Submarines in the Revolutionary and Civil Wars
explanatory Essay
2009 words
Submarines in the Revolutionary and Civil Wars
The Trident Submarine houses twenty-four nuclear warheads with each having a range of 4,600 miles over land. If a nuclear war were to break out between the Soviet Union and the United States, virtually every major city could be destroyed in a matter of hours. The origin of these major players in modern day warfare lies in the Revolutionary and Civil Wars.
A Dutchman named Cornelus Van Drebbel, made the very first submarine in 1652, to fight the mighty Spanish ship called the Rotterdam Boat. It carried about twelve oarsmen and even had an air circulator. It never saw any action.
In the American Revolutionary War, a manned underwater craft named the American Turtle (or the "water-machine") was used against the British Navy. David Brushnell designed this ingenious machine in 1771. The submarine was a one manned, egg-shaped vessel which was propelled by hand-operated screw-like devices. It was bottom-heavy in order for it to remain upright. The operator would plant a submersible mine that could be triggered by a simple clockwork mechanism. He could paddle away after he attached the magazine of gunpowder onto the enemy ship. The operator could stay under for about thirty minutes
The American Turtle was ready for her initial mission on September 6, 1776, just after midnight in the New York Harbor. The operator, Ezra Lee, failed in his attempt to sink the HMS Eagle because he failed to secure the screw of the gunpowder magazine to the ship. The Turtle made two more attempts to sink enemy ships but they both failed. The end of the American Turtle is unknown. Some think she was accidentally sunk, dismantled, or destroyed. The Turtle was the very first submarine to be used in the...
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...come of the Revolutionary War. The submarines in the Civil War were very unimportant as well. Only one ship, the Housatonic, was sunk by the hands of a submarine in the entire war. The Southern navy did not even put much stock into submarine warfare because they only built a couple during the entire war. So overall, submarines were of no significance during either the Revolutionary War or the Civil War. But, these early developments of the submarine were extremely important because they lead to the later more advanced submarines that were used in future wars in which they did play a major role in. For example, in World War II, German U-boats terrorized the sea and played an important role in World War II. These, and others like the modern day Tridents, would not of exist if it were not for the early developments of submarines during the Civil and Revolutionary Wars.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the trident submarine houses twenty-four nuclear warheads with a range of 4,600 miles over land.
- Describes how cornelus van drebbel made the first submarine in 1652 to fight the mighty spanish ship called the rotterdam boat.
- Describes brushnell's invention of the american turtle (or the "water-machine"), a manned underwater craft that was used against the british navy.
- Explains that the american turtle was ready for her initial mission on september 6, 1776, just after midnight in the new york harbor. the operator, ezra lee, failed in his attempt to sink the hms eagle
- Explains that the nautilus, invented by robert fulton, sunk a ship in 1805 in demonstration for the british government. the timing was wrong because england had just finished another war.
- Explains the significance of the first two fully working submarines in the world. they played a major role in future developments of submarine, especially during the civil war.
- Describes how james mcclintock and baxter watson designed and built a three manned, hand cranked submarine named the pioneer. the pioneer used the same type of detonation device as the nautilus
- Explains the problems with the pioneer: the breather would only work close to the surface; there was no light inside the sub causing the crew to use candles; and the compass was the only way to tell where a submarine was going.
- Explains that the pioneer submarine was not used during the battle of new orleans, since it was a prototype and deemed not ready for battle.
- Explains that the confederate navy was not very successful in attacking enemy ships. in mobile, alabama, a group of men wanted to build another pioneer.
- Explains that the pioneer ii was a little larger than its predecessor. it had more room for the crew, was more streamlined, had primitive mercury barometer, and had windows so the captain could better ascertain where he was going.
- Explains that alexander, mcclintock, and watson had enough money to build a new sub called pioneer iii. the torpedo detonated as soon as it hit the enemy ship.
- Explains that the confederate navy was desperate to break the union blockade. they wanted to use the pioneer iii, now called the "whitney submarine boat," to go after one of the ironsides.
- Describes how the "whitney submarine boat" was raised, repaired, and ready for action. in a mock attack against the css indian chief, the submarine sank killing all passengers including the captain on board.
- Narrates how the confederate leadership questioned the safety of submarines after the two accidents. captain george dixon and william alexander convinced them to allow the h.l. hunley to be operational again.
- Describes how the h.l. hunley was pulled out after the second sinking and taken off to the battery marshall, on sullivan's island. the crew had to withstand endurance tests to see how far they could go.
- Narrates how captain dixon boarded the h.l. hunley and headed for the target. the crew of the housatonic fired their weapons, but to no avail.
- Explains that the public was not well informed of what was going on during these experiments on submarines. the building of the subs was kept secret because the confederates did not want their weapon known.
- Explains that the south needed a fully submersible ship to protect its waterways and get around the union blockade, while the north had less need for one.
- Explains that the american turtle, the first submarine to be used in war, played absolutely no role in the outcome of the revolutionary war, and the civil war.
Related
- opinion
- explanatory
- analytical
- The Use of the Submarine During the American Civil War I have always been an American history buff. I was aware that the first use of the Submarine during war was during the American Civil War. Since learning this fact, I had become, in a sense, amazed with submarines - thus, I have become rather interested in them. I found this paper as a good chance to learn more, a lot more, about early submarines and the evolution of them. With the ability to sink both large and small warships with the same percent chance, the value of the submarine is great because it was much cheaper to build than larger warships in the late 19th and early 20th century.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that they were fascinated by the first use of the submarine during the american civil war. they found this paper a good chance to learn more about early submarines and their evolution.
- Explains the value of the submarine because it was cheaper to build than larger warships in the late 19th and early 20th century.
- Explains that naval engineers have been striving to solve the problem of submarine navigation, but until 1884 with very little success. the prince of wales, with the king and queen of denmark and the czarina witnessed a successful trial of the new submarine.
- Explains that the nordenfelt submarine was built of steel and was cigar shaped with a glass conning tower in the center.
- Explains that the submarine "d1" was able to maintain communication while submerged. the tests were conducted at a level deep enough to keep the periscope just above the water line.
- Compares the american technology to that of the european world. in 1913, the largest submarine built for the united states navy was just short of 500 tons displacement submerged.
- Explains that submarines were equipped with defensive and protective weapons, and torpedoes, in 1913. the tapering-carriage guns of non-rusting nickel steel were used for small caliber weapons.
- Opines that the submarine is superior to the battleship, since it's in torpedo range, but it doesn't have victory assured. the largest drawback of the early submarine was their speed.
- Cites gradenwitz, dr. alfred, "guns for submarines," scientific american, 8 march 1913, vol. 108, p.
683 wordsRead More - chap 2explanatory essay...erwater vessel capable of attacking war ships with stealth were available. The Huntley group was the most avid and produced several models. Eventually, they achieved success as the Confederates took bolder and possibly more desperate steps to build working submarines. They had limited success in attacking a Union vessel, unfortunately the sub also sank killing the crew.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the south's population was 9 million in 1861, but only 5.5 million were white, slaves accounted for the other 3.5 million people.
- Explains that military records of the csa were most often held by the individual states and many records are lost or incomplete making troop strength an issue of estimation.
- Explains the initial call to arms for the confederacy expected 100,000 men to enlist for a period of one year.
- Explains that virginia was one of the last southern states to join the conflict, but the state with the most civil war battles, 519 of 2262 documented engagements.
- Explains the confederacy's government was established on the model of the union government. the prevailing difference in government addressed the important issue of "states' rights," which was important reason for secession.
- Explains that the rebels also imposed an income tax and farmers were required to provide 10% of their crops to the government.
- Explains that the majority of the rebel soldiers were volunteers, not conscripts. most men volunteered within the first 18 months of war.
- Opines that as the war continued more and more men were over 35 and under 18 years old. about one-third of them were married with families.
- Explains that southern men, from the struggling farmer to the merchant's son and the plantation owner, were likely to enlist. at the time of conscription men had the option of offering $300 and providing a substitute.
- Explains that the south only had new orleans to rival the cities of the north, so the southern boys were twice as likely to come from the farm.
- Opines that slavery was not the main reason for the average "johnny reb." less than one-third of the men came from slave-owning families. only about one out of twenty men owned slaves.
- Explains that the majority of the men were american born, coming from english, scottish and irish stock. a small percentage were first generation immigrants in the south, while almost one-fourth of union soldiers were immigrants.
- Explains that almost 90% of eligible military aged men served for the confederacy with roughly 25% dying by war’s end.
- Describes the first widely used csa flag, the stars and bars, which represented the seven states that seceded. the flag design was replaced because in battle this flag was easily mistaken for the united states flag.
- Cites the library of congress, civil war song sheets collection, rare book and special collections div., digital id cw201480.
- Explains that the most popular weapons were the 1861 springfield musket and the.69 caliber harpers ferry rifle.
- Explains that the use of snipers that could be accurate up to a half mile was an new weapon of war.
- Describes the fine-looking union men occupying a captured house in culpepper, virginia, with shiny, high boots, well-tended uniforms, and sabers.
- Explains that the csa flag was authorized in 1863 to reflect the 13 states that were part of the secession.
- Describes edwin jemison, a private in the 2nd louisiana infantry, who joined the csa on may 11th, 1861 when he was just 16. he died at the battle of malvern hill, representing the lost future of the south.
- Explains that the union had a decided advantage over the newly forged confederate alliance when going to war. the rebels had to start from scratch and didn't have the infrastructure of factories and industrialization that was evident in the northern states.
- Explains that jefferson davis' foresight in upgrading the weapons of the union would prove to be a detriment to his position as the leader of confederate armies.
- Explains that the colt revolving model 1855 carbine was a favorite weapon of the mounted infantry.
- Analyzes how the romanticism of the dashing officer with his saber was in evidence during the civil war.
- Explains that cannons were a symbol of the civil war. the use of artillery to cut down troops and conduct sieges of entrenched positions was legendary.
- Explains how the civil war's weapons and tactics were enhanced by technology, making strategy follow new rules.
- Explains that the huntley group was the most avid and produced several models of an underwater vessel capable of attacking war ships with stealth.
2416 wordsRead More - Submarine warfareexplanatory essayThis view was to suddenly change when, on 17 September 1914, the German submarine force proved the importance of undersea warfare. On that day, the German submarine U-9 spotted a cloud of smoke and penetrating masts on the horizon. As they came closer, Otto Weddigen, commanding officer of the U-9, could make out three cruisers steaming abreast at a speed of about 10 knots. Each was seperated from the others by two miles. Weddigen gave the order to dive. At 6:20 a.m., he ordered the first torpedo fired. It hit the cruiser HMS ABOUKIR, which began to list heavily. Within 25 minutes, she had capsized and sunk. ABOUKIR had been cruising with her sisters HMS CRESSY and HMS HOUGE. When ABOUKIR was rent by an explosion and sank, the commanding officers of the CRESSY and HOUGE assumed that she had struck a mine. They closed in and began rescue operations. HMS HOUGE was next to go. Two torpedoes struck her hull --sinking her in less than 10 minutes. A glimpse of the U-9's periscope suddenly made CRESSY's captain aware of what had occured. CRESSY tried to make a run for it. It was too late. At 7:17 a.m., Widdigen fired two more torpedoes. CRESSY rolled over on to her beam ends. Fifteen minutes later, she joined her sisters at the bottom.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that it took world war i to prove the worth of submarines. fleet commanders ridiculed the idea that the submarine had a place in naval strategy and tactics.
- Describes how the german submarine u-9 spotted a cloud of smoke and penetrating masts on the horizon. otto weddigen ordered the first torpedo fired, hitting the cruiser hms aboukir.
- Explains that the german submarine u-9 attacked and sunk three british armored cruisers in the north sea, causing the entire world to sit up and take notice.
- Explains that the united states navy, with its 300 warships, was the world's third largest by 1914.
434 wordsRead More - Robert Ballard's Shipwrecksanalytical essayThese are the three main nuclear powered submarines that are currently utilized in the U.S. Navy. They have sunk many ships during battle especially during World War II and during the attacks on Pearl Harbor. Robert Ballard explores the depths of the ocean in search of explanations as to why the U.S. Navy was able to defeat the Japanese to easily . In that particular exploration, he discovered the infamous ship, the Lusitania (Ballard and Dunmore 29). The ship was known for its safe voyages, pristine and innovative technology in the naval world, and notorious ability to to withstand any situation (NOAA). The lost of the Lusitania provoked great outrage in the United States and encouraged the public to allow America to join the war. It also marked the end of "civilized" manners of warfare in the 19th century. Ballard answered the question on how the ship sunk and proved some conspiracies were just that, false rumors to rouse people. This discovery of the sad shipwreck allowed future submarines to learn that coal was not a good source of fuel because that was what lead to the second explosion that sunk the ship (Ballard and Dunmore
In this essay, the author
- Describes how robert ballard's discoveries of shipwrecks and archaeological explorations helped the u.s. navy make decisions on how to handle radioactive weapons and assess its impact on the environment.
- Analyzes how robert ballard explores the depths of the ocean in search of explanations as to why the u.s. navy was able to defeat the japanese to easily.
- Analyzes how ballard and his team discover submarine wrecks during the pacific war that allowed the united states to win the battle of midway.
428 wordsRead More - An Analysis Of Turtle By Kay Ryananalytical essayThe first notable example of the turtle’s obstacles is shown in a simile. Ryan portrays the turtle’s movement as “graceless, like dragging/ a packing-case places” (5-6). When one is struggling to move a heavy package, one usually starts to push or pull it slowly; one is using all his strength to move it, yet the package barely moves. The lethargic movement of moving the package is similar to the slowness of the turtle. This slowness is an obstacle because it prevents the turtle from travelling far distances and escaping from predators. Nevertheless, the fact that the turtle perseveres through this struggle shows that she is
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how kay ryan argues in her poem "turtle" that turtles are strong but unfortunate creatures that must put up with many obstacles to survive.
- Analyzes how ryan's question forces the reader to think about why one would want to be a turtle, and her disparaging tone in the question implies that she wants the readers to answer that nobody would be.
- Analyzes how ryan's metaphors argue that the turtle is actually a mentally and physically strong creature.
- Analyzes how ryan uses diction related to rowing to emphasize the physical strength of the turtle.
- Analyzes how ryan shifts her poem and starts to talk about the struggles that the turtle faces.
- Analyzes how ryan personifies the slope, saying, "any slope/ defeats her modest hopes." this is an extreme hardship for the turtle, since the earth's topography is made up of slopes.
- Analyzes how ryan uses a metaphor to showcase the turtle's impediments in life by comparing her legs to car wheels. cars are made up of heavy metals such as aluminum and iron.
- Analyzes ryan's imagery of the turtle flipping around so she can eat as her skirting "the ditch which would convert/her shell into a serving dish."
- Analyzes how the turtle's struggles aren't just because of her lack of physicality, but also because she has to deal with the cruel hand of fate.
- Analyzes how ryan introduces another metaphor towards the end of the poem to showcase the turtle's strength and struggles. the turtle is said to have a "load of pottery" which could one day change to "wings."
- Analyzes how ryan's diction in this couplet suggests that the turtle is a strong creature and that facing her struggles is just another part of her life.
- Analyzes ryan's poem "turtle" as a poor, weak turtle, but the turtle is strong, both mentally and physically, and all she needs is to get past the obstacles in her life in order to reach her full potential.
1696 wordsRead More - The Navy Of The Civil Warexplanatory essayThe Civil War consisted of many legendary battles over the soil of the United and Confederate States of America, which will be retold for generations in history books. Although these land battles were indeed great, the concept of this paper will be the Naval warfare of the Civil War, paying certain attention to the battle between the Monitor and the Merrimac.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the civil war consisted of many legendary battles over the soil of the united and confederate states of america, which will be retold for generations in history books.
- Explains that neither the north nor the south were prepared for naval activities at the beginning of the war. in order to better prepare the navy for war, three new designs were put into action.
- Explains that the south was at a disadvantage to the north throughout the war, since most seamen in the us navy were from the north and stayed with the union when the southern states seceded.
- Explains that the south encouraged commerce raiding of northern ships, which would help take the burden of building up the navy off the government.
- Explains that the north's blockade on the southern states dealt a similar blow to the south that privateering would cause.
- Explains that blockade-runners were employed to trade in spite of the northern blocking. fast wooden ships were used to carry cotton to trading nations in exchange for badly needed war supplies.
- Explains that the south sent two former us senators to europe to gain diplomatic recognition, which led to support from european nations, especially the neutral great britain.
- Explains how the union set into action plans to seize bases along the confederate coastline. the first important operation was the taking of port royal.
- Opines that the most famous naval battle of the civil war was that between the merrimack and the monitor.
- Explains that the merrimack was burned and sunk by the union when the norfolk navy yard was abandoned. since the south was at a loss for the resources to build new ships, they rebuilt old hulls into ironclad vessels.
- Explains that the virginia was hoped to break the union blockade at hampton roads, virginia. the virginia saw early victory when it was successful in sinking the uss cumberland.
- Explains that the monitor was the most revolutionary vessel built in the civil war. it was armed with guns on a revolving turret.
- Explains that the virginia out-gunned the monitor, and its crew had a high morale from their previous victory.
- Explains that the monitor managed to land more shots than the virginia, which caused minimal damage. the virginia was forced to retreat up the james, a key naval victory for the north.
- Explains that naval strategies of the civil war are often overlooked in the view of great land battles that were fought. naval confrontations aided in winning the war for the united states of america.
1156 wordsRead More - Navy Vessels: The USS Monitorexplanatory essayThe United States government has long felt the need to maintain a strong Navy. In doing so they had to keep up with advancements in technology. During the civil war in the Brooklyn harbor the United States Navy built a vessel that would duel the South’s vessel the CSS Virginia. The battle would be the first of the kind in that for the first time two Ironclad vessels would battle.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the united states government felt the need to maintain a strong navy and kept up with advancements in technology.
- Explains that the purpose of the ironclad warship was not new to the united sates government. there had been previous attempts at making such a vessel.
- Explains that the uss monitor was commissioned by the united states navy in 1862. the ship measured one hundred and seventy nine feet in length and had two ventilation blowers.
- Explains that the crew consisted of forty-nine sailors, four of whom were engineers responsible for operating the vessel. lanterns and portholes were cut into the deck to provide lighting. one skull recovered from the wreckage is on display at the merrimac museum.
- Explains that the uss monitor's engine was designed by john ericsson. it was a steam, single cylinder vibrating lever engine generated by two fire tube boilers.
- Explains that the uss monitor's turret is circular in design and is made to house guns. it was twenty one and a half feet in diameter and nine feet tall.
- Describes the battle of hampton roads for which the uss monitor is famous. the monitor appeared for battle after sinking two ships and reengaging battle to sink the frigate minnesota.
- Describes how the monitor was being towed down to beaufort north carolina, where it would help other union ships in a blockade.
- Explains that they decided to visit the merrimac museum to gain further insight into the uss monitor. they chose this topic because they were new to hampton roads and decided it would be a good opportunity to learn some naval history.
- Cites "historic naval ships visitors guide - uss monitor." n.p., n.d.
714 wordsRead More - u 571analytical essayI watched the film U-571 dealing with the allies versus the Germans for control of the Atlantic Ocean. In U-571 an American Navy crew consisting of at least 10 crew members had a mission to steal an Enigma machine which was a communication device that would code messages to other surrounding German Forces. This mission occurred in 1942 while the Atlantic Ocean was extremely hostile and filled with German U-boats. While carrying out their mission the crew that the movie centers around had many problems to overcome. Many crew members were killed during this mission and the ship that they embarked on was eventually blown up. Because of this the American crew took control of the German U-boat that carried the Enigma machine. The crew faced many challenges while carrying out their mission such as steering clear of other U-boats and Nazi destroyers as well as killing any German survivors still on the U-571. One German remained throughout the movie and continually almost got the American crew discovered by sending Morse code to German forces and by killing members of the American Crew. As the movie continues the leader of the crew, played by Matthew McConaughey, carried out a last minute plan to drop 200 meters below the sea, which the pressure of the water almost destroyed their ship, then submerge after the last torpedo was fixed, It was destroyed during one of the many explosions on the ship during earlier gun fights, and destroy their last threat, a Nazi Destroyer. One of the crew members sacrifices his life to fix a faulty pressure pipe needed to fire the torpedo. After the torpedo was fixed and fired the Nazi Destroyer was destroyed and the American crew was eventually discovered and saved by US navy planes.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how the movie u-571 dealt with the allies versus the germans for control of the atlantic ocean.
- Opines that this movie captured the courage of american navy crews who infiltrated u-boats to steal communication devices. it also showed the importance of taking control of the atlantic ocean.
427 wordsRead More - Loggerhead Turtle Essayexplanatory essayModern sea turtles emerged approximately 120 million years ago during the Cretaceous Period. Four families of sea turtle were extant in the Cretaceous Period, Toxochelyidae, Protostegidae, Cheloniidae and Dermochelyidae (Hayes, 2005). Of the four sea turtle familes, three survived the Cretaceous–Tertiary extinction 63 million years ago. Two lineages of sea turtle survived through the Eocene Epoch 55 to 38 millions years ago (Bowen, 2003). One lineage was the predecessor of the Dermochelys coriacea (leatherback turle), the only member of the family Dermochelyidae, and the other lineage gave rise to the six species of the family Cheloniidae, one of which is the loggerhead sea turtle (Bowen, 2003).
In this essay, the author
- Explains that modern sea turtles emerged approximately 120 million years ago during the cretaceous period.
- Explains that the loggerhead turtle primarily has a temperate distribution. the majority of females return to nest on the same area for successive nesting seasons.
228 wordsRead More - The Landing Ship Tankexplanatory essayThe first attempt at building these ships was done by converting three tankers from Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela with bay doors. Experts from both Britain and United States' navies gathered requirements. In 1941, the name LST was born. Within a few days, John Niedermair of the US Navy Bureau of Ships completed the first sketch of the design. It called for a large ballast system that could be filled with sea water to give the ship a deep draft for traveling
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the landing ship tank came about after the dunkirk evacuation proved there was a need for large ships that could transport vehicles. these ships were created during world war ii to support sea operations by carrying vehicles, cargo, and landing troops directly onto shore.
- Explains that the first lst was built by converting three tankers from lake maracaibo, venezuela with bay doors. the design was accepted by the us navy, and then approved with the royal navy.
- Explains that the missouri valley bridge & iron co. built the most lsts of any shipyard.
- Explains that lsts were used in the solomon islands campaign in june 1943. they were slow and bulky, but they were tough enough to take on a large amount of damage.
- Explains that almost every landing operation employed lsts. some were converted into repair ships, others were used as floating barracks for 200 officers and men.
488 wordsRead More