A publication of the Hampton Roads Naval Museum Volume 19 Issue 1

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DaybookHAMPTON ROADS NAVAL MUSEUM STAFF

DIRECTORElizabeth Poulliot

DEPUTY DIRECTORJoseph Judge

DIRECTOR OF EDUCATIONLee Duckworth

DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF EDUCATIONLaura Orr

PUBLIC RELATIONSSusanne Greene

EDITORClay Farrington

EXHIBITS/GRAPHICSMarta Nelson Joiner

REGISTRARKatherine Renfrew

VOLUNTEER COORDINATORTom Dandes

LIBRARIAN/ADMIN OFFICERMichele Levesque

SPECIAL EVENTS COORDINATORDon Darcy

EDUCATIONDiana GordonJerome KirklandJoseph MiechleElijah Palmer

DIRECTOR, HAMPTON ROADS NAVAL HISTORICAL FOUNDATIONCapt. Tom Smith, USN (Ret.)

The Daybook® is a registered trademark of the Hampton Roads Naval Museum (HRNM), Department of the Navy, an agency of the United States Government. It is an authorized publication of HRNM, ISSN 2380-4181. Its contents do not necessarily reflect the official view of the U.S. Government, the Department of Defense, the U.S. Navy, or the U.S. Marine Corps and do not imply endorsement thereof. Book reviews are solely the opinion of the reviewer. The HRNM reports to the Naval History and Heritage Command, Museums Division (www.history.navy.mil). The museum is dedicated to the study of naval history in the Hampton Roads region. HRNM is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums. The Daybook’s purpose is to educate and inform readers on historical topics and museum-related events. It is written by staff and volunteers. Direct questions or comments to the Editor at 757.445.8574, Fax 757.445.1867, E-mail hrnavalmuseum@navy.mil or write The Daybook, Hampton Roads Naval Museum, One Waterside Drive, Suite 248, Norfolk, Virginia 23510-1607. The museum is on the World Wide Web at www.hrnm.navy.mil. The Daybook is published quarterly. To subscribe, contact the Hampton Roads Naval Historical Foundation at 757.445.9932 or visit http://www.hrnhf.org.

CONTENTS

2 Director’s Column up close and personal

3 From the Editor echoing through history

21 Book Reviews “a confederate biography" and "lion in the bay”24 In Our Next Issue

4 FIGHTING SAIL ON THE JAMES 5 the spanish “voyage to virginia” - 1611 8 the “better defense on the ships” - the 1667 dutch attack on virginia

10 “fought them very well” - the 1673 dutch attack on virginia

15 “al up in armes” - british action during bacon’s rebellion

This map attributed to Dutch mapmaker Joan Vinckeboons and thought to have been made around 1640 shows the northeast coast of the North American continent as divided between the colonies of New France, New England and New Netherland, which extend-ed from the tip of what is now Virginia’s Eastern Shore to what is now Rhode Island and inland as far back as the St. Lawrence River and Lake Erie. During the Second Anglo-Dutch War (1665-67), the Dutch navy sought to expand the colony southward into Virginia and wrest the lucrative tobacco trade from the English. Instead, Fort Amsterdam (at the southern tip of Manhattan) surrendered to the British in 1664, effectively ending Dutch control of the colony until the Third Anglo-Dutch War (1672-74), when the territory was retaken one month after the1673 attack on Virginia. (Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division)

FEATURES

DEPARTMENTS

COVER: This detail of a painting attributed to Isaac Sailmaker probably depicts the frigates Fairfax and Elizabeth sometime during the mid-1600s. Researchers have been unable to determine the circumstances Sailmaker was depicting that might have brought both vessels together. While Fairfax was wrecked in 1682, Elizabeth, the only Royal Navy ship guarding the colony of Virginia, was captured near Jamestown during a Dutch raid on the colony in 1667. (National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London, Caird Collection)

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DIRECTOR’S COLUMNBY ELIzABETH POULLIOT

I made a promise several issues back to introduce our readers to HRNM’s most valuable asset: our volunteers. Since this issue focuses on Fighting Sail, what better volunteer to talk about than our own sailmaker Matthew Krogh.

A Virginian by birth, Matthew became involved in history through his parents. They took him to museums and historic sites as a child, and he was fortunate to have great high school history teachers. Statistics show that children who are exposed to museums become life-long museum goers. Hampton Roads Naval Museum’s educators work hard to hook children through hands-on school programs and on-site events like Lego Day. Matthew Krogh is a key part of our museum’s living history program as you can see here in this photograph taken during February’s Treaty Tea. His authenticity comes from many years of working in the field. He is well-schooled in the subject and holds both a BA and MA in history from Virginia Tech with specialties in the Civil War, Virginia history, architectural history, and maritime history.

In his own words, he explains his love of American maritime history:

I started reenacting the Civil War, branched out to the War of 1812 and from there moved into the Golden Age of Piracy and the American Revolution. I grew up on the Chesapeake Bay and have always been around vessels of sorts so the maritime life is interesting to me as a personal connection. I generally portray a sailmaker when doing Naval living history. This impression is rarely done and it gives me a chance to explain tools and tasks that are often looked over in lieu of weapons and more glamorous historical items. I have ancestors who fought in the Civil War and the Revolution but have not yet explored other relatives who served in other wars. I like reenacting because it allows one to get up close and personal with the people who served, fought, and sometimes died on water and land. Making many of the clothing and tools myself helps me to appreciate their daily lives and their quality of life; what we often described as “nasty, brutish, and short,” although this was not always the case. As a reenactor, I attend different reenactments to fulfill a variety of interests including participating in a battle, performing period tasks, interacting with the public, and travelling to various places on the east coast. I have fought on original battlefields, slept in original quarters, and helped bring history to life for folks, young and old, which I find very rewarding. I own period relics dating back to the 1600s including a ca. 1650 oak coffer chest, a ca. 1800 pine sea chest, a ca. 1861 infantry officer’s leather travel chest, and a great chest from New York City owned by my great-great grandfather. In other words, collecting history helps me be a better living historian and reenactor. It helps me remember that behind every artifact is a story which yearns to be presented to the public. And behind every artifact is an adventure experienced either gloriously or infamously by someone in times past. Continued on page 23

up close and personal: living historian and reenactor matthew kroughFROM THE EDITOR

BY CLAY FARRINGTON

In the Hampton Roads Naval Museum gallery, Matthew Krogh discusses life aboard a sailing vessel around the time of the War of 1812 with visitors during an event commemorating the signing of the Treaty of Ghent in 1815. (Photo by M.C. Farrington)

In this issue we explore the naval history of Hampton Roads during the century preceding the founding of the United States Navy. It is a well-worn cliché

that history repeats, or as Mark Twain famously put it, it rhymes. What is less appreciated is that in Hampton Roads, however, the cadence carries farther back than America’s founding. The familiar historical ground we have trod in The Daybook during the last two decades, based chiefly upon events that have transpired over the last two centuries, is also echoed in the naval history of the area during the century before that. During the 240 years since our nation’s founding, the British, Germans, and the Russians have spied throughout this region. The young colony of Jamestown, however, first drew the interest of the Spanish 408 years ago, and we begin this issue with the story of an intelligence-gathering expedition they mounted into our area in 1611. By mid-century, the Anglo-Dutch Wars also brought a European conflict into our waters for the first time. While the pecking order of nations is established by commerce, it is maintained by force of arms. The upheaval wrought by the English Civil War and restoration which followed left the Royal Navy in such a withered state that the unified Dutch provinces stood a strong chance of decisively defeating England upon the sea and separating her from her colonies, including Virginia. Then, as now, the key to gaining control over Virginia was Hampton Roads. The latter part of the 17th century also brought the first agitations for independence to Hampton Roads in the form of Nathaniel Bacon and his followers. America’s first violent rebellion against British rule, albeit a tiny one compared to the one that would come a century later, shook Virginia to its core. In its wake, what little autonomy it maintained from the Crown was swept away. In its essence the rebellion was, like the rebellion that would ultimately sweep the entirety of the colonies a century later, about taxation without representation. Bacon, however, did not possess the disposition, temperament, or wisdom required of a founding father. Nor, crucially, did he maintain a Navy, and that would prove decisive.

This three-part story of an eventful century is brought to us by Christopher Pieczynski, who served 24 years as a U.S. Navy Surface Warfare Officer, retiring as a Commander in 2012. He holds a Master’s Degree in History from Old Dominion University and a Master’s Degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from the U.S. Naval War College. His specializations in history are with the War of 1812 and naval history under sail (Civil War and earlier). He is currently at work on a comprehensive study of the 1813 Battle of Craney Island, introducing new material and documents he has recently uncovered. Mr. Pieczynski develops educational programs for the historic Cape Henry Lighthouse at Fort Story, Virginia and is also an adjunct history professor with Tidewater Community College and University of Maryland University College.

Echoing Through History

Christopher Pieczynski

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Completed in 1652, the 80-gun first-rate ship of the line Naseby was the largest English warship built during the time of the Protectorate. She was named in honor of Sir Thomas Fairfax’s decisive victory over the Royalists in 1645. She is shown bearing the colors of the Commonwealth, and her figurehead was an equestrian Oliver Cromwell. After the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, she was renamed Royal Charles and in 1667 was captured during a Dutch raid on the Medway River south-east of London, one week before a similar fate befell HMS Elizabeth near Jamestown. (Image from Warships of the Anglo-Dutch Wars 1652-74, by Angus Konstam, © 2011 Osprey Publishing)

F or almost the entire seventeenth century, the center of Virginia government, economics, and society was focused on a peninsula, narrowly connected to the mainland, on the northern bank of the James River. Lying about halfway between its outlet in the Chesapeake Bay and the fall line at present day Richmond, the settlers of Jamestown, the

first permanent English settlement in North America, chose that location for navigability of the river, protection from the native population, and protection from foreign adversaries. Because of the importance of Jamestown to the growth of the English Empire in the New World, the James River became the primary route of trade, commerce, and communication in the new colony. It was this portion of the river that saw some of the most crucial naval actions and conflicts in the first formative century of the colony of Virginia. These naval actions tested the resilience and survivability of the colony and set the stage for the future growth of Virginia as both a colony and later a state.

FIghtIng SaIl on the JameS RIveR

The original James Fort was a triangular shaped wooden fortification at the end of the peninsula that protected the north side of the James River. Across the river on the south side a smaller fortification called Smith Fort provided a defensive “gate” across the river. Further south, at Point Comfort, the Algernon Fort controlled access into Hampton Roads and the foot of the James River. At the time of settlement, Spain was the greatest threat to the English in the New World. The Virginia Company of London, the business entity that established Jamestown, had an excellent public relations capability that touted the potential of the new Virginia colony. Pamphlets, reports, and advertising designed to draw investors, and future colonists, to the venture also drew the attention of the Spanish who more than a century earlier through the Treaty of Tordesillas claimed all of North America for themselves. In 1611, the continued reported “success” of the Virginia Company, and its plan for further growth (the Virginia Company was recruiting an additional 2,000 settlers), worried Spanish officials. Conflicting reports, however, indicated the colonists were starving and under constant attack by Indians. The only way the Spanish would know the true story was to observe the colony firsthand. As Don Alonso de Velasco, Spanish Ambassador to England, wrote to the King of Spain, “In the first ship that may sail for Virginia, I shall send a trustworthy person, to confirm myself in the special certainty of things as they are there.” That trustworthy person was Don Diego de Molina, a Spanish Commander. The results of this mission were as tragic as they were comical. A Spanish caravel was dispatched under the guise of searching for a “lost” ship of 300 tons named Plantation which was, carrying guns taken out of a galleon stranded on the coast of Buenos Aires. The Plantation lost its mast and rudder in a storm. It was believed the Plantation was seeking shelter in or around Chesapeake Bay. The caravel, with a largely Portuguese crew, departed Havana and sailed up the east coast for the Chesapeake Bay. Along the way, the mission took detailed soundings of the waters and approaches to rivers. As the caravel entered the Chesapeake Bay, only three crewmembers were privy to the real purpose of their mission. As they approached Fort Algernon, the defenses at Point Comfort, they sighted a vessel at anchor in Hampton Roads and a cannon sounded from shore.

A boat was launched carrying Molina, Marco Antonio Perez, and Francisco Lembri (the three aware of the true mission) as well as the master of the caravel and eight or nine other men. As they approached the shore, Molina ordered the master and boat crew to remain with the boat while he, Perez, and Lembri disembarked on shore and headed toward the fortification. The visible presence of 60-70 men at the fort gave the boat crew much consternation and they pulled away from the shore. Molina, Perez, and Lembri were intercepted by the Englishmen from the fort, disarmed, and taken to the fort. A short while later, John Clark, of Algernon, inquired as to the location of the master in order to speak to him. The master would only speak to Clark if Clark came out to the boat. The boat crew approached the shore and carried Clark to the boat (so he would not get wet). Upon embarking the launch, Clark informed the master that he was a pilot and was going to guide the caravel to a safer anchorage closer to the fort (perhaps to bring the caravel within the range of the guns at the fort). The master resisted and sensing danger, Clark attempted to jump overboard. That decision proved fateful as Clark was restrained, taken back to the caravel, and held prisoner. A hostage situation of sorts ensued with the Spanish refusing to land to negotiate, using Clark as their bargaining chip for the release of the three Spaniards. As tension increased, and fearing an attack by another British merchant ship sailing down the James River, the Spanish in the launch finally returned to the caravel and headed out to sea. Clark was taken to Havana and imprisoned and eventually ended up in Madrid. The secret Spanish mission to Virginia was all but a failure in its inability to evade capture and report its findings back to the king. Spanish prisoners would soon, however, not just observe, but experience first-hand the actual conditions in Virginia. Through continued interrogation of Clark, however, the Spanish learned more or less what they desired about the Virginia colony. Clark provided information on the size and depth of the Chesapeake Bay, location of forts, number of settlers, anticipated arrivals of supply vessels and additional settlers, and even the number of livestock in the colony. While a captive, Molina was somehow able to gather a very different assessment of the condition of the Virginia colony that he was tasked to find. His report, in cypher and most likely to Velasco, describes in detail the hardships faced by the English, the almost 50%

BY CHRISTOPHER PIECzYNSkI

the Spanish “voyage to virginia”: 1611 g

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mortality rate, low morale, and the lack of any substantive resource exploitation or prospects. Molina suggested that with as few as 500 men, the Spanish could destroy the colony, citing the weakened state of the occupants and “no expectation of aid from England.” While some of Clark’s testimony might have been a bit inflated, the contrast to Molina’s may have convinced the Spanish that ultimately the British adventure in the new world would likely collapse on itself and there was no need for Spanish intervention. Neither Molina nor Clark mentioned the one resource that the Spanish were really interested in – precious metals. This may have been enough to stave off a potential Spanish invasion to firmly eject the English from the continent. In the end, Molina was the only Spanish survivor of this mission. The Spanish prisoners were subjected to the same hardships as the colonists, and Marco Antonio Perez died of illness, perhaps exacerbated by starvation, while in the hands of the English. Francis Lembri was found to be an Englishman and a pilot of the ill-fated Spanish Armada in 1588. His true identity was revealed initially by Clark, who recognized him during their first encounter on the beach. Lembri was eventually separated from the other Spanish prisoners and held on HMS Treasurer, where, as Molina described it, “they treat him liberally and use[sic] much persuasion to make him confess that he is an Englishman.” Lembri sailed for England on the Treasurer in the spring of 1616 to stand trial for treason. Among the passengers on the ship were Molina, John Rolfe and his new wife Rebecca (also known as Pocahontas), and outgoing Governor Thomas Dale. On or about June 10th, within sight of the English coast, Dale ordered Lembri hanged from a yardarm at sea. In 1616, after almost five years of captivity and after an extensive diplomatic campaign, Molina and Clark were “traded” and repatriated to their respective countries. Clark would not return to Virginia until 1619, where he stayed only long enough to deliver cargo to the growing colony. In 1620, Clark would embark on a new colonial venture with the Plymouth colony as the first mate on a vessel called the Mayflower. Molina, on the other hand, was later given command of a Spanish squadron and was reportedly killed by his own men in a mutiny. Despite the dire circumstances in the early years of the colony, Virginia survived, thanks in

From the correspondence of King Philip III of Spain we find that interest in what was going on at the new Britishoutpost of Jamestown went back almost to the beginnings of the colony. In this letter to the 7th Duke of Medina Sidonia dated July 29, 1608, the king professed his belief that the English were attempting to establish a base for piracy in Virginia and asked that the duke supply him with intelligence on Virginia, including location, ports, and winds. (Special Collections, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Library, The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)

The King

Duke of Medina Sidonia, cousin, {member} of my CouncilOf State, my Captain General of the Ocean Sea and of the Coast of Andalucía:

By various avenue He (i.e., the King) has been advisedthat the English are attempting to procure a foothold onthe Island of Virginia, with the end [in mind] of sallyingforth from there to commit piracy. As it is convenient tohave an understanding with detailed information aboutthat island and to know about its exact location, whenit was discovered and by whom, what port it has, andwhat its potentials are, and to where one can sail from itusing the prevailing winds, and all the rest one can knowof that place; therefore you will obtain all of the above information from those people who have such knowledge and then to communicate to me as soon as possible.

Done at Lerma, 29 July 1608I the King

Andrés de Prada [secretary]

The King

Duke of Medina Sidonia, cousin, [member] of my Councilof State, my Captain General of the Ocean Sea and of the Coast of Andalucía:

Having seen your letter of the 18th of last month and the information that you sent with it obtained from thesailors arriving [here in Spain] who had been robbed bythe pirates, but you now offer nothing more than that youare looking into the matter. You will do me great servicein continuing [to gather] intelligence about the designs ofthe corsairs and any intelligence that shows the English having interest in continuing to populate the land calledVirginia in the Indies.

Done at San Lorenzo, 11 June 1609

I the KingBy order of the King, my Lord

Antonio de Arostequi [secretary]

part from a shift in operating philosophy from the quest for precious resources to the cultivation of a valuable luxury crop – tobacco. The notable experiments conducted by John Rolfe shortly after his arrival in Virginia proved that the climate and soil of Virginia were ideal for producing a quality grade of tobacco. Cultivation and export of this cash crop spurred trade and additional settlement and growth in Virginia. The Crown, as the sole distributor of Virginia tobacco, profited as well. The need for continued control of the tobacco market, and its associated wealth, became top priority for the King.

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This ship portrait in pencil of the Dutch 54-gun frigate Zeelandia is thought to have been made in 1659 by Willem van de Velde. She is shown here bearing the ensign of Zeeland, one of the seven United Provinces which constituted the Dutch Republic at the time. (National Maritime Museum, London / The Image Works)

inhabitants who witnessed the early captures and fighting, but instead was off “to a wedding with a wench he took over from England.” While Crijnssen was towing the hulk of Elizabeth downstream, the other Dutch ships were busy capturing the unsuspecting tobacco ships in the lower James River anchorage. Crijnssen soon faced a critical dilemma – too many prize ships and not enough prize crews. His only alternative was to man the most valuable of the prizes and burn the rest. Five merchant vessels were burned, along with the Elizabeth, deemed too unseaworthy to sail. During the melee in the river, Governor Berkeley sprang into action and devised a response utilizing the meager resources at his disposal. He planned to arm for battle nine large tobacco ships in the York River and three additional ships in the James above Jamestown, man them with militia, and engage the Dutch. Berkeley volunteered to lead the force from his appointed “flagship,” the

Admiral. Lightfoot offered his services and the services of the crew of the Elizabeth. The idea was initially met with great enthusiasm but as the realities of the potential confrontation with the Dutch weighed on the merchant captains, convenient “delays” prevented a timely sailing and allowed the Dutch to quit the James with thirteen captured tobacco ships. Crijnssen was in no great hurry to leave Virginia. His forces made several landings ashore in an attempt to procure food and water for the transit across the Atlantic but were repulsed by the local militia forces. By the time his fleet left on June 11, five or six tobacco ships were burnt, the Elizabeth, the only English warship in the American colonies at the time, was a wreck, and some thirteen merchant ships, heavily laden with tobacco for the expected June 24th convoy to England, were now prizes

of the Dutch fleet. Crijnssen lost one vessel, the Wester-Souburg, which was used as a fire-ship in the captures. Another devastating blow came a few weeks later for Virginia when a hurricane struck the region on August 27, destroying crops, killing livestock, damaging thousands of buildings and all but destroying the forts designed to protect the colony from the likes of Dutch invaders like Abraham Crijnssen.

himself wounded and facing overwhelming odds, soon surrendered to the Dutch. Late that day, another vessel called Paul’s Grave, under Master Nicholas Bodum, was captured by Crijnssen. Recognizing Conway’s gallant defense of his vessel, Crijnssen, “out of his noble disposition,” presented the Paul’s Grave to Conway as a gift and released him and his crew. Conway sailed the ship to the York River, where Bodum attempted to reclaim his vessel. Conway claimed that the capture by the Dutch, then the subsequent “regifting” to Conway, made the vessel his. Crijnssen, meanwhile, was formulating plans to attack or captured the valuable James River tobacco fleet. His first objective was to neutralize the frigate Elizabeth, laying at Jamestown. On June 5, the Dutch fleet, under English colors and utilizing an English pilot captured earlier, sailed right into the tobacco fleet without challenge. Crijnssen then brought the Zeelandia up the

James River and alongside the Elizabeth and fired three broadsides. Elizabeth, undergoing extensive repairs, had several guns removed for the repair work, powder under lock and key, and a skeleton crew. She was only able to fire one gun before surrendering to the Dutch boarding parties. Captain Lightfoot, commander of Elizabeth, was chastised for failing to properly defend his ship. Lightfoot reportedly had at least a day’s notice of the presence of the Dutch fleet, probably from coast watchers or other bay

By the mid-seventeenth century, England was an expanding maritime power. The control of the high seas, and the associated control of trade upon those same waters, was but one of the contributing factors to the series of wars between England and the Netherlands. The Mercantilist policy of England resulting in the Navigation Acts of 1651 all but excluded Dutch and other European trade with the English colonies in North America. The First Anglo-Dutch War of 1652-1654 was confined to the high seas with major fleet actions giving the English control of the Atlantic trade. The English Restoration of 1660 resulted in a number of anti-Dutch policies by King Charles II and led to the outbreak of the Second Anglo-Dutch War of 1665-1667. Once again focused on trade, the Second Anglo-Dutch War brought this European conflict to the shores of Virginia. Anticipating that the Dutch might make a move on the English colonies in North America, King Charles II ordered the colonial governors to make preparations to defend their colonies from attack. In Virginia, regarded as the most important of the American colonies due to the lucrative tobacco trade, the defense preparations rested with Governor William Berkeley, entering his eighteenth year as governor (broken over two separate terms). Berkeley was responsible for “putting the said colony into the best posture of defence he possibly could against the enemies aforesaid and to use his best endeavours for the defence and security of all those ships that trade into this colony during their stay here.” Providing a means of defense of the anchorage areas became the first order of business. Authorized anchorage areas were established in four locations: James City ( Jamestown) on the James River, Tyndall’s Point on the York River (present day Gloucester), a location on the Rappahannock River “to be identified,” and on the eastern shore at Pungoteague. Defensive fortifications were planned along the designated anchorages to be constructed by the colonists. An additional fortification was ordered at Point Comfort to control access into Hampton Roads and the James River. Located on the site of the former Algernon Fort, the new fort would replace the fort built in 1632 that had fallen into decay. Manpower for construction was summoned from the surrounding communities. Nansemond provided 40 men, Lower Norfolk 30 men, Warwick 25 men, and Elizabeth City county 20 men. The pace of construction was slow and in an effort to

accelerate the works, each ship anchored in the James River was required to provide a carpenter to assist in the works. The addition of skilled construction workers from the ships did little to improve the defensibility of the fortification designed to mount eight cannon and containing a 20' x 40' barracks. Tobacco ships would anchor in the vicinity of these new fortifications awaiting convoy back to England. For the year 1667, convoys were scheduled to depart on March 24th, June 24th, and September 24th. Lacking in all of the preparations was an actual Royal Navy vessel on station for defense. An appeal was made to the Privy Council “That a Frigat may be appointed…to Ride in Chesapeake Bay to secure the Shipps Trading thither.” That request was fulfilled, but with the only vessel available – the aging frigate Elizabeth. Elizabeth, a fourth-rate, 38-gun frigate launched in 1647, made the treacherous north Atlantic crossing to Virginia in the spring of 1667. The heavy weather experienced during the transit was enough to require the ship to undergo a major overhaul just to maintain seaworthiness. Meanwhile, a Dutch squadron of seven ships under the command of Admiral Abraham Crijnssen was heading toward the West Indies. Commanding the frigate Zeelandia (34 guns), Crijnssen, along with the frigates West-Cappel (28 guns) and Zeeridder (38 guns), the yacht Prynnes te Paard (14 guns), the hooker Wester-Souburg (6 guns), the flute Aardenburg, and an unnamed snow made their first stop at English controlled Surinam. After a short bombardment of Fort Willoughby, the Dutch forced the surrender of the English and took possession of the colony. Crijnssen later re-established the Dutch control of Tobago and Sint-Eustatius, and after withdrawing from a battle with the English navy off Nevis headed north toward Virginia. Crijnssen’s first capture was a shallop sailing just off the Virginia coast. From the crew of the shallop, Crijnssen learned of nearly twenty ships of the Virginia tobacco fleet lying at anchor at the mouth of the James River. On June 1, 1667, as Crijnssen’s force approached the Chesapeake Bay, they came in contact with a ship bound from Tangier to Virginia under Captain Robert Conway of London. Conway’s ship carried 20 guns and put up a fight against the Dutch for over two hours. It was in this battle that Crijnssen suffered his greatest losses of the Virginia campaign, with seven killed and 12 wounded. Conway,

the “better defense on the ships”- The 1667 Dutch Attack on Virginia

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Sailing out of Hampton Roads, four of the merchants promptly grounded while a fifth retreated back to the safety of the James River in short order. Reduced to three vessels, the English continued to close on the Dutch when the remaining merchant, under a Captain named Groves, grounded and was out of the fight. Gardner and Cotterell then turned to draw the Dutch further away from the Maryland fleet. During this maneuver, Gardner fired a broadside into the Dutch ships and maintained a running gun battle for almost three hours. Cotterell did not take advantage of the firing position and headed back toward

the James River. The actions of Cotterell in the Augustine drew speculation of cowardice on Cotterell’s part and caught the attention of Samuel Pepys, the Secretary to the Admiralty. As Pepys explained to Gardner, “On his arrival in the Downs with the Virginia fleet, his Majesty will examine into the behavior of his ship and the Augustine, and will take such notice of Captain Cotterell’s failure as his behavior shall deserve.” The fighting ended at dark, with the Dutch stopping short of Hampton Roads and the British hired vessels retreating into the Elizabeth River. Evertsen and Binkes were wary of proceeding further due to the combination of darkness, unfamiliarity of the river, and the possibility of Gardner and Cotterell emerging from the Elizabeth River in their rear. The fight had been costly for the English, with the masts and rigging of Barnaby considerably shot up. It had been successful, however, in saving most of the Maryland fleet, as only one Maryland ship was captured. The armed merchant vessels that sailed in support of Gardner and Cotterell fared less well, as the Dutch simply boarded them in their incapacitated state and took possession. The majority of the ships in the tobacco fleet at Hampton Roads made good use of the action of the Barnaby and Augustine and moved to safer anchorages. About 22 ships fled further up the James River and the remaining fell behind the safety of the fortification at the mouth of the Nansemond River. Fortunately for those ships, the Dutch had no knowledge of the true state of the Nansemond fort, which reportedly was only an earthwork structure lacking any armament.

The Dutch maintained a virtual blockade on the area for another five days, during which time they burnt the five ships which had the misfortune of running aground during the fracas. In all, eleven ships of the tobacco fleet were captured or burned. Upon quitting the Chesapeake Bay, Evertsen and Binkes headed north to the former Dutch colony of NewAmsterdam. Their goal was to retake the colony back from the British and place it again into Dutch control. The immediate English response to the success of the Dutch Continued on page 14

Lieutenant-Admiral Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest (1642-1706) is depicted in this 1680 image by Nicholaes Maes after leading a successful 1672-74 campaign against English and French colonies in the Americas, although this is not what he had originally set out to do. Ordered to the South Atlantic by the Admiralty of Zeeland to intercept the homeward-bound English East India Company Fleet, his mission was aborted after he came across an English squadron on attempting to intercept Dutch East India Company vessels. After joining forces with Jacob Binkes, who had been under almost an identical set of orders from the Admiralty of Amsterdam as Evertsen, their mission, and fortunes, drasti-cally changed. After their invasion of the Chesapeake and the rest of the North American coast, they had captured or destroyed nearly 200 English and French vessels and restored the area of New Netherland (Delaware, New Jersey, and New York) to Dutch control. (Courtesy Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, Netherlands)

“Fought them very well” - The 1673 Dutch Attack on Virginia

Recovery from the Dutch attack of 1667 was slow. Tobacco prices remained depressed, damage was still being repaired from the hurricane of that same summer, and little help would come from England itself, which was still recovering from both the great fire of 1666 and the Dutch attack at Medway, which happened right after the attack on Virginia. While the second Dutch War ended several weeks after the attacks, lingering distrust and animosity between the two parties kept tensions high. This level of tension, however, did little to increase any preparedness or defenses in Virginia. In 1673, as the threat of another war with the Dutch loomed, the Virginia tobacco fleets continued under regular convoy, this time utilizing hired warships – essentially armed merchant vessels whose express purpose was to escort and protect the convoys. Escorting the summer convoy scheduled to depart on June 24 were the Barnaby, under Captain Thomas Gardiner and the Augustine, under Captain Edward Cotterell, both mounting approximately 50 guns each. The arrival of the Barnaby in the Chesapeake in early May 1673 may have brought a false sense of security to the scores of tobacco ships loading in numerous rivers in Virginia and Maryland. Several merchant ships headed to Virginia were captured by Dutch privateers in the Atlantic, and while the collective security of a convoy under armed escort seemed like a logical means of protection, problems with the hired warships, particularly with their reliability, plagued the concept. Captain William Coleman described the Barnaby as “an extreme ill sailer, and steers as bad.” Even when the ships finally sailed from England with their convoys, “many of these gone in great want of boats and other stores.” It was no real surprise then when Cotterell and the Augustine arrived in the James River on June 20 and reported that he would not be prepared to sail as scheduled. He estimated that his preparations could not be completed before July 15 for “want of Wood and Water and other necessities.” As such, the departure of the tobacco convoy was rescheduled to that date. As the increasing numbers of tobacco ships lay at anchor to ride out the delay, little protection could be felt from the coastal fortifications somewhat haphazardly erected near the anchorages. The unfinished fort at Point Comfort was destroyed by the 1667 hurricane and

never rebuilt, and other attempts at fortification lacked guns, armaments, ammunition, and crews. The fort at the mouth of the Nansemond River was little more than an embankment and at the fort at Tyndall’s Point at Gloucester on the York River there was “not powder enough … to charge a piece of ordnance.” Should an attack or invasion by an adversary occur, the inhabitants believed that the only recourse was to “fly to the mountains for our security, and leave this Country and our estates a prey to the invadors.” Unbeknownst to the fleet at anchor, a combined force under the command of Cornelis Evertsen and Jacob Binkes was forming in the Caribbean. Evertsen, sailing under orders from the Admiralty of Zeeland to attack English possessions in the South Atlantic and Caribbean, met Binkes, sailing under the Admiralty of Amsterdam, off of Martinique. Combining forces, Evertsen and Binkes attacked the British island of St. Eustatius, then headed north toward Virginia. The combined force of eight large ships was more powerful than any naval force the English or French possessed on this side of the Atlantic. Included were numerous prizes captured by both commanders in previous engagements. Arriving off the coast of Virginia on July 11, their movements were undoubtedly detected by coast sentinels and later reported to Jamestown. Cotterell and Gardner began preparations to defend the fleet using the Augustine and Barnaby and several larger, heavily armed tobacco ships while allowing the smaller or weaker tobacco ships to relocate to protected areas further upriver. While Evertsen and Binkes, flying English flags, sat near Lynnhaven Bay determining the best method to attack the English merchant fleet, Cotterell and Gardner continued their preparations. As long as the Dutch remained in their location, the defensive advantage was with the English. Unaware of the enemy presence, and perhaps assuming them to be the English convoy escorts, a group of about eight Maryland tobacco ships was sighted heading south down the bay, into the waiting Dutch force. Cotterell and Gardner were forced to act with the ships they had on hand. Sailing with Augustine, Barnaby, and six merchant vessels, the English set out to either engage the Dutch force or at least draw their attention away from the Maryland ships, allowing them an avenue of escape.

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TOBACCO (nicotaiana tabacum)

Issued on October 27, 1676, the proclamation declares in part: “…Nathaniel Bacon and all his Majesty's subjects as have taken arms under and assisted or shall hereafter take arms or assist said Nathaniel Bacon in carrying on the war shall be guilty of high treason. And his Majesty strictly commands his loving subjects to use their utmost endeavours to secure the persons of the said Nathaniel Bacon and his [sic]complices in order to bring them to their legal trial." Unbeknownst to the British, Bacon died the day before this proclamation was released. (The National Archives, London, England, Colonial State Papers)

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Despite the two Dutch attacks under his tenure, William Berkeley managed to hold on to his position as governor of Virginia. His advanced age by 1676 made him irritable, short-tempered, and a much less effective leader than earlier in his term. If there was any dissatisfaction among the inhabitants of Virginia, they had plenty of issues to blame directly on Berkeley. The continued depressed price of tobacco, government control on trade, and problems with the labor force were issues with which Berkeley may have had some influence. Poor land quality in areas, adverse weather, and conflicts with other nations were well beyond his control. The amalgamation of these issues, combined with poor response to Indian attacks on settlements, domestic trade

restrictions, and even nepotistic appointments in the Berkeley administration led to one of the largest domestic uprisings in Virginia history. The uprising of planters, domestic and indentured servants, and even a few slaves in 1676 was popularly known as Bacon’s Rebellion after the leader of the rebellion, Nathaniel Bacon. The uprising was one of the first attempts to overthrow the vestiges of English rule, or specifically the King’s representative in the colony – Governor Berkeley. While this uprising saw significant movement of both rebels and loyalists over land, the movement via armed merchant vessels on both sides provides an interesting study of naval warfare on the James River.

Nearly 120 years after Berkeley’s death, Architect Benjamin Latrobe made a watercolor sketch of the Green Spring manor house after William Ludwell Lee inherited the house in 1795. Latrobe wrote, “It is Mr. Lee’s intention to pull down the present mansion and to erect a modest gentleman’s house near this spot. The antiquity of the old house, if in any case, ought to plead in the project, but its inconvenience and deformity are more powerful advocates for its destruction. “ Latrobe surmised that “the oldest inhabited house in North America will disappear…” Archaeological evidence indicates that the manor house, finished in 1649, was nearly 100 feet long and 25 feet wide.

“al up in armes” - British Action during Bacon’s Rebellion

Fought them very wellContinued from page 11 conquest of New York was to raise an army of 50,000 men, of which 13,000 men would be raised from Virginia, to retake New York in a combined land and sea offensive. The tobacco fleet was further delayed by repairs to Barnaby and Augustine. Edward Rhodes, Captain of the merchant vessel Baltimore, arrived in Virginia on April 14 to load tobacco. His return voyage to England did not commence until August 10. As Rhodes reported in his log, “August 10 th 1673 we sayled out of James River and rown down to Linn haven where we found ye Yorke and Rappahanok ships at ankor and then we were all anchored and we had a counsel of war onboard

our domesticall Barnaby where all ye masters had their sailing instructions.” Rhodes recognized the value of Virginia as a colony, specifically from the amount of revenue derived. The additional fortifications in Virginia outwardly appeared as an effort to protect the inhabitants and economy of the colony from foreign plunder, but it was also designed to maintain control of the colony from the colonists themselves. It was feared that another attempt on Virginia by the Dutch would result in the disaffected planters, who described themselves as slaves

to the King, welcoming the Dutch and allowing the Virginia colony “with the planters’ consent, to fall into the enemy’s hands.” The disaffected planters along with a host of other conditions prevalent in Virginia at the time were a harbinger of events to come in just a few short years.

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Nicholas Maes also painted this portrait of Admiral Jacob Binkes (1640-1677), who served as a captain during the Dutch raid on the River Medway in 1667, the most devastating attack on Britain’s naval forces until the Second World War. As a commodore, his squadron united with Cornelis Evertsen’s in a successful 1673 bid to retake New Netherland from the English, who had held it since 1664. They also managed to wreck tobacco production in Virginia and devastate the fisheries of Newfoundland. (Courtesy Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

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Richard and Elizabeth. The two ships joined forces and sailed up the James, intent on providing aid to Governor Berkeley. Weather delayed the transit up river but soon a sloop carrying Berkeley loyalists came downstream and inspected Morris and Prynne’s vessels. On the 23rd, the two stopped several ships with colonists believed to be headed to Jamaica to flee the fighting. Prynne prevented the vessels from leaving by firing across the bow. It was not until the 26th that Berkeley made contact with Morris. On the 27th, while Berkeley was ashore at Newport News addressing his land and sea commanders, a sloop of Bacon’s approached the vessels and fired at the Rebecca under Captain Larrimore. Two longboats were dispatched to seize the sloop but darkness prevented the intercept. It was believed that this sloop carried relatives of John Digby, a Bacon supporter executed by Berkeley at Jamestown, bent on some kind of revenge. Finding the sloop close to shore the next morning, the longboats were fired upon by cannon ashore as they neared the sloop. Bestowing the title of Admiral upon Morris, Berkeley directed the ships to convey him and his loyalists to his temporary refuge in Accomac on the Eastern Shore. From there, Thomas Gardiner and one squadron of ships were to patrol the York River while Morris and another squadron controlled the James. The Berkeley naval mission on the rivers was threefold: disrupt the movement and resupply of rebels via boat, attack any rebel strongholds along the shoreline, and provide support to Berkeley’s forces. On October 1, Morris and Prynne were at the mouth of the Elizabeth River seeking help from the Lower Norfolk county militia, still loyal to Berkeley. The presence of local militia on the vessels, along with a bevy of small boats towed by the ships, gave the navy commanders a landing force of sorts. The landing force would conduct operations ashore, raiding known Bacon rebel locations, then retreat back to the ships. Such tactics gave Berkeley a certain maneuverability and the element of surprise in many cases. Cutting off supplies to Bacon supporters traveling by river enabled the operations to impose certain siege tactics on the supporters. Morris spent a significant amount of time intercepting small vessels plying the James River and surrounding waterways. The river acted as a highway for trade and communication and was a faster and more effective route than overland trails. Vessels carrying goods of

loyalists were allowed to proceed while those suspected of carrying goods to or from Bacon supporters were seized. Additionally, escaped indentured servants and even a few slaves heading to join Bacon’s forces were intercepted. They were either returned to their owners or pressed into forced service on behalf of Berkeley’s forces. Shortly after Berkeley’s war council at Newport News and the dispatch of the naval force to their respective missions, the town fell to Bacon’s forces. The new customs agent for the Bacon government, a Mr. Greene, was sent to negotiate with Morris and set up a system of trade. After a prolonged period of negotiation, drinking, and hostage exchanges between the two parties, Morris determined that it was “not safe to trade with the rebels.”

Once all loyalist hostages were recovered, the Young Prince and Richard and Elizabeth fired on Greene’s sloop in an attempt to capture, but Greene managed to escape. Morris received a copy of Bacon’s famous “Declaration of the People Against Sr. Wm. Berkeley & Present Governors of Virginia,” on October 6th while on the Elizabeth River. Unpersuaded by the declaration, Morris continued his patrols of the James River waterways and utilized the sloop Ann under Captain Harrison to land a party near the Nansemond River to attack rebel guards.

One of the first uses of armed vessels in this uprising involved the use of small, shallow draft sloops to move elements of Bacon’s forces from where they assembled in remote plantations on the upper reaches of the James River near Richmond down to Jamestown to confront the Governor. Bacon’s sloop, as it was called, moved many of his forces from his estate at Curles Neck in Henrico County to Jamestown to confront Berkeley. As tempers between Bacon and Berkeley flared, Berkeley sought

temporary refuge on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, where he believed that the majority of the population supported him. As part of his “Declaration in the Name of the People” issued on July 30, 1676, Bacon demanded “that the said Sir William Berkeley with all the persons in this list be forthwith delivered up or surrender.” 25 Bacon assigned Giles Bland, a former customs collector, and William Carver, a merchant ship captain, to mount an expedition to Accomac to seize Berkeley. Bland and Carver captured two ships at anchor on the James, the Rebecca and the Honor & Duty, and used these as the transports for 100 of Bacon’s followers to capture Berkeley. While ashore at Berkeley’s refuge at Arlington Plantation on September 2, Berkeley’s loyalist forces managed to surround Bacon’s forces and capture not only the force on land but Bland, Carver, and the entire rebel naval force at sea. According to official accounts, Thomas Larrimore, the loyalist captain of the Rebecca whose vessel was “usurped from him by Bland and Carver” approached his ship at anchor, and led a boarding party through a gun port to recapture his ship and “put this ship and men again into the Governors Service.” Returning from an expedition against the Pamunky tribe, Bacon led an even larger force back to Jamestown. He quickly routed Berkeley’s forces but faced a new dilemma as several armed merchant vessels under Berkeley arrived and began shelling Bacon’s forces ashore. Initially driven away, Bacon set up a line of defenses just outside of Jamestown, using the spouses of Berkeley’s supporters as human shields to stop the continual harassment by loyalist forces. Bacon’s improved defensive position managed to drive off Berkeley’s ships and even succeeded in capturing one that had run aground. Unable to gain any ground

against Bacon, Berkeley’s forces retreated back to the ships on September 19. On September 20, Bacon entered Jamestown and burned the capital of Virginia to the ground. As this was transpiring, Captain Robert Morris of the Young Prynnece, sailing from England, had just entered the Chesapeake Bay. The first word of the turmoil in Virginia came to Morris on September 19th off Point Comfort from Captain Nicholas Prynne (also spelled Prin) of the ship

By 1676, Sir William Berkeley had governed the colony of Virginia for 40% of its entire history. His policies during the first period of his governorship (1642-52) established a bicameral legislature that gave more control over local matters to the provincial gentry while strengthening Berkeley's control over external affairs. During his second period as governor (1660-1677), Dutch attacks upon the colony exposed weaknesses in Berkeley's defense posture, but the General Assembly's denial of suffrage to landless freemen in 1670, along with contradictory Indian policies that many of the disenfranchised saw as benefiting the governor and his cronies at their expense, convinced them to take up Nathaniel Bacon's cause. (Courtesy of Berkeley Castle, UK, where the original painting resides, and The Berkeley Will Trust)

This illustration from Wilbur F. Gordy’s American Leaders and Heroes (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1905) shows the burning of Jamestown, one of the most notorious incidents that happened during Bacon’s Rebellion. (Courtesy The Florida Center for Instructional Technology, College of Education, University of South Florida)

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Tactics were about to change and resulted in the increased use of amphibious type operations where the loyalist forces would land, attack a rebel position, then retreat back to their ship. The ship would reposition to a point to attempt to cut off any retreating rebels and then re-land to attempt a capture of the force. For the next several weeks, the focus of Morris’ naval operations were in and around Nansemond County. The area was a stronghold of Bacon support, being far enough

away from the older and larger loyalist plantations further up the James River and closer to Jamestown on both sides of the river. Holding off the rebel advance was critical to maintaining the support the naval force was receiving from Norfolk. Rebels captured in the amphibious raids were sent to two prison ships, the Adam & Eve and the Rebecca, anchored near Accomac across the Chesapeake Bay. The distant anchorage reduced the likelihood of escape and rebel repatriation attempts.

This 1781 map by Jean Nicolas Desandrouin shows much of Green Spring, the estate originally given to Sir William Berkeley after his appointment by Charles I as governor of Virginia in 1641. The original grant of 984 acres had by the 1660s grown to over 2,000 acres. (Courtesy Rochambeau Map Collection, Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division)

Nathaniel Bacon died on October 26, 1676, but his death initially did little to quell the rebellion. The pressure from the naval forces operating on the James River eventually started wearing down the rebels. On November 3rd, Bacon's rebels operating near Nansemond indicated their desire to negotiate with Captain Prynne. A meeting was planned for a neutral area, Craney Island, for Tuesday, November 7. Negotiations with rebel Captain John Gatlin were off and on for several weeks but by the end of November, Gatlin and Nansemond County reaffirmed their allegiance back to Berkeley. Morris’ naval force, slowly growing as additional merchant ships arrived from London and were pressed into service, now began a sweep upriver employing the same tactics that proved successful in Nansemond. By the end of 1676, Morris’ fleet, supplemented by various loyalist militias as landing and raiding parties, moved up the southern shore of the James, capturing rebels and returning the area to loyalist control. A skirmish between the two belligerents on December 6th resulted in the deaths of 30 men, 15 on each side. By the end of the year, loyalist forces were able to retake Smith Fort, opposite the James River from Jamestown. One of the notable rebel-occupied plantations was the stately brick house of Arthur Allen. Bacon’s rebels seized the residence when they believed Allen had provided supplies to Berkeley’s men. The house was abandoned on December 28th, around the same time that Berkeley’s men were approaching Smith Fort. It was a force under the command of Captain Prynne of Richard and Elizabeth that landed on Chippokes Creek and marched to the Allen estate. They found Allen’s brick house plundered and the home forever assumed the name “Bacon’s Castle,” even though Nathaniel Bacon never set foot on the premises. While Morris was busy fighting Bacon’s forces and directing ships arriving from London to ports other than those held by rebels, a separate force under Captain Thomas Gardner, former commander of the Barnaby during the 1673 Dutch raid, was conducting similar operations on the York River. These efforts slowly choked out Bacon supporters on the peninsula. By January 9th, 1677, the naval force was accepting the loyalty of former rebels as far upriver as Henrico. Sporadic attacks on loyalist forces continued, but by and large, the area along the north and south shore of the James River had been reclaimed and was back under Berkeley's control. Governor Berkeley reassumed his residence at Green Spring around the middle of January. During the height of operations along the James

River, a major naval force was assembling in London, intent on providing much needed support to Berkeley in maintaining control of the colony. King Charles II appointed a commission comprised of Herbert Jeffries, Sir John Berry, and Francis Moryson to investigate the circumstances of the rebellion, with Jeffries assuming the duties as governor. The naval force consisted of the warships Bristol, Rose, and Dartmouth, along with eight hired merchantmen, carrying over 1,100 ground troops to quell the rebellion. The Bristol arrived in the James River on January 29th, but by that point, almost the entire colony was back under the control of Berkeley and his loyalists. Only a few scattered rebel holdouts remained and the instigator of the rebellion, Nathaniel Bacon, was long dead, buried in an unmarked grave somewhere in Gloucester County. The same day that naval and military forces from England arrived, Morris on the Young Prince “went about our own business.” Governor Berkeley, obstinate and interfering with the commissioner’s investigation, was eventually convinced to proceed to England to account for his actions directly to the King. Berkeley died on July 9, 1677, before he could present his account of the rebellion to King Charles II. The naval actions on the James River fill a small but important page in the maritime and naval history of the United States. These actions, while predating the United States Navy by a century or more, illustrate the importance of a maritime defense and, in Mahanian terms, the control of “sea lines of communication.” The amphibious tactics used during Bacon’s Rebellion, maritime deception employed by the Dutch, and combined land and sea forces operating in concert toward a common objective are standard operations and tactics in our modern military operations. It might be a bit of a stretch to imply that these modern tactics originated from the James River operations, as there are many other instances where similar tactics were employed with equal effectiveness. Understanding what tactics work in this type of environment was likely in the forefront of the minds of Benedict Arnold in destroying the Virginia Navy on the James River prior to the arrival of Lord Cornwallis in 1781, or the raids along the James by George Cockburn in 1813, or even in the combined operations executed by George McClellan during the Peninsula Campaign of 1862. The naval actions of the United States on the James River are another story worth diving into at perhaps another time.

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The CSS Shenandoah was one of the last commerce raiders obtained by the Confederacy and quickly became one of the most feared, causing panic across multiple oceans. When the ship’s crew finally lowered her flag on November 6, 1865, she became the last Confederate combatant to do so. The ship operated on the fringes of international law, never made port in a Confederate harbor, and employed a diverse crew. As author Dwight Sturtevant Hughes put it, “They were of nearly every nation and color––including born-and-raised Yankees and several African Americans—representing that motley mixture of seafaring humanity operating within its own rigidly authoritarian and cramped society.” She was also the only Confederate vessel to circumnavigate the globe during the Civil War. A Confederate Biography: The Cruise of the CSS Shenandoah is Hughes’ first monograph publication, although the U.S. Naval Academy graduate and Vietnam veteran has previously written articles on the CSS Shenandoah and the Confederate Navy for the Naval History Blog and Naval History Magazine. Hughes arranged the book into a chronological format to provide a narrative of the life of the CSS Shenandoah and her crew. The story is cobbled together through the use of the ship’s log books and personal diaries, as well as letters from a number of the ship’s officers. Hughes uses primary sources to weave the narrative together and present insights into a rather fascinating and mostly unknown story. Hughes utilizes significant space focusing on a few major events experienced by the ship and crew during the American Civil War. These include the purchase of the Sea King and her outfitting and transition to the CSS Shenandoah, her stopover in Melbourne, Australia, her attack upon American whaling ships at the island of Pohnpei, and the final surrender of the ship in Liverpool, England. The book also covers the time between these

major events, but in much less detail. The book also focuses on the relationship between Captain James Waddell and his junior officers. Hughes effectively uses the letters and diaries of the officers to successfully convey the sense of indignation felt by the junior officers as well as the sense of distrust exuded by Waddell towards them. However, the book pays less attention to the rest of the crew and their contribution to the Shenandoah’s cruise. In a unique twist, this work can bolster not only readers’ understanding of the global stretch of the Civil War, but

it also gives an understanding of life in the South Pacific during the mid-19th century. While the chapters dedicated to Shenandoah’s assault on whaling ships in Pohnpei and the subsequent layover are quite interesting, it would seem to contribute very little to the overall outcome of the raider’s voyage. It would appear that the only takeaway from this interaction, besides anecdotal stories, is that the Confederate government was finally recognized as a sovereign nation by a foreign power. Hughes’ book makes no attempt at an argument and, as the author states, is presented only to “quote [the crew’s] words into a consistent narrative, and leave judgments to the reader.” Hughes seems to have accomplished this task, but by editing many volumes

of work into a single tome, however, he may have been too selective in what was included. While A Confederate Biography should certainly be given credit as an important contribution to the historiography of Confederate commerce raiders, it ought not be considered all inclusive. For readers who seek to gain a general understanding of this unique Civil War undertaking, this book does a suitable job.

Naval Institute Press ISBN: 978-1-61251-841-1

BOOk REVIEWBY JOSEPH MIECHLE

HRNM model shipwright Lee Martin built this model of the Dutch warship Prins Willem. Despite her ostentatious appearance, the Dutch East India Company ship was originally meant to haul cargo. After her return from her first voyage to the Dutch East Indies, she was refitted in June 1652 as a warship, as conflict with England grew on the horizon. First 30 and then 40 guns were installed after extra gun ports were cut into her hull. She suffered damage to masts and rigging after a battle with the English and limped back to the Province of Zeeland. Once the damage had been repaired, she resumed duties hauling cargo with the East India Company. She was lost off Madagascar in 1662. (Photographs by M. C. Farrington)

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much of their own military prowess, only to be proven wrong time and again. However, the authors also uncover several heroes in this drama, including the aforementioned Captain Charles Gordon of USS Constellation, who led a squadron of vessels in the upper Chesapeake Bay that successfully tracked British movements, despite his lingering dueling wound. General Robert Taylor, a Norfolk lawyer, successfully defended Craney Island against a massive British attack in June 1813, ending British hopes of taking the city. Lastly, Commodore Joshua Barney, a Baltimore native, directed a fleet successfully against the British at St. Leonard’s Creek, Maryland, despite being outnumbered seven to one. He also led the Sailors and Marines who held off the British at the Battle of Bladensburg, Maryland, which preceded the burning of Washington. Barney suffered a terrible wound in the American defeat and was captured by the British. The authors make it clear that such heroes are rare in this drama, making their feats that much more impressive. Lion in the Bay is a grand addition to the library of any military historian. Its illustrations are vivid, its maps are accurate, and its contents are exciting. This interesting volume has a few faults, which include leaving out the actions by the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service (the precursor to the U.S. Coast Guard), which operated throughout the Chesapeake Bay. In fact, the British attacked the U.S. cutter Surveyor in the York River in June 1813, capturing the ship and its crew. The authors also fail to illustrate the larger geopolitical picture of the war’s progress on land and sea, including how the campaign affected negotiations in Ghent, Belgium, where peace was signed in December 1814, three months after the British defeat in Baltimore. The authors also fail to follow the economic and structural recovery of the Chesapeake in the aftermath, leaving the reader wondering how Marylanders and Virginians rebuilt their lives in the wake of this massive invasion. In the end, however, this publication from the Naval Institute Press will surely stand the test of time in the annals of the War of 1812 and American maritime history.

Naval Institute Press ISBN: 978-1-61251-236-5

Director's ColumnContinued from page 2

Matthew brings a special insight into naval history that he shares directly with the visitor through the items he has collected and the uniforms he wears. Here he comments on the timeless quality of the American Navy:

The interesting idea about a Navy through the Ages is that many particulars have changed, while many have remained the same. Navigation technology for instance has evolved, but the old tried and true tools still work. Uniforms have changed with trends more than the original methods of navigation, which tells us that aesthetics sometimes takes precedence over technological advancements. The Navy even still publishes Nathaniel Bowditch’s tome on navigation, The American Practical Navigator, which was first printed in 1802. Regarding the Navy, it is both omniscient and omnipresent, in that it steadily and forcefully (often due to the effects of Mother Nature) expands the boundaries of learning due to the fact that the oceans and seas surround us, and always will. Regardless of paradigm shifts, alterations in warfare, and technological advancements, certain premises will remain constant as the US Navy continues to promote the betterment of humankind in pursuit of peace and security with the aid of wind and tide.

Matthew’s favorite historical figures are Captain John Smith, William Byrd II, Thomas Jefferson, Captain John Barry (in his opinion, the true father of the American Navy), and Jefferson Davis. He participates in major reenactments throughout the region, the most recent being the Revolutionary War-era Battles of Hampton, Kempe’s Landing, and the most famous, Great Bridge. Matthew is always willing to serve as a mentor to those who would like to know more about living history. If you are interested in joining our team of reenactors, give us a call. We’re here to help you get your history on!

Although the War of 1812 is often known as the forgotten war, it is hard to believe that the citizens of Maryland and Virginia forgot about it, given the ferocity with which the British pursued their goals from 1813 to 1814 in the Chesapeake. Lion in the Bay: The British Invasion of the Chesapeake, 1813-14, written by Stanley Quick and edited by Chipp Reid, relays the sordid tale of British atrocities, attacks, raids, and intrigues on American soil. Throughout it all, Americans including President James Madison and General William Winder acted and reacted to British movements around the Chesapeake as if on a vast chess board. Their arch nemeses, Admiral George Cockburn and Admiral Alexander Cochrane, proved stalwart foes throughout the war. Quick, whose research and experience in the U.S. Navy brings to life this tale of bravery and bravado, shows bibliophiles what sailors and soldiers saw, felt, and heard. Reid, with a background in the Marine Corps and in journalism, gives readers a chance to view the British and American perspectives in a visceral cat and mouse game. In this case, however, the cat was an amphibious lion against an unprepared mouse. Quick and Reid set a grand stage with expectations of a chaotic and frenzied conflict, a thesis at odds with the general perception of the War of 1812. First, they cover events leading up to the war, explaining British foreign policy, the Chesapeake-Leopard Affair of 1807, Jefferson’s gunboat program, and the ongoing feud between Federalists and Republicans (Democrats). They skirt the issue of impressment, mentioning it only briefly, despite the fact that it served as a rallying cry for the war. Yet, they correctly pinpoint the lack of American strength, training, cohesion, and leadership, politically and militarily. Specifically, they discuss the Baltimore riots in great detail, showing how a rift developed between Americans of differing opinions. They illustrate this point by covering the duel between Charles Gordon and

Alexander Hanson, a political tragedy echoed throughout the war by American politicians and officers who refused to coordinate their efforts or assist one another for the nation’s well-being. In short, readers begin the book wondering if the United States will even survive the War of 1812. Lion in the Bay, as evidenced by the title, covers the Chesapeake campaign by illustrating the offensive maneuvers of the British against the motley American forces. The Britons’ plan could not have been more brilliant as they decided to seize commercial centers

such as Norfolk, Baltimore, and Washington, and ravage the countryside from the Eastern Shore to the Western Shore. Standing in their way were scattered and poorly trained militia units, open gunboats, political parties, and the occasional artillery piece. Their worst enemy was geography, as the authors make drastically clear. The Chesapeake Bay, the largest estuary in the United States, covers 3,237 square miles, runs 195 miles north, and has 4,600 miles of shoreline interrupted by a myriad of rivers and creeks. Unfortunately for the Americans, as Quick and Reid point out, the British were up to the task and set out in earnest to avenge the burning of York, destroy American privateers, draw troops from the Canadian border, and stir up federalists against the war.

In this, the British spared no one, not even the yeoman farmers on Quick’s beloved Eastern Shore (where the author lived prior to his death in 2008). Here, his intense research drives home the British determination to destroy communities as he covers the raids from Cherrystone Inlet at the mouth of the Chesapeake all the way to Fredericktown at the head of the Bay. Quick and Reid brazenly sail through each campaign, showing the lackluster performance of American forces, often directed by Secretary of War John Armstrong and Secretary of State James Monroe. Both men thought

BOOk REVIEWBY MATTHEW kROGH

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Year of the Spy

The Hampton Roads Naval Museum’s After Hours Lecture Series

proudly presents

2016:

1. Richard Haver & Robert Hunter: The Walker Spy Ring and Beyond Thursday, May 19 @ 6:00PM

Richard Haver served as the Damage Assessor in numerous American espionage cases. Besides evaluating the impact of the Walker ring, Haver was directly involved in 43 espionage case, including two other high profile spies: the CIA's Aldrich Ames, who spied for the Soviet Union and Russia; and Jonathan Pollard, an Intelligence Analyst who spied for Israel. Prior to retirement from the government, Haver served as Chief of Staff for the National Intelligence Council, and as a National Intelligence Officer for Information Operations.

Meet Robert Hunter, known as the agent who caught master spy John Walker. Hunter brought an end to what many top officials call the most damaging spy ring in U.S. history. Together with fellow agents, Hunter not only captured Walker, but implicated both Walker’'s brother and son. Hunter's action effectively put an end to an espionage ring that had been operating for years out of the Norfolk Naval Station.

*To make a reservation for this event call (757)322-3168 after April 25th.

2. David Fidler: Edward Snowden, Hero or Traitor Thursday, June 23 @ 6:00PM

Join us as David Fidler discusses the critical analyses by experts on the historical, political,legal, and ethical issues raised by Edward Snowden’'s disclosures. Fidler is one of the world's leadingexperts on the ralationship between international law and cyberspace, cyber security lawand policy and the author of several books including The Snowden Reader, his book on Snowden'sdisclosures and their aftermath. This free evening event included refreshments, and is sponsored by the Hampton Roads Chapter of the Navy League.

*To make a reservation for this event call (757)322-3168 after May 30th.

2. Alexander Rose: Spy Rings of the Revolutionary War Thursday, July 14 @ 6:00PM

Come and learn, as Rose takes us beyond the battlefront of the Revolutionary War and deep into the shadowyunderworld of double agents and triple crosses, covert operations, and codebreaking. In this After HoursHistory program unmask the courageous, flawed men who inhabited this winderness of mirrors, includingGeorge Wshington, the spymaster at the heart of it all. Rose's first book, Washington's Spies: The Story ofAmerica’s First Spy Ring, has been used for the basis of the AMC drama series: Turn: Washington’'s Spies.

*To make a reservation for this event call (757)322-3168 after June 23rd.

The appearance of a logo or name does not imply endorsement of the business, company or organization, its productsor services, and is only intended to recognize finanacial support for the programs identified herein.

IN OUR NEXT ISSUE

Many popular authors seem to agree that the most controversial newspaper publisher in America during the Revolutionary War, a staunch Loyalist who lionized British leaders as he lampooned America’s founding figures, secretly helped defeat the British as a member of the famous Culper Spy Ring. Some have even asserted that he helped the French defeat the Royal Navy during the Battle Off the Virginia Capes in 1781.

The story has always been rooted in what others have written about him, but what did he write himself? Did he leave any clues concerning the secret service he supposedly performed as a spy for George Washington, even as he worked with such figures as the turncoat Benedict Arnold and the British spymaster John Andre? In the next Daybook we take a closer look at his newspaper, seeking both to help establish the veracity of these claims and to attain a greater understanding of his true importance in American history.

THE DAYBOOKHAMPTON ROADS NAVAL MUSEUMONE WATERSIDE DRIVE, SUITE 248NORFOLK, VA 23510-1607

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