Vanguard Confederate Raider 1861-1865 Osprey Books

The Confederate states adopted radical solutions to counter the naval superiority of their opponents. One of the more successful solutions they adopted was the use of commerce raiders. Preceding the use of raiders during both world wars, these Confederate raiders scoured the seas, preying on Union shipping and forcing the deployment of large numbers of Union warships to hunt them down. Commerce raiders such as the CSS Alabama are widely regarded as the most glamorous warships of their era, and their exploits have fascinated later generations, through their daring escapes, brutal attacks and climactic battles against Union opponents. This book describes the reasons which forced the Confederates to resort to commerce raiding, and outlines the way in which these craft were converted or specially built to perform their role. It details the way these craft operated, how they were manned, and above all, how they fought. No other book covers the same ground, and provides the same wealth of illustrative material.