Lincoln Sneezed

by Brian Boyington

  Lookouts on the battery reported twelve additional United States Navy ships approaching. Recall signals sent to the battleships arrived too late, as they also were committed to remaining in the channel. Once clear of the South Channel they entered the engagement zone, cut off from entering the North Channel and were committed to the battle. The cannons were run out on both sides of the ships. The battleship and frigate captains, confident in their massive ships and the Royal Navy tradition formed a battle line.

  USS Kalamazoo

  The four leading United States Navy ironclads also formed up in a Battle line. The lead ironclad was USS Kalamazoo. In January, the Kalamazoo had finished three weeks of sea trials testing the larger turrets and the new rifled Dahlgren 20-inch cannons. The turrets had 15-inches of armor, the decks 3-inches and the sides had 10-inches. She was the largest warship ever constructed in a United States Navy shipyard and was considered to be impervious to fire from any cannons operated by any other navy. Next in the battle line steamed USS Agamenticus, USS Onondaga, and USS Miantonoth. These ironclads also had two turrets, each with two 15-inch Dahlgren smoothbore cannons.

  USS Kalamazoo approached the first Royal Navy battleship. Before the battleship could begin its broadside, Kalamazoo’s front turret fired, and the cannon balls blasted through the wood sides, the turret rotated to reload. The battleship fired its broadside, with the cannon balls bouncing off the armored hull, decks turrets, and pilot house. The second turret rotated and fired, causing considerable damage. The first turret rotated around fired again blasting into the lower gun deck, with wood and metal splinters wreaking havoc among the gun crews. Then Kalamazoo steamed by, heading for the second battleship.

  USS Agamenticus followed, firing both turrets at the same time. The lead battleship shuddered as the shots slammed into the lower gun deck. A ragged broadside followed, but all the cannon balls bounced off. Fires were beginning to burn, with gun crews rushing to pour sand on the spreading flames. USS Agamenticus turned sharply to port across the stern and fired the forward, then rear turret into the stern, tearing away the rudder, with shells striking the boiler. Steam erupted, as the battleship staggered out of line.

  USS Agamenticus turned back hard to starboard coming alongside the second battleship on the opposite side firing both turrets as they passed. Partially disabled, the battleship was unable to avoid colliding with her sister ship to the front. The collision toppled masts and yardarms onto the gun decks below. Both ships were out of the fight. The ironclads were relentless and impervious to return fire. One by one they Royal Navy ships reduced to hulks.

  On the battery, the gun crews were transfixed by the sea battle. Very few of them saw HMS Grogan and her consorts, run out their guns. The Union Jacks came down, and the Stars and Stripes raised. In sequence, the twenty-gun broadside from USS Grogan and ten-gun broadsides from USS Rambler and USS Winnisimmet slammed into the battery from behind. All the battery guns were pointed out to sea or directed to guard the channels. The broadsides were devastating, killing or wounding many of the gun crews either by the explosive shot or by flying pieces of masonry and wood splinters. Survivors staggered to their feet only to see the ships turning to bring their other broadsides to bear. Many tried to escape into the bombproofs, and others sought to turn the guns around when the three ships broadsides, loaded with explosive shot were fired and blasted into the battery.

  With the battery silenced, Grogan, Rambler, and Winnisimmet turned their attention to the navy yard and the docked sloops of war. The Royal Navy officers and crews were desperately trying to bring their guns into action. Sailors cut mooring lines, and steam was building in the boilers. However, it was too late. The surprise attack had caught them unprepared.

  In sequence, three broadsides slammed into the Royal Navy vessels which were desperately getting ready. In confusion, ships collided, rigging, yardarms, and masts became tangled, and the broadsides wreaked havoc among officers and crews. Grogan, Rambler, and Winnisimmet turned and brought their opposite broadsides into the action. The Royal Navy ships floundered, fires were everywhere aboard the ships and in the Navy Yard itself. Eventually, one of the ship’s magazine exploded showering flaming embers over the others and throughout the yard. The third sequence of broadsides smashed into the confusion.

  USS Kalamazoo led the ironclads into the harbor. Admiral Dahlgren had ordered the transports to follow them. United States Marines and Army soldiers boarded into the surf boats and headed to shore. The remnants of the Royal Marines, Army regiments and the local militia were desperately trying to set up defenses. Under cover of an intense naval bombardment, the attackers swarmed ashore. The fighting was intense, but the gradually the defenders fell back. Within an hour the fighting was over, and Hamilton surrendered. By the end of the day, 10,000 soldiers had landed. Once ashore, General Sickles ordered his regiments to advance on St George; heavily defended by forts, Caroline, Victoria, and Albert.

  St Georges, Bermuda

  Admiral Dahlgren switched his flag to USS Kalamazoo and steamed his ironclads to lie three miles off Forts Albert, Caroline and Victoria. For three days, the four ironclads shelled the forts alternating between solid and explosive rounds. The soft limestone walls absorbed the bombardment for the first day, but by the second day, cracks began to appear due to the poorly mixed mortar. By the end of the third day, the walls began to break apart.

  During that time, General Sickles had advanced his men up the island and was laying siege. The shallow draft Mosquito Fleet navigated through the reefs and cannonaded from the opposite side. On the fourth day, United States Marines landed on South Beach and under cover of a heavy naval bombardment began their assault.

  Sickles men attacked from the rear. Battered and shell-shocked from the shelling, the British defenders fought valiantly but were overrun and surrendered. One by one the forts fell to Sickles troops. Bermuda, the supposed Gibraltar of the America’s had fallen. The Surviving British troops and militia were loaded onto the transports and brought to prisoner of war camps in Virginia. A military government was established, with Sickles as military governor.

  Nassau, Bahama’s

  Admiral Dahlgren sailed into Nassau Bahamas in his flagship USS Pawnee. Pawnee was leading troop transports containing 5,000 soldiers. The ironclads USS Kalamazoo, USS Agamenticus, USS Onondaga and USS Miantonoth, led the assault. Fort Charlotte and Fort Fincastle protected Nassau.

  Fort Charlotte was a star shaped fortress, with 6-foot masonry walls. It’s armament included twelve 32 pound cannons. Fort Pinecastle had a mixture of 24lb and 32lb cannons. As the ironclads entered the harbor, the forts open fire, but the cannon balls had no effect. The bombardment from 15-inch and 20-inch Dahlgren cannons blasted away the fortifications, collapsing walls and silencing the guns. Survivors of the 750 man garrison escaped into the city. US Marines landing in surf boats secured the dock facilities. The troop ships docked at the harbor piers and unloaded 5,000 troops. The troops reinforced the Marines and together killed or captured most of the British garrison. Within two weeks, the entire Bahama chain of islands was under American control, with ships of the Mosquito Fleet patrolling the shallow inter-island waterways.

  Kingston, Jamaica

  Admiral Porter’s fleet left New Orleans and steamed towards Kingston, Jamaica. The Fleet included the ironclads USS Tecumseh USS Towanda, USS Puritan and USS Dictator. Off the coast ofCuba, USS Kalamazoo and USS Agamenticus joined the fleet. It was then that Admiral Porter learned of Admiral Dahlgren’s victories in Bermuda and the Bahamas. The fleet stopped at Guantanamo Bay for re-coaling, then proceeded to Jamaica. The Royal Navy base was at Port Royal, across the bay from Kingston and the imposing fortress of Fort Charles protected the approaches to the harbor.

  Fort Charles had 104 cannons and 10-foot thick masonry walls. Lookouts saw the approaching fleet and sounded the alarm. There were three Royal Navy 74-gun battleships which chose to anchor themselves across the channel instead of confronting the ironclads in a line of batt
le. This way they could concentrate their broadsides, in combination with the guns at Fort Charles.

  Admiral Porter changed his flag to USS Kalamazoo and led the ironclads into the harbor. His battle plan was to cannonade Fort Charles; then confront the anchored battleships. The cannons on Fort Charles boomed, with cannon balls bouncing off the heavy armor. Kalamazoo’s four 20-inch rifled Dahlgren’s fired into the casements blasting out large chunks of masonry. The other ironclads fired in sequence, and by the time USS Dictator, which was last in line fired, a section of the casement collapsed, bringing down the roof mounted guns above.

  The USS Kalamazoo was beginning to engage the battleships which fired furious broadsides. The noise of the balls hitting and bouncing off was drum music to the ears of the gun crews. The forward turret, follow by the rear turret fired at a range of 200 feet. The rifled shells blasted holes in the side of the first battleship rotated away, then fired a salvo into the second battleship. USS Agamenticus followed, then USS Tecumseh USS Towanda, USS Puritan, and USS Dictator. The first battleship was sinking and the second and third were badly damaged.

  USS Kalamazoo circled, cannonading Fort Charles as she passed. The other ironclads followed, and a whole section of the walls collapsed. As USS Kalamazoo approached, the remaining severely damaged battleships, fired a ragged broadside. Kalamazoo’s guns replied and the second battleship began to sink. Observing the battle was hopeless, the captain of the third battleship struck his colors. Watching the surrender of the remaining battleship, Fort Charles lowered the Union Jack and raised the white flag of surrender.

  USS Kalamazoo fired three green rockets into the air which was the signal for the troop ships to sail into the harbor. United States Marines landing in surf boats secured the docks in the city and at Port Royal. The troop ships docked and disgorged 10,000 soldiers. 90% of the population, consisted of freed slaves, who were realizing the American troops came as liberators from their former slave masters. At first, they rejoiced, but soon the celebrations turned on their former masters. Rioting and looting broke out, with many of the prior slave owners murdered, and their warehouses and stores looted.

  General Johnson ordered a stop to the looting, and any looters caught in the act shot on sight. The Marines and soldiers followed his orders, and by the end of the next day, Kingston and Port Royal were quiet. With Kingston and Port Royal firmly under control of the Marines, the soldiers moved into the interior. Word of the liberation and the treatment of the looters spread before them, and the populace greeted the soldiers with some goodwill, but mostly quiet acceptance.

  Bridgeton, Barbados

  Admiral Porter aboard the USS Kalamazoo was followed by USS Agamenticus and USS Towanda as they approached Bridgetown. Following the ironclads were five sloops of war and four troopships. Southwest Indies Regiment defended Bridgetown from their stations at Garrison House and Fort Anne, an old and outdated masonry fort constructed in 1705, and equipped with twelve 32lb cannons. As the fleet approached, the guns of the fort barked in defiance. Three salvos from the ironclads resulted in devastated defenses and the surrender of Fort Anne. The ironclads shelled the regimental barracks, while US Marines assaulted and took possession of the docks. With the docks secured, the troop ships docked and 2,500 soldiers went ashore. Within an hour, Bridgetown had fallen.

  Within a week, the smaller Royal Navy outposts in both Trinidad and Tobago were captured and occupied. Three monitors were towed to each of these locations to provide a defense against Royal Navy attempts at recapture. Coaling stations, ammunition, and logistics supplies were also opened to support the naval and ground defense operations.

  Hamilton Town, Bermuda

  The civilian population suffered under the occupation forces. Bermuda’s merchants and citizens had enthusiastically supported the South during the Civil War. United States citizen from the north suffered mistreatment until they were obliged to leave. Sickles planned to avenge these ills. He persecuted citizens by cutting their rations and declared the goods in the merchant’s stores and warehouses to be contraband and subject to seizure.

  The Bermuda Merchants Guild brought legal action. Admiralty courts settled issues revolving around contraband goods and violation of individual rights. Decisions were handed down overturning some of the more egregious confiscations. Sickles, censured for settling political scores through martial law fiat, was recalled. Shortly afterward, a sense of normalcy returned. Supplies and food arrived from the United States and the rationing lifted. Commerce between Bermuda and the United States resumed. The merchants who a few years previous had toasted the Confederate blockade runners now began working with their new trading partners.

  The courts also reviewed the records of the convicts forced to subsist on the hulks moored in the harbor. Those imprisoned for debts gained their freedom. Often their families were also in servitude to the wealthy as indentured servants. The families were reunited and offered the choice to stay in Bermuda or take transport to the United States. Fearing a possible British return, most opted to start a new life in the United States.

  Convicts convicted of more serious crimes had their cases evaluated. Decisions on freedom depended on the seriousness of the crime and the time served on the hulks. The freed were offered jobs mostly in the reconstruction of the fortifications. Those with military experience were offered the choice to enlist.

  The Navy towed four Passaic and four Canonicus Monitors to the harbors at St Georges and Hamilton for defensive purposes. Being shallow draft, and along with the Mosquito Fleet, they could easily patrol the harbors and inlets. Armed with 15-inch Dahlgren cannons, the Monitors could defeat Royal Navy attempts to recapture the island.

  Chapter 24

  Washington DC - March 18, 1868

  President Lincoln had a meeting with Secretary of War Ulysses S Grant, Secretary of State Seward and the new Secretary of the Navy Admiral David Farragut. Gideon Wells had retired after seven years of service. Wells had charted the course for ironclad warship development and improved steam engines. In early February, he had joined John Ericsson in a venture developing designs for new all steel warships, new turret designs and innovative gunnery. The reason for the meeting was to celebrate the capture of the major British bases in the Atlantic and Caribbean and to implement a way forward.

  Lincoln began: “Militarily, this campaign has been a total success. We have captured Upper and Lower Canada and captured most of the important British and Royal Navy bases in North America and the Caribbean. Only Halifax and Victoria stand in the way of our manifest destiny in North America from the Atlantic to the Pacific.” Looking at Secretary Farragut, he asked: “Admiral, what are your plans for the spring campaign”?

  Farragut stood up and answered: “We must prepare for British and Royal Navy counter attacks in Canada and the Caribbean. I suspect that they will bring their broadside ironclads from the Channel Fleet to lead the attacks.

  They have the purpose built ironclads including the HMS Warrior, HMS Prince Albert, HMS Achilles, HMS Hector and HMS Valiant. They also have twenty twin deck former battleships which have been cut down and converted to broadside ironclads. These ships all have masts, which limit their range of fire to the broadside. Our turreted ships have made them obsolete, but they will not be as easy to defeat as the wood battleships.

  The other three Kalamazoo monitors, USS Quinsigamond, USS Passaconamy and USS Shackamaxon, are in sea trials and should be ready within a month. If they live up to USS Kalamazoo’s example, they will be an answer to anything the Royal Navy can currently deploy.

  USS Stonewall’s refit is nearing completion. The masts and forward casement are gone, and twenty feet added to her length. A new larger steam engine was installed to compensate for the extra length and weight. This renovation should increase her speed and more than double her coal capacity.

  The new forward turret has been installed and equipped with the prior guns. Captain Powell’s concept of using hydraulics to raise and lower the barrels when reload
ing, has been tested and utilized. That should reduce reloading time by 50%. We increased the armor belt to 10 inches. Recommissioning will be within one month.

  Captain Powell’s design for the new warship is in development in Boston under his direction. The captured, former HMS Katherine is in dry dock and is being converted. The masts and rigging are gone, and she has been cut down to the upper gun deck and cut in half. By adding length and beam to the amidships, she has been almost doubled in length to 365 feet overall with a beam of 70 feet. Ten lateral watertight compartments were added for hull stability and to control flooding. The bow section was sharply tapered, and an ax ram added. The stern was also rounded to provide less drag.

  The hull has been water tested and is sound. Salvage crews recovered iron plating, and turrets from the monitors sunk in Boston and the iron is in use in the conversion. This design is experimental, and will probably be modified several times in the process.

  New larger turrets are being developed by Ericsson and Wells to accommodate the new naval artillery under development. Testing is underway for the 8, 10 and 12 inch rifled breech loaded steel guns. The design plans take into account the causes of the failure of the discontinued Royal Navy Armstrong Breech loaders. The screw breach of those guns tended to explode under a full powder load, which forced the Royal Navy to take them out of service.

  The new hoop steel breach design with sliding door has proved successful in limited testing. If the full testing process is successful, these guns will double the range and accuracy of the 20-inch rifled Dahlgren muzzle loaders. With continued success, installation of the new turrets and long guns will commence in the Kalamazoo Class and the Agamenticus Class ironclads.

  For the immediate future, Passaic and Canonicus Monitors, with the support of the Mosquito Fleets, will patrol the waters in and around Bermuda, The Bahama’s, Jamaica, Barbados, and Trinidad & Tobago. Without forward bases, the Royal Navy will have a difficult time supporting fleet operations to recover their lost possessions.” Lincoln gesturing to Secretary Grant asked: “Ulysses, what’s your analysis of the current situation and the likely British reactions”?