Thomas E Taylor

Running the Blockade Thomas E Taylor

- Illustrated. The naval battles of the American Civil War, fought between the Union and the Confederacy, changed the foundations of naval warfare with the first use of ironclads and submarines, and the introduction of newer and more powerful naval artillery. The first shots of the naval war were fired on April 13, 1861, during the Battle of Fort Sumter, by the US Revenue Cutter Service cutter USRC Harriet Lane. The final shots were fired on June 22, 1865, by the Confederate raider CSS Shenandoah in the Bering Strait, more than two months after General Robert E. Lee's surrender of the Confederate Army. This is a firsthand account of blockade running by a participant in the events he describes. He also provides useful information on the British attitude toward the technicalities of the blockade.