CSS Shenandoah
On the 17th of August 1863, a ship named Sea King launched from the yards of Alexander Stephen & Sons in Glasgow. This iron-framed vessel carried teak planks and possessed auxiliary steam power alongside full rigging. It was built for Robertson & Co. to serve the East Asia tea trade or transport troops. US representatives assessed the ship while it was still being fitted out at the builders. The Confederate navy later purchased her from Wallace Bros of Liverpool in secret. That purchase concluded on the 18th of October 1864, and the next day she became CSS Shenandoah. She was converted into an armed cruiser with a mission to capture Union merchant ships. Liverpool served as the unofficial home port for the Confederate overseas fleet under Commander James Dunwoody Bulloch. Bulloch provided ships, crews, munitions, and provisions of war from that city. Sea King sailed from London on the 8th of October 1864, ostensibly bound for Bombay. The supply steamer Laurel departed Liverpool the same day. They rendezvoused at Funchal, Madeira, where Laurel carried officers and the nucleus of the crew. Lieutenant James Iredell Waddell supervised the conversion to a man-of-war in nearby waters. Waddell struggled to bring his crew to even half strength despite volunteers from merchant sailors. The new Confederate cruiser was commissioned on the 19th of October 1864, lowering the Union Jack and raising the Stainless Banner.
Shenandoah undertook commerce raiding around the world for twelve-and-a-half months from 1864 to 1865. She captured and sank or bonded 38 merchant vessels during this period. Most targets were whaling ships from New Bedford, Massachusetts. Captain Waddell began seeking enemy merchant ships on the Indian Ocean route between the Cape of Good Hope and Australia. He also hunted the Pacific whaling fleet. En route to the Cape, the Confederates captured six prizes. Five were burned or scuttled after removing crews and passengers. The sixth was bonded and used to transport prisoners to Bahia, Brazil. On the 2nd of January 1865, Shenandoah stopped briefly at Île Saint-Paul. Some crew members debarked to explore the island and gather food. Still short-handed, she arrived at Melbourne, Colony of Victoria, on the 25th of January 1865. There she filled her complement and storerooms. She signed on 40 crew members who had been stowaways from Melbourne. They did not enlist until outside the Colony of Victoria's territorial waters. Shipping Articles show all 40 enlisted on the 18th of February 1865. However, 19 of Waddell's crew deserted at Melbourne. Hunting became more profitable after refitting in Melbourne. On the 3rd of April 4, Waddell burned four whalers in the Caroline Islands. After a three-week cruise to the Sea of Okhotsk yielded only a single prize, he headed north past the Aleutian Islands into the Bering Sea.
The rich whaling grounds in the Bering Sea between Siberia and Alaska had been a safe haven for Yankee whalers during most of the American Civil War. This prosperous whaling ended in the spring and summer of 1865 when Shenandoah arrived. She captured 20 of the 58 Yankee whalers working there. These whalers were destroyed more than a month after CSA President Jefferson Davis was captured on the 10th of May 1865. On the 27th of June 1865, Waddell learned from a prize named Susan & Abigail that General Robert E. Lee had surrendered almost three months earlier. The newspaper reported the flight from Richmond of the Confederate government 10 weeks previously. It also contained President Davis' proclamation that the war would be carried on with renewed vigor. Waddell then captured 10 more whalers in seven hours just below the Arctic Circle. On the 3rd of August 1865, Waddell learned of the war's definite end when encountering the Liverpool barque Barracouta. He knew the surrender of Johnston's army on April 26 and Kirby Smith's army on May 26. Most crucially he knew of the capture of President Davis. Captain Waddell lowered the Confederate flag and underwent physical alteration. Her guns were dismounted and stowed below deck. Her hull was painted to look like an ordinary merchant ship.
Captain Waddell eventually decided to surrender his ship at the port of Liverpool where Commander Bulloch was stationed. CSS Shenandoah sailed from off the west coast of Mexico via Cape Horn to Liverpool. This voyage took three months and covered over 14,000 miles while pursued by Union vessels. She anchored at the Mersey Bar awaiting a pilot to guide her up the river. The pilot refused to take the ship into Liverpool because it flew no flag. The crew raised the Confederate flag. CSS Shenandoah sailed up the River Mersey with the flag fully flying to crowds on the riverbanks. The Liverpool Mercury reported the event on Tuesday, the 7th of November 1865. She anchored in mid-river between Toxteth in Liverpool and Tranmere in Birkenhead. Captain Paynter of HMS Donegal received the surrender on the 6th of November 1865. The Confederate flag was lowered again for the last time under watch of a Royal Navy detachment. The very last act of the Civil War was Captain Waddell walking up steps of Liverpool Town Hall. He presented a letter to the mayor surrendering his ship to the UK government. Shenandoah was the only Confederate warship to circumnavigate the globe.
After the surrender of Shenandoah to the British government, law officers decided what to do with the Confederate crew. Many originated from the United Kingdom and its colonies and were at risk of being considered pirates. Three had swum ashore in cold November waters fearing the worst. A full investigation concluded they did not infringe rules of war or laws of nations. They were unconditionally released. Lieutenant Commander James I. Waddell returned from England to the United States in 1875. He captained San Francisco for the Pacific Mail Company. Later he took command of forces policing oyster fleets in Chesapeake Bay. In 1886, Waddell died of a brain disorder and was buried at St. Anne's Episcopal Church in Annapolis, Maryland. Some crew members sailed from Liverpool to Buenos Aires via Bahia and Rio de Janeiro. They went to Rosario upon Paraná River and bought a small place to begin farming. Orris Applewaith Browne and John Thompson Mason returned home later. Mason took a law course at University of Virginia and graduated successfully. Whittle returned home to Virginia from Buenos Aires in 1867. Born in Norfolk, Virginia in 1840, he became captain of one of the Bay line steamers running between Baltimore, Norfolk and Portsmouth in 1868. Dr. Frederick J. McNulty eventually became resident of Boston, Massachusetts. He opened Pine Grove Retreat at Roslindale while residing at 706 Huntington Avenue. McNulty enlisted as surgical officer in Chilean Navy immediately after surrender. He died at his home in Boston on the 14th of June 1897, at age 62.
After her crew surrendered her to British government at Liverpool on the 6th of November 1865, Britain handed Shenandoah over to United States government. The ship was sold to Matthew Isaac Wilson of Liverpool. In 1867 Wilson sold her to Majid bin Said, first Sultan of Zanzibar. He renamed her El Majidi after himself. On the 15th of April 1872, a hurricane hit Zanzibar. El Majidi was one of six ships owned by Seyed Burgash blown ashore and wrecked. Her crew were rescued. She was refloated on July 7 with assistance from others. After temporary repairs she attempted to sail on the 10th of September 1879 with 130 passengers and crew from Zanzibar to Bombay. El Majidi developed holes and took on water, sinking days later in Gulf of Aden off Socotra in November 1879. There were few survivors. In an important development in international law, US government pursued claims collectively called Alabama Claims against British government. Following court of arbitration, they won heavy damages. Shenandoah had remained at sea for 12 months and 17 days. She traversed 58,000 miles carrying Confederate flag around globe for only time. She sank or captured 38 ships, mostly whalers, all American civilian merchant vessels. Waddell took close to one thousand prisoners without single war casualty among his crew. Two men died of disease. The ship never involved in conflict against any Union Naval vessel. The Confederate cruiser claimed more than 20 prizes valued at nearly $1,400,000.
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Common questions
When was the CSS Shenandoah launched and what was its original name?
The ship named Sea King launched from the yards of Alexander Stephen & Sons in Glasgow on the 17th of August 1863. It was built for Robertson & Co. to serve the East Asia tea trade or transport troops before being purchased by the Confederate navy.
Who commanded the CSS Shenandoah during its commerce raiding campaign?
Lieutenant James Iredell Waddell supervised the conversion to a man-of-war and commanded the vessel throughout its twelve-and-a-half month cruise. He captured 38 merchant vessels, mostly whaling ships from New Bedford, Massachusetts, while hunting the Pacific whaling fleet.
Where did the CSS Shenandoah surrender and when did this event occur?
Captain Waddell surrendered his ship at the port of Liverpool where Commander Bulloch was stationed on the 6th of November 1865. The crew raised the Confederate flag fully flying as she sailed up the River Mersey between Toxteth in Liverpool and Tranmere in Birkenhead.
How many miles did the CSS Shenandoah travel around the globe?
Shenandoah traversed 58,000 miles carrying the Confederate flag around the globe for only time. Her voyage took three months covering over 14,000 miles from off the west coast of Mexico via Cape Horn to Liverpool.
What happened to the CSS Shenandoah after it was sold to Majid bin Said?
Majid bin Said renamed her El Majidi after himself and owned her until a hurricane hit Zanzibar on the 15th of April 1872. She sank days later in Gulf of Aden off Socotra in November 1879 with few survivors.