McRae, often erroneously identified by Union leaders as Miramon or General Miramon, was the former bark-rigged pirate ship Marques de la Habana which had been captured by USS Saratoga in March 1860. She was purchased by the Confederate States at New Orleans on 17 March 1861 and fitted out as CSS McRae. She was placed under command of Lt. T.
B. Huger, CSN, and assigned to the fleet under Flag Officer G. N. Rollins, CSN, entrusted with the defense of the lower Mississippi River. Part of this time, as in her last battle, she was Rollins' flagship.
McRae gave protection to blockade runners slipping in and out of the Mississippi and Mobile Bay. She gave a good account of herself in a spirited engagement with ships of the Federal blockading fleet at the Head of the Mississippi River Passes on 12 October 1861. Her last fight was a gallant defense of Forts Jackson and St. Philip on 24 April 1862. In this engagement the conduct of
her officers and crew was reported "rarely surpassed in the annals of naval warfare." With their ship cut to ribbons they fought on and would not surrender in an unequal contest which was conducted simultaneously against several Union warships and which left most of her crew dead or injured on her deck.
Though severely damaged, McRae came up river to New Orleans under a flag-of-truce on the evening of 27 April 1862, landing Confederate wounded from the forts below. There she was left to her fate and was found the following morning by Union forces sunk alongside the city wharf.
CSS McRae, from photograph, courtesy of Mr. Frederick Way, Jr., of Sewickley, Pennsylvania
1860 Enfield Civil War Musketoon This piece is a full-size non-firing
reproduction of the rifle used in the Civil War. The body is made of European hardwood
Civil War Cannon Collectible Models and childrens
playsets Miniature Collectible Civil War Cannon12 pound Civil War field cannon replica weapon
Sid Meier's Civil War Collection Take command of either Confederate or
Union troops and command them to attack from the trees, rally around the general, or do any number of other realistic military actions.
History Channel Civil War A Nation Divided Rally the troops and organize a counterattack -- Your strategic decision and talent as a commander will decide if the Union is preserved or if Dixie wins its independence
American Civil War Marines 1861-65 Marines wearing blue and grey fought in many
dramatic actions afloat and ashore – ship-to-ship engagements, cutting-out expeditions, and coastal landings. This book offers a comprehensive summary of all such battles, illustrated with rare early photographs
Union River Ironclad 1861-65 At the start of the American Civil War, neither side
had warships on the Mississippi River. In what would prove the vital naval campaign of the war, both sides fought for control of the river. While the Confederates relied on field fortifications and small gunboats, the Union built a series of revolutionary river ironclads
The Story of the H.L. Hunley During the Civil War, Union forces blockade the port of
Charleston so the Confederate army seeks a way to attrack the Yankee Ships. George Dixon is part of the group of men given the task of creating and building the "fish boat," a submarine. The H.L. Hunley ultimately sets out on its mission to sink Yankee ships, but fails to return, its whereabouts unknown.
Halls of Honor The U.S. Navy Museum takes you on an informed and entertaining romp through
one of North America s oldest and finest military museums. The museum has been in continuous operation at the Washington Navy Yard since the American Civil War
Raise The Alabama She was known as "the ghost ship." During the Civil War, the CSS Alabama
sailed over 75,000 miles and captured more than 60 Union vessels. But her career came to an end in June of 1864 when she was sunk by the USS Kearsarge off the coast of Northern France
The Civil War - A Film by Ken Burns Here is the saga of celebrated generals and ordinary soldiers,
a heroic and transcendent president and a country that had to divide itself in two in order to become one
Civil War Journal The Conflict Begins These four programs from the History Channel series Civil War Journal cover critical aspects of the early days of the
war.
