When the CSS Alabama transferred to Confederate service (at sea and away from England), Semmes had a problem getting the "crew" made up primarily of British sailors to join the Alabama's crew. He offered them double wages and a signing bonus along with a share in prize money. The ploy succeeded.
Semmes' mission was not to fight Union warships, but attack any American-owned ship it encountered on the high seas. Then, it was to sink it.
After that, it was off on a very successful cruise, operating the first two months in the eastern Atlantic and then the ship migrated southwest to the Azores and then west to winter in the Caribbean. If you have been following my Naval Happenings 150 Years Ago entries, you will get an indication of how much success the Alabama had. Sometimes the ship captured and sank American ships on a daily basis.
It did fight two Union ships, sinking the USS Hatteras in the Gulf of Mexico and then being sunk itself by the USS Kearsarge off Cherbourg, France, June 19, 1864. Semmes was able to escape when picked up by a private yacht and later returned to the Confederacy where he was promoted to the rank of admiral.
After the war, he returned to Mobile, where a grateful city gave him a house to live out his years. He is buried there and his home still stands as well as the statue of him and name on a downtown hotel. Recently, a town near Mobile was named for him.
Old "Beeswax." --Old B-R'er
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