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devotech2 on scored.co
1 year ago0 points(+0/-0)
Another very glossed over fact of history is the absolute suckerpunch that the confederate navy delivered to the US navy.
Before the Civil War, the US navy was underequipped and underfunded. General American consensus was that a navy was a waste of time, the navy was also the only branch of the military that had constitutionally mandated limits to its power. Most infamously, the highest rank one could attain in the US navy was captain (o-6), which is 4 ranks behind the maximum in the army and marines.
This all changed with the Civil War, because the confederacy put a huge emphasis on a powerful blue water navy and learned from the royal navy on doctrine and shipbuilding. Confederate ships were sinking union commerce vessels and warships like fish in a barrel. It was one of the most humiliating chapters of American naval history. The confederacy also had a fully functioning admiralty before the USN did.
This kick to the chest was why Theodore Roosevelt made the USN a powerful force. His uncle was an officer on the CSS Alabama, an absolute beast of a ship that had one of the highest kill ratios in the history of any navy ever. Possibly the highest of any surface ship in history. Without the confederacy and its naval advancements, the USN would be a bunch of river patrol boats and barely seaworthy littoral vessels to this day.
Thought i would share some interesting information. Fair winds and following seas brother. Life at sea is difficult, sleep is a luxury, working is the norm. Surrounded by an environment that tries everything it can do to kill you, protected by steel hulls and whirring engines. Between work and watch there's hardly a moment to yourself. But it's worth it, it's among the most aryan of jobs. The beauty of the ocean is unparalleled but should be taken in along with a healthy sense of respect that the only thing keeping you alive is the structural integrity of your vessel.
Before the Civil War, the US navy was underequipped and underfunded. General American consensus was that a navy was a waste of time, the navy was also the only branch of the military that had constitutionally mandated limits to its power. Most infamously, the highest rank one could attain in the US navy was captain (o-6), which is 4 ranks behind the maximum in the army and marines.
This all changed with the Civil War, because the confederacy put a huge emphasis on a powerful blue water navy and learned from the royal navy on doctrine and shipbuilding. Confederate ships were sinking union commerce vessels and warships like fish in a barrel. It was one of the most humiliating chapters of American naval history. The confederacy also had a fully functioning admiralty before the USN did.
This kick to the chest was why Theodore Roosevelt made the USN a powerful force. His uncle was an officer on the CSS Alabama, an absolute beast of a ship that had one of the highest kill ratios in the history of any navy ever. Possibly the highest of any surface ship in history. Without the confederacy and its naval advancements, the USN would be a bunch of river patrol boats and barely seaworthy littoral vessels to this day.
Thought i would share some interesting information. Fair winds and following seas brother. Life at sea is difficult, sleep is a luxury, working is the norm. Surrounded by an environment that tries everything it can do to kill you, protected by steel hulls and whirring engines. Between work and watch there's hardly a moment to yourself. But it's worth it, it's among the most aryan of jobs. The beauty of the ocean is unparalleled but should be taken in along with a healthy sense of respect that the only thing keeping you alive is the structural integrity of your vessel.