Under Two Flags (Bluejacket Books): The American Navy in the Civil War - Softcover

Fowler Jr. PhD., William M

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1557502897 ISBN 13: 9781557502896

Publisher: Naval Institute Press, 2001

Synopsis

Vividly written and researched by a noted historian of the period, this succinct history credits the Union Navy as an essential element in the northern victory. Neither ponderous nor hagiographic, the work presents characters and events that have been previously neglected and offers candid assessments of officers, men, and material. Originally published in 1990, it is an authoritative and gripping story of the battles waged.

The author provides a rare look at the war fought by primitive northern gunboats drifting through Louisiana's muddy bayous, Yankee merchantmen captured by rebel privateers at sea, and Union ironclads subduing hotly defended Southern forts. Nor does he neglect the subtler sparring behind the scenes: War Secretary Stanton and Navy Secretary Welles competing for Lincoln's favour and Welles's fierce duel of strategies with his Confederate counterpart, Stephen Mallory. Finally, the author describes the astonishing transformation of the Navy itself from a ragtag fleet of aging steamers and paddleboats to one of the most powerful waterborne forces in the world.

About this title

About the Author

William M. Fowler Jr. is the director of the Massachusetts Historical Society in Boston and teaches maritime history at Munson Institute of American Maritime Studies in Mystic Seaport. He is the author of numerous books, including biographies of Samuel Adams and John Hancock.

Edition details

• Publisher: Naval Institute Press
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1557502897
• ISBN 13: 9781557502896
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 352