CSS Alabama 1864
![Rear Admiral J. W. Schmidt [1]](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CSSAlabama.jpg){kind=link}
Marker: recorded wreck position (Steam era).
Key facts
| Name | CSS Alabama | Wikidata label |
|---|---|---|
| Year lost | 1864 | Wikidata P793 significant event, point-in-time qualifier |
| Era | Steam era | derived from year |
| Ship type | sloop-of-war | Wikidata P31 instance of |
| Cause of loss | War action | Wikidata P828 has cause (on P793 event): Battle of Cherbourg |
| Nationality / flag | Confederate States of America | Wikidata P8047 country of registry |
| Operator | Confederate States Navy | Wikidata P137 operator |
| Sea / ocean | English Channel | Natural Earth marine areas (public domain), point-in-polygon |
| Nearest coast | France | Natural Earth (public domain); approx. 8 km from land |
| Position | 49.7525, -1.6950 | Wikidata P625 coordinate location (CC0) |
About the wreck
CSS Alabama was a screw sloop-of-war built in 1862 for the Confederate States Navy. She was built in Birkenhead on the River Mersey opposite Liverpool, England, by John Laird Sons and Company. Launched as Enrica, she was fitted out as a cruiser and commissioned as CSS Alabama on August 24, 1862. Under Captain Raphael Semmes, Alabama served as a successful commerce raider, attacking, capturing, and burning Union merchant and naval ships in the North Atlantic, as well as intercepting American grain ships bound for Europe. The Alabama continued through the West Indies and further into the East Indies, destroying over seven ships before returning to Europe. On June 11, 1864, the Alabama arrived at Cherbourg, France, where she was overhauled. Shortly after, a Union sloop-of-war, USS Kearsarge, arrived; and on June 19, the Battle of Cherbourg commenced outside the port of Cherbourg, France, whereby the Kearsarge sank the Alabama in approximately one hour after the Alabama's opening shot.
Diving & visiting
In November 1984 the French Navy mine hunter Circé discovered a wreck under nearly 200 ft (60 m) of water off Cherbourg at 49°45′9″N 1°41′42″W. Captain Max Guerout later confirmed the wreck to be Alabama's remains.
In 1988 a non-profit organization, the CSS Alabama Association, was founded to conduct scientific exploration of the shipwreck. Although the wreck is in French territorial waters, the United States Government, as the successor to the former Confederate States of America, is the owner.
Location
- Recorded position: 49.7525, -1.6950 (Wikidata P625 coordinate location (CC0); may be approximate)
- Sea / ocean: English Channel
- Nearest coast: France
Wreck positions on this site are for interest only and are not for navigation. Many wrecks are war graves or legally protected: never disturb human remains or remove artefacts, and check local law before diving.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article CSS Alabama (revision 1373236843), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section and section(s) “The wreck”; condensed by selecting paragraphs; citations and formatting removed. No text added. This excerpt is available under the same licence.
Wreck facts from Wikidata (CC0).
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Browse more: Europe wrecks · wrecks off France · English Channel · Steam era