The Alabama
Furtiveness and
secrecy surrounded the building one of the most infamous ships ever to be built
on Merseyside - which started life under the anonymous tag, Vessel number 290.
The ship with no
name was constructed at the Birkenhead yard of John Laird and Son, forerunners
of the illustrious Cammell Laird shipbuilders. Commissioned by James Dunwoody
Bulloch, the purpose and destination of the ship was shrouded in mystery as far
as shipyard workers were concerned. However John Laird, as well as the British
Government and, of course, Bulloch, were aware that it was actually being built
as a blockade runner for the Confederate faction in the American Civil War;
Bulloch, the southern states’ representative in Liverpool, was responsible for
buying and building ships during the Civil War and arranged the largest single
delivery of arms to the Confederates in October 1861.
Vessel 290 was
specially designed to achieve success as a raider with the object of attacking
merchant ships belonging to the northern states - a mission she was destined to
fulfil in spectacular style as the Alabama. Though built in the Laird’s yard,
the ship was not equipped with arms on Merseyside, partly in order to allay
suspicion and partly to ensure the laws directing British neutrality in the
Civil war were not broken.
The ship
destined to become the most feared and destructive commerce raider in maritime
history was launched on 15 May 1862 under the name Enrica. Despite elaborate
attempts at concealing the truth behind the ship, the suspicions of Northern
agents had already been aroused and the American government had already begun
to make inquiries as the 'Enrica’ sailed out of Liverpool. This date was billed
as the day for the ship’s final sea trial, and in order to give credence to the
story a party of official guests was invited on board. After an enjoyable and
apparently innocuous day at sea, all the guests were transferred to a tugboat
and returned to Liverpool. Meanwhile the Enrica seized the opportunity to
escape and despite interception attempts by the American Navy, she was able to
reach the Azores, where she was equipped with arms. On 24 August the
Confederate flag was raised and the ship acquired the name Alabama. The Alabama
waged a two year campaign of terror during which a staggering 66 ships were
either seized or capsized. Such an ominous reputation was acquired by the
Alabama and other Confederate raiders that President Abraham Lincoln threatened
to hang their crews for piracy if they were captured.
 |
| Captain Raphael Semmes, Alabama's commanding officer, standing by his ship's 110-pounder rifled gun during her visit to Capetown in August 1863. First Lieutenant John M. Kell, is in the background.. |
Captained by
Ralph Semmes, the Alabama had a crew of 14 officers - mainly Americans - and
120 men, many of whom were Britons recruited in Liverpool when Captain Semmes
stayed with Bulloch in Waterloo. The devastation wrought by the Alabama was
finally brought to an end in June 1864, while she was being repaired at
Cherbourg, France. After coming out to fight another vessel, the USS Kearsarge,
which appeared off the coast, there was a spectacular battle and the Alabama
was sunk. Semmes and some of the crew were rescued by an English yacht and so evaded
capture.
Interestingly,
after the Civil War ended, Britain had to pay for the damage done to America’s
shipping, with the compensation bill tallying, in today’s equivalent 6150
billion.
Links
Sources
Liverpool Central Library
Liverpool Records Office
Maritime Museum
National Archive
By Robert F Edwards
