warships to prepare to intercept them when they come out or, if USN Card 55 is available, to either have them seized or forced out of port into the waiting arms (and guns) of Yankee men-o-war.

CSS Hunley Makes First Successful Submarine Attack in History

This day 150 years ago in Rebel Raiders’ History

-Dedicated to Civil War episodes, battles, people and ships that also appear in my game, GMT’s Rebel Raiders on the High Seas.

February 17, 1864 – Rebel Submarine Hunley Sinks Union Housatonic

Historical Event:  On February 17, 1864 the Confederate submarine CSS Hunley attacked and sank the Union screw sloop USS Housatonic in Charleston harbor.   This earned the USS Housatonic the dubious distinction of being the first warship ever sunk by a submarine.  Unfortunately for the crew of the CSS Hunley, they did not live to celebrate their victory, as the tiny vessel was dragged to the bottom as the warship went down.   The wreck of the CSS Hunley was found on the seaward side of the sunken sloop. Evidence suggests that the spar torpedo used to sink the Union vessel detonated while still attached to the submarine, and that the concussion from the blast may have knocked Lt. Dixon and his seven submariners unconscious – sending them into a slumber from which they never awoke.

The Union warship was not chosen at random.  She was one of the most powerful, formidable and successful vessels in the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron.  In January 1863, for example, the USS Housatonic captured the famous blockade runner Princess Royal as it attempted to enter Charleston.  The Confederates sent two ironclads out of the port to try to save the Princess Royal, which was carrying what was then described as “the war’s most important single cargo of contraband” – engines and armor for a new ironclad that was to be built in the city.  They were driven back by the firepower of the USS Housatonic’s mighty guns, which included a 100-pound Parrot and an 11-inch Dahlgren.

Game Connection:  The CSS Hunley, which proved deadly to over 20 sailors during her sea trials and one and only combat voyage is represented in Rebel Raiders on the High Seas by CSN Card 73.  Her partner in death, the USS Housatonic, is represented by USN Card 27.   The Union vessel is definitely one worth sinking, as it is especially good at intercepting the Blockade Runners upon whom the South – and the Southern Player in Rebel Raiders – depends.

Sherman’s Fiery Valentine – Burning Meridan, Feb. 14, 1864

Sherman’s Fiery Valentine – Burning Meridan, Feb. 14, 1864

This day 150 years ago in Rebel Raiders’ History

-Dedicated to Civil War episodes, battles, people and ships that also appear in my game, GMT’s Rebel Raiders on the High Seas.

February 14, 1864 – Sherman Burns Meriden

Historical Event:  On February 14, 1864 General William Tecumseh Sherman brushed aside the ineffectual and heavily outnumbered Confederate forces of General Leonidas Polk to capture the rail depot at Meridan, Mississippi.  For nearly a week Sherman and his men worked to tear up track, destroy rolling stock, torch warehouses and arsenals and wreck anything of military value.  Sherman was, however, convinced to retire to Vicksburg when a reinforcing column under General William Smith coming out of Memphis was ambushed and sent packing a week later by Rebel cavalry led by General Nathan Bedford Forrest.

Game Connection:  The city of Meridan is depicted on the Rebel Raiders map; while its loss is not as painful to the South as is the capture of major cities and ports by the Union, its loss will cost the South a few victory points. More important, it is the bridge between Vicksburg and Montgomery, and Meridan is thus an important stepping stone for any Northern drive from the Mississippi into the heart of the  Confederacy.  Both Sherman and Forrest are represented in the game, by USN Card 50 and CSN Card 85 – “That Devil Forrest.”

Happy Birthday, Mr. Lincoln

Happy Birthday, Mr. Lincoln

February 12, 1864 was anything but a happy birthday for Abraham Lincoln.  As he turned 55, the President had the weight of the world upon his broad and now slightly stooped shoulders.  The heady victories of the summer of 1863 were but distant memories in the winter of 1864. With Confederate commerce raiders driving Union shipping from the seas,  and Southern armies continuing to frustrate Union advances into Georgia and Virginia, there was still no end in sight to the conflict that was bleeding the nation white.

Abraham Lincoln is a presence in my strategic Civil War naval game, Rebel Raiders on the High Seas.   The Union player is, arguably, as much Lincoln as the Confederate player is Jefferson Davis.   Lincoln is represented in the Emancipation Proclamation Rule and in Confederate Card 97 - Lincoln and His Generals (which the Southern side may play to force the Union to discard one of the cards that represent Generals Grant, Sherman or Sheridan following a Yankee defeat in combat).

February 7, 1864 – Admiral Dahlgren Attacks Jacksonville

This day 150 years ago in Rebel Raiders’ History

-Dedicated to Civil War episodes, battles, people and ships that also appear in my game, GMT’s Rebel Raiders on the High Seas.

February 7, 1864 – Admiral Dahlgren Attacks Jacksonville 

Historical Event:  On February 7, 1864 Admiral John Dahlgren and five powerful Union warships supported the landing at Jacksonville by General Truman Seymour and 7,000 Union troops.  The admiral’s stated purpose was three-fold:  to close the port to Blockade Runners, to free and recruit Black men for the army and navy, and to “engineer Florida’s return” to the Union.

The troops were borne up the St. John’s River by USS Ottawa and USS Norwich.  The USS Mahaska, USS Water Witch and USS Dai Ching escorted and provided fire support for the operation. The Union move would culminate in the Battle of  Olustee, a railroad depot 50 miles southwest of Jacksonville.  There on February 20 Confederate General Joseph Finnegan and his 5,000 men thoroughly defeated the Union, forcing Seymour to retire upon Jacksonville – thus ending the campaign to “engineer Florida’s return” to the Union.

Game Connection:  Admiral John Dahlgren is represented in Rebel Raiders on the High Seas by USN Card 31 – John Dahlgren.    Due to the scale of the map, Jacksonville itself is not individually represented, but is included in the St. Augustine site.   The USS Ottawa was an Unadilla-class “90 Day Gunboat;”  the lead vessel for which that class is named is represented by USN Card 17 – USS Unadilla.

Union amphibious assaults on Confederate ports are a major part of the Northern player’s strategy, allowing the Federals to turn the sea into a front line, from which to strike the Confederacy.   Naval forces must be present to allow the army to land, as they must clear the port of Confederate warship and can duel with any Confederate defending the port. Taking ports not only reduces places for Blockade Runners to unload cargo, but also hurts Confederate production – and moves the North one step closer to restoring the Union.