According to a book about Semmes and the Alabama, her boilers were far gone and her bottom was foul, so she couldn't make much speed. So, running wasn't feasible and a fight was the only option.
wow! i live just down the road from the cammell laird ship yard where the alabama was built. its also pretty interesting to know it was crewed by the locals.
Don't forget the Kearsarge was a warship built and crew trained to engage other warships. The Alabama was a commerce raider that targeted and engaged largely unarmed or lightly armed merchant ships. Each optimized for their purpose. The advantage was to the Kearsarge in a ship on ship duel.
A shot from the Alabama hit the Kearsarge rudder early in the fight but did not explode due to old/poor quality powder. Otherwise this battle would have gone much differently.. quickly. so much for better marksmenship by the yankees. The spirit of The Alabama still rolls today. It was a superb ship built by superb craftsmen. And no one sings songs about the Kearsarge and her crew. Roll Tide.
I would also suspect that Kearsage had a more numerous crew as a Naval vessel than any privateer, especially given the Confederacy's shortage of seamen. Try the U.S. Navy historical society for more insight. Kearsage was almost as famous as Alabama so there may be songs about her as well. (As well as several, later epoynmous ships)
It is a shame that nowadays folks can't enjoy a beautiful shanty that honors a proud ship along with her brave crew without some idiot shooting his mouth off like a cannon.
Its a bit strange calling the Alabama a "Confederate" ship. The Alabama was built in Liverpool, The crew were from Liverpool. The guns were from Liverpool. After the war the British government had to pay damages to the U.S. government for allowing a British ship to sink so many US ships. The Captain was from Maryland, but everything else, the ship, the men and the guns was "Made in Liverpool".
@istanbulbob The claims came from Britain allowing Laird and Sons to build a Confederate naval vessel; it was under the CS flag and most of her crew and officers were either Southerners or Southern sympathizers by the time she sank in 1864.
So much futile sacrifice in the name of owning other human beings. God Bless President Lincoln, Generals Grant, Sherman, Meade and Thomas, and Admirals Porter, Foote and Farraghut - and Captain Winslow of the Kearsarge for saving the Union and freeing the slaves. And to hell with the slaveholders' rebellion!
You pretentious fool! How dare you say two hundred years of slavery were not a holocaust? Thousands of sick and dead Africans were thrown over the sides of slave ships during the middle passage to America. Do I need to go on? I feel the need to be rude at this point, for if you had been president during the civil war, oh, that is right there wouldn’t have been one. I don’t know if you’re ignorant or just stupid.
I guess, some day, 150 years from now some Germans will sit around and wax nostalgic about the Swastika, ahhh the good old days. Oh, that’s right the Germans have past laws against it! The Stars and Bars represents the deaths of 600,000 Americans both north and south, moreover the systematic slavery, HOLOCAUST of millions of Africans. Pick up a book.
@ebenezer1690 the south also represented state's rights. basically does that mean that the flag of the roman republic, which our country was modeled after, also represents a "holocaust" of its slaves? you can't compare the old ways with today's practice...and btw, the word "holocaust" is not applicable to slavery...it has an entirely different meaning.
but im not going to continue to argue with you, just wanted to let you know where you are wrong.
(Holocaust) destruction of human life: wholesale or mass destruction, especially of human life World English Dictionary
You pretentious fool! How dare you say two hundred years of slavery were not a holocaust? Thousands of sick and dead Africans were thrown over the sides of slave ships during the middle passage to America. Do I need to go on?
African Kings and peoples enslaved each other for thousands of years. For hundreds of years before the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, Arab Muslims dominated the trade and enslaved more Africans than the Europeans did. It was African Kings who sold other Africans to Europeans. Most of the African-Americans in the USA today came here before the United States even existed, were carried on ships that bore the flag of the British Empire. Holocaust means extermination not slavery.
@kepler1000 Well said. All this talk of slavery being the "biggest scar on American history" is just what the media likes to use to distract us from problems that affect us TODAY. Plus, African Americans tend to use slavery as an excuse every time something goes wrong for them.
@kepler1000 odd the ignorance of some.an example is muhammad ali that said Cassius Clay (also his father's name)was a 'slave name" but the original clay was an abolitionist famous for his fight against slavery that ali grandfather must have known about and why he named his son after him.Ironic that the ignorant ali would change his name to what match thousands of slave traders that sold his ancestors
@ebenezer1690 Youre an idiot. Slavery was started in MA colony, that is north. Second, texas was the first state to try to abolish slavery. When slave ships were caught by european ships, they hoisted the union flag and NOT the Confederate flag so that they could keep their slaves. The Confederacy voted to get rid of slavery but didnt pass because two states wanted to wait till the end of the war to abolish it. Louisiana had black volunteers. Go pick up a book retard
My two favorite ships of all time are the C.S.S. Alabama and the C.S.S. Florida. They were made side by side in Liverpool and were confederate designs that were 2 knots faster then the fastest Union ships. The Alabama holds the record for sinking the most ships at 67 and the Florida is second place in that category at 48.
While the furthest north land battle of the American Civil War, was fought in Carlisle, Pa during the Gettysburg Campaign, the furthest north battle period was the sinking of the Alabama, off the coast of France.
Im trying to do a little research on shanteys and traditional folk. I can't seem to find any information on an approximate date for when this song was written. Anyone know where I can research this? I'm trying to narrow it to a span of ten years.
Lets keep history in mind here. Not hatred of any form. There were actually more slaves fight for the Confederacy than the Union and not against their will. The south was their home and they felt invaded as did the rest of the southerners. The black race was as divided as our country was and it should be respected and admired. The Civil War was a terrible conflict that damn near tore us apart for good.
@bc381900 That's insanity. Why did 200,000 then flock to the Union cause?
This is entirely made-up drivel that was invented after the war to try to justify a revolt against democracy (remember, they seceded when Lincoln was elected completely normally) and founding a country entirely devoted, "its cornerstone laid on the idea that the negro is not equal to the white man" (according to one of the traitor leaders).
Lincoln himself said that he was fighting a war to preserve the union and not to end slavery but merely to end the spread of it. The emancipation proclamation was a tool that Lincoln used to keep foreign interests from siding with the confederacy. And it is not a "made up fact" that slaves and ex slaves fought in southern ranks. Ex. Co. H. 13th Virginia. Cavalry, The Jackson Battalion, and many more.
@bc381900 You're getting confused. He ran on a ticket of stopping its spread, and said the war was not about ending slavery - early on. It did become a war to end slavery not long after - ending slavery became an ideal that the Union fought for. It was as risky a tool as it was useful - there was the chance of losing support at home which was far more important than preventing foreign aid, which wasn't very likely.
So why did they do it? Oh yeah - they wanted to end slavery.
@bc381900 As for slaves fighting for the Confederacy, the evidence is scanty at best. The official Confederate rolls list 140 blacks who were enlisted in the last three days of the war as a desperation move.
Reports of other slaves fighting are purely anecdotal; many were in the army, but they were mostly unarmed. Even if a few did fight does not change the basic facts that the Union's goal was for all men to be equal while the Confederacy's goal was to keep them from being so.
'The most liberal calculations could not give them more than 6i,000 men. Over 3,000 negroes must be included in this number. These were clad in all kinds of uniforms, not only in cast-off or captured United States uniforms, but in coats with Southern buttons, State buttons, etc. These were shabby, but not shabbier or seedier than those worn bv white men in the rebel ranks.
Most of the negroes had arms, rifles, muskets, sabres, bowie-knives, dirks, etc. They were supplied, in many instances, with knapsacks, haversacks, canteens, etc., and were manifestly an integral portion of the Southern Confederacy Army. They were seen riding on horses and mules, driving wagons, riding on caissons, in ambulances, with the staff of Generals, and promiscuously mixed up with all the rebel horde.' - Dr. Lewis Steiner.
@TheBoberton Yes, these are what is called "anecdotal" reports. It does not show a trend, and such incidents are very rare. A few blacks unofficially fighting doesn't mean all that much. Some slaves were very loyal to their masters, and even thought slavery was good. It's basically stockholm's syndrome.
What is important is the official status, because that shows the trends and beliefs of the Confed government. And officially, there weren't any black soldiers in the Confederacy-
@TheBoberton -until the very end of the war when they officially had about 140, I believe. This was 2-3 days before Appomattox.
So why did they not officially have soldiers until then? Well, it's because the Confederacy was based "Its cornerstone rest(ed)" on the idea that blacks were inferior, slavery was good for them, and they were fighting to keep slavery.
That's why 140 officially served the Confederacy (possibility of freedom), a few unofficially served (slaves), and hundreds-
@borbo23 actually, the exact number of black who faught in the confederate army is unknown, but it is estimated that about 65,000 free and slaves were "unofically enlisted" in the confederate army. The reason that there isnt many reports of it is the politicans did not want blacks to be in the confederate army, but many confederate officers did not obey the mandate set by the confederate congress.
@Ty032392 While I can't add anything from the unofficial blacks in the CSA, I can tell you the amounts official known. In 1864-1864 the CSA congress finally consented to allowing slaves to be used. First 20,000 were hired on a short term. When that didn't work out to well, 40,000 were bought and promised freedom at the end of their long term service. Those 60,000 were laborers, wagon drivers, cooks, etc. but not soldiers. In 1865 the CSA congress decided to allow black soldiers.
@AngelofMaddness A call went out, freedom was offered at the end of the service, and they couldn't be forced into uniforms, they had to volenteer. One week before Richmond was overrun the first company of CSA black soldiers was assembled. After that point I haven't found any more records about what happened to them. Likewise I don't know how many unofficially fought for the CSA, due to all the records being lost. I hope that helps.
@TheBoberton -hundreds of thousands risked their lives just to JOIN the Union armies of liberation. Because that's exactly what they were.
Regardless of how you try to spin the Union's goals, there is an unmistakable trend; where the Confederate army went, blacks were enslaved. Where the Union army went they were freed (and minor events to the contrary either way are outliers).
It was the North who made constitutional amendments to make men free.
God bless the brave men who served in the Confederacy, their service should still be recognized as they answered the call of their government, just like a northern soldier was expected too, just as we are expected too in modern days.
@gene9156 Why should god bless traitors whose goal was to keep his children as slaves?
If I recall correctly, the deepest level of hell is reserved for traitors, and I would call breaking your oath of allegiance and attacking the country that trained you is betrayal.
@smizerene They could, but there's a major difference; the US rebelled under the belief that the only legitimate form of government can be one that is by the people. This was a contradiction with slavery, but slavery died off in the north fairly quickly.
The Confederacy was actually a rebellion against this idea; it was a more aristocratic government whose sole goal was to maintain slavery. Much of the southern pop. wasn't even pro-Confed. They could in no way claim to be a legitimate gov't.
@borbo23 agree to disagree. slavery is over but somehow people want to keep bringing it up and it really angers me. i mean all of our ancestors at some point in our history were probably slaves somewhere. africans were not the only slaves in history; but they think so by god
I sense some bitterness. No one here has said they were the only slaves in history, but some people try to re-write history and pretend some of the worst scum of humanity (the Confederates) were fighting for "libertah" or something instead of just being selfish wastes of skin who wanted to keep slavery long after it was recognized as a crime against humanity. That's the problem, not people believing they were "the only slaves in history".
@borbo23 worst scum in history i will save for nazi germany and any country trying to exterminate a race of people. so fuck u. im from the south and im proud of it. not gonna argue with a fucktard nigger apologist
There IS no connection to the Tide football team and this song. The CSS Alabama was a fast little ship that sank many tons of enemy shipping. There is a community in Alabama named for its captain, Raphael Semmes. The ship was 220 feet long and weighed 1050 tons. Semmes, Alabama is near Mobile.
Don't also forget he part that the Port of Liverpool played in this saga, Many Liverpool seafararers signed for the Confederate Navy, and CSN Ship - The Shnendoah - Even refused to surrender to Union forces, She actually gave up her Colours to Royal Marines in Liverpool Bay, and that was how they discovered the nationallity of a lot of the crew
As far as I'm aware, there is some confusion over which building is the Confederate Embassy in Liverpool. There is the One That's now used by Liverpool University, Complete with the Ceiling Mural of the Snake coiled round the base of a palmetto tree, and there are also the offices in Rumford Street, Alabama , Dunwoody and SemmesHouse (if I remember right) which still fly the American Flag to this day (akthough somebody told me these were used as warehouses can
Never heard this song before, it gives a big tip of the hat to Birkenhead and the Mersey - quite right to!
btw - I once heard an anecdote that Semmes had to pay a huge bar tab when I he picked up this crew just after sailing out of the Mersey. Can anyone confirm this?
btw 2 - The old Confederate Embassy building still stands in Liverpool, England.
Fort Monroe will finally be surrendered back to the state of Virginia in 2011. It would be a grand show if, when the Union Army marches out of the fort, that a Confederate Re-enactment unit march in and raise the flag of the South. Please, someone organize this. It would just be for show but would mean a lot.
Yes Zack Fort Monroe was comstructed in 1816 because it was a strategic point to the defence at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. It is still today an active fort built almost as a castle with a moat around it. The fort was held by the Union troop at the beginning of the civil war and never captured because Gen Lee knew how well it was built.
Once again in the history of our nation a ship called Alabama is immortalized.On this Easter Sunday in the Year of Lord 2009 theUS Navy and USMC smited our enemie's.Also,weii done Captain Phillip's and crew of the Maarsk Alabama. I know Adm. Semmes would be proud to see it all come out the way it did.Funny,in a way.The U.S.Navy ended his his commerce raiding off Cherbourg. Roll Alabama.
seachef587 thats why we r the crimson tide didnt surrender we helped rselves jesse james would be proud of that pirate crew though we did our business on land far from the sea i have an affininity for u deep southern people dont forget us out here on the great plains like mongols we ride and we r devoted to freedom with order no doubt god save the queen
This is a great old song, the CSS Alabama was a great commerce raider and Rafael Semmes did leave but his job was to return if possible and sail again. The funny thing is the Kersarge and the Alabama were very similar looking ships not sisters but very similar. If the Alabama had had her refit and repair I think the out come of the battle would have been different
@Bigbadjohn562 Similar looking, sure, but Kearsarge was armored and Alabama was not. Semmes himself said afterward that in light of that he should have declined action.
@ajferet Of course both ships had steam engines as well as sails, which may have lessened the need for the weather guage. Kearsarge had some armor plating installed and her gunners were better-drilled than the Alabama's. And her Dahlgren guns had more range and firepower than the 8-inch smoothbores and 10-pounder Blakely upon which Captain Semmes chiefly depended. The Alabama's powder was old and unreliable to boot. In short, I'd have tried to avoid this duel if I'd been in Semmes's shoes!
True, but as late as the Jutland, Naval commanders sought the weather gauge. The goal was to keep the smoke of the engines and guns in the (still visual) aiming of the gunners. Also, remember that the goal of Alabama was to destroy/raid Yankee commerce (to make money), not to engage the United States Navy, especially as the CSN did not have resources to pay prize, head or gun money. :)
@ajferet Thanks for the info on the weather guage--avoiding smoke that would impede aiming and visibility makes perfect sense! I agree completely on the Alabama's role--it was against Semmes' mission to challenge Captain Winslow of the Kearsarge to a duel. The only possible reason would be the fact that Winslow was waiting for the Alabama to leave port--maybe Semmes figured he'd have to fight anyway and that risking a defeat was better than having to abandon the ship in Cherbourg.
@galoon Exactly so. Kearsage, whose logs survive (probably), and Alabama's (almost certainty not) (as would British and French newspaper accounts) that the Kearsage was waiting to sink Alabama as soon as she left port. Fleeing was the best option, but Kearsage might have been faster as well.
@ajferet Yes--fleeing was Semmes' most desirable option. I think he'd have waited for favorable conditions and tried it if international law hadn't given him such a limited time in port. I'll have to look up their performance stats, but I think the Alabama and Kearsarge had about the same top speeds; they were both steam sloops of similar design. Thanks for mentioning Kearsarge's log--I'll have to look and see if it's available. Luckily Semmes wrote a book on his "Alabama" career.
I, as an Irish Yankee am more proud of your Virginia, than this..a mere privateer in all but name, legitimately engaged outside a French port and sunk, not with one shot, as the song portrays, but after an hour or more of battle...fyi, its noble Captain fled, on a British yacht.
I'm so proud of our Confederate navy, especially the CSS Hunley,Alabama, Virginia and last but certainly not least, the CSS Shenandoah, the last Confederates to surrender on Nov 6,1865. Deo Vindice
Just an interesting fact about the Shenandoah, They were busy sinking Yank fishing ships when they were found by a British ship. They took them to port, and made them surrender, after the war. I'm sure the men were glad to get away from where they were stationed at.....near the north pole.
I love the Heart of Dixie!!!
Passmore246 1 week ago
Nice!
Bruno47602 2 months ago
According to a book about Semmes and the Alabama, her boilers were far gone and her bottom was foul, so she couldn't make much speed. So, running wasn't feasible and a fight was the only option.
stateroom12 2 months ago
wow! i live just down the road from the cammell laird ship yard where the alabama was built. its also pretty interesting to know it was crewed by the locals.
danny1878efc 3 months ago
@danny1878efc Hey can you send me some pics, I will send you some back , Thanks.
mobilechief 2 months ago
Don't forget the Kearsarge was a warship built and crew trained to engage other warships. The Alabama was a commerce raider that targeted and engaged largely unarmed or lightly armed merchant ships. Each optimized for their purpose. The advantage was to the Kearsarge in a ship on ship duel.
panzerabwerkanone 3 months ago
A shot from the Alabama hit the Kearsarge rudder early in the fight but did not explode due to old/poor quality powder. Otherwise this battle would have gone much differently.. quickly. so much for better marksmenship by the yankees. The spirit of The Alabama still rolls today. It was a superb ship built by superb craftsmen. And no one sings songs about the Kearsarge and her crew. Roll Tide.
ArdRick1 4 months ago
i still think its a great song. no matter who won or lost. roll tide!
crashgorilla 4 months ago 3
I would also suspect that Kearsage had a more numerous crew as a Naval vessel than any privateer, especially given the Confederacy's shortage of seamen. Try the U.S. Navy historical society for more insight. Kearsage was almost as famous as Alabama so there may be songs about her as well. (As well as several, later epoynmous ships)
ajferet 5 months ago
It is a shame that nowadays folks can't enjoy a beautiful shanty that honors a proud ship along with her brave crew without some idiot shooting his mouth off like a cannon.
rabuliz 7 months ago
Heard a different version from a Scottish singer in a session in Southern Brittany. Beautiful version this one too!
RemzofFrance 7 months ago
roll on alabama roll on
CSAMARINE54 7 months ago
HURRAH , for the confederacy and the sailors and the condederate marines
CSAMARINE54 7 months ago 3
I may be for the union but I have to admit the CSS Alabama was one of the best ships in the civil war
bmmaclean50 7 months ago
long live Alabama, may she soon secede again
ThePopee1 7 months ago
@ThePopee1 "We dare defend our rights" I hope too she'll soon leave the Union again, and hopefully this time without a damn war!
tylerpharaoh1989 7 months ago
Its a bit strange calling the Alabama a "Confederate" ship. The Alabama was built in Liverpool, The crew were from Liverpool. The guns were from Liverpool. After the war the British government had to pay damages to the U.S. government for allowing a British ship to sink so many US ships. The Captain was from Maryland, but everything else, the ship, the men and the guns was "Made in Liverpool".
istanbulbob 8 months ago
@istanbulbob they enlisted in the confederate navy, meaning it was a CS ship.
aarondavis2012 8 months ago
@aarondavis2012 Fair point. Made in Liverpool, but flying the Stars and Bars.
istanbulbob 7 months ago
@istanbulbob The claims came from Britain allowing Laird and Sons to build a Confederate naval vessel; it was under the CS flag and most of her crew and officers were either Southerners or Southern sympathizers by the time she sank in 1864.
williamskidfears 7 months ago
So much futile sacrifice in the name of owning other human beings. God Bless President Lincoln, Generals Grant, Sherman, Meade and Thomas, and Admirals Porter, Foote and Farraghut - and Captain Winslow of the Kearsarge for saving the Union and freeing the slaves. And to hell with the slaveholders' rebellion!
KillerKane0 8 months ago
Poor ol Alabama, gettin sunk
Krigarkaj 8 months ago
All southerners do is eat bbq and enslave.
Gillettex92 9 months ago
@Gillettex92 And all black men do is write songs like "Dixie."
williamskidfears 8 months ago
You pretentious fool! How dare you say two hundred years of slavery were not a holocaust? Thousands of sick and dead Africans were thrown over the sides of slave ships during the middle passage to America. Do I need to go on? I feel the need to be rude at this point, for if you had been president during the civil war, oh, that is right there wouldn’t have been one. I don’t know if you’re ignorant or just stupid.
ebenezer1690 10 months ago
I guess, some day, 150 years from now some Germans will sit around and wax nostalgic about the Swastika, ahhh the good old days. Oh, that’s right the Germans have past laws against it! The Stars and Bars represents the deaths of 600,000 Americans both north and south, moreover the systematic slavery, HOLOCAUST of millions of Africans. Pick up a book.
ebenezer1690 10 months ago
@ebenezer1690 relax, this is only a song. enjoy the music. no mix polithic.
LOLOfandoly 10 months ago
@ebenezer1690 the south also represented state's rights. basically does that mean that the flag of the roman republic, which our country was modeled after, also represents a "holocaust" of its slaves? you can't compare the old ways with today's practice...and btw, the word "holocaust" is not applicable to slavery...it has an entirely different meaning.
but im not going to continue to argue with you, just wanted to let you know where you are wrong.
eurasianchica 10 months ago
(Holocaust) destruction of human life: wholesale or mass destruction, especially of human life World English Dictionary
You pretentious fool! How dare you say two hundred years of slavery were not a holocaust? Thousands of sick and dead Africans were thrown over the sides of slave ships during the middle passage to America. Do I need to go on?
ebenezer1690 10 months ago
@ebenezer1690
African Kings and peoples enslaved each other for thousands of years. For hundreds of years before the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, Arab Muslims dominated the trade and enslaved more Africans than the Europeans did. It was African Kings who sold other Africans to Europeans. Most of the African-Americans in the USA today came here before the United States even existed, were carried on ships that bore the flag of the British Empire. Holocaust means extermination not slavery.
kepler1000 8 months ago 16
@kepler1000 Well said. All this talk of slavery being the "biggest scar on American history" is just what the media likes to use to distract us from problems that affect us TODAY. Plus, African Americans tend to use slavery as an excuse every time something goes wrong for them.
thewillfulldreamer 2 months ago in playlist Music
@thewillfulldreamer Africans of any kind american or original are all lazy bastards whining
all the time.
rockin1ify 3 weeks ago
@rockin1ify Unfortunalty I cant deny that. Haha.
thewillfulldreamer 3 weeks ago
@kepler1000 odd the ignorance of some.an example is muhammad ali that said Cassius Clay (also his father's name)was a 'slave name" but the original clay was an abolitionist famous for his fight against slavery that ali grandfather must have known about and why he named his son after him.Ironic that the ignorant ali would change his name to what match thousands of slave traders that sold his ancestors
namtesyalp 1 month ago
@ebenezer1690 Youre an idiot. Slavery was started in MA colony, that is north. Second, texas was the first state to try to abolish slavery. When slave ships were caught by european ships, they hoisted the union flag and NOT the Confederate flag so that they could keep their slaves. The Confederacy voted to get rid of slavery but didnt pass because two states wanted to wait till the end of the war to abolish it. Louisiana had black volunteers. Go pick up a book retard
heavensnorthernlight 9 months ago 3
@heavensnorthernlight plus the first slave owner in the new world was black
aarondavis2012 8 months ago
I WANT TO SEE THE STARS AND BARS AND BONNIE BLUE FLY EVERYWHERE TILL MAINSTREET WINS OVER WALL STREET!
ERROLCUSTERFLYNN4EVR 11 months ago
My two favorite ships of all time are the C.S.S. Alabama and the C.S.S. Florida. They were made side by side in Liverpool and were confederate designs that were 2 knots faster then the fastest Union ships. The Alabama holds the record for sinking the most ships at 67 and the Florida is second place in that category at 48.
billyslo87 11 months ago
too slow a tempo
pvtvice 1 year ago
Roll twisted box cars god bless the stripes and stars If we get two million Id hope for two more.
minusblame 1 year ago
While the furthest north land battle of the American Civil War, was fought in Carlisle, Pa during the Gettysburg Campaign, the furthest north battle period was the sinking of the Alabama, off the coast of France.
SantaFe19484 1 year ago
Roll tide!
comradeshow 1 year ago
yet another stunning example of Britains once glorious ship building ability may she RIP
clsteele 1 year ago 9
Alabama or rednecks?..
im just kidding Alabama lol
killerdarkri 1 year ago
Im trying to do a little research on shanteys and traditional folk. I can't seem to find any information on an approximate date for when this song was written. Anyone know where I can research this? I'm trying to narrow it to a span of ten years.
Sadbannwn1 1 year ago
@Sadbannwn1 Stan Hugill isn't of much help for this one, sorry.
godlessmaximus 1 year ago
@godlessmaximus thanks anyway Godless
Sadbannwn1 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@godlessmaximus thanks anyway Godless
Sadbannwn1 1 year ago
Lets keep history in mind here. Not hatred of any form. There were actually more slaves fight for the Confederacy than the Union and not against their will. The south was their home and they felt invaded as did the rest of the southerners. The black race was as divided as our country was and it should be respected and admired. The Civil War was a terrible conflict that damn near tore us apart for good.
bc381900 1 year ago 3
@bc381900 That's insanity. Why did 200,000 then flock to the Union cause?
This is entirely made-up drivel that was invented after the war to try to justify a revolt against democracy (remember, they seceded when Lincoln was elected completely normally) and founding a country entirely devoted, "its cornerstone laid on the idea that the negro is not equal to the white man" (according to one of the traitor leaders).
borbo23 1 year ago
Lincoln himself said that he was fighting a war to preserve the union and not to end slavery but merely to end the spread of it. The emancipation proclamation was a tool that Lincoln used to keep foreign interests from siding with the confederacy. And it is not a "made up fact" that slaves and ex slaves fought in southern ranks. Ex. Co. H. 13th Virginia. Cavalry, The Jackson Battalion, and many more.
bc381900 1 year ago 2
@bc381900 You're getting confused. He ran on a ticket of stopping its spread, and said the war was not about ending slavery - early on. It did become a war to end slavery not long after - ending slavery became an ideal that the Union fought for. It was as risky a tool as it was useful - there was the chance of losing support at home which was far more important than preventing foreign aid, which wasn't very likely.
So why did they do it? Oh yeah - they wanted to end slavery.
borbo23 1 year ago
@bc381900 As for slaves fighting for the Confederacy, the evidence is scanty at best. The official Confederate rolls list 140 blacks who were enlisted in the last three days of the war as a desperation move.
Reports of other slaves fighting are purely anecdotal; many were in the army, but they were mostly unarmed. Even if a few did fight does not change the basic facts that the Union's goal was for all men to be equal while the Confederacy's goal was to keep them from being so.
borbo23 1 year ago
@borbo23
Time to roll out a report by a union man.
'The most liberal calculations could not give them more than 6i,000 men. Over 3,000 negroes must be included in this number. These were clad in all kinds of uniforms, not only in cast-off or captured United States uniforms, but in coats with Southern buttons, State buttons, etc. These were shabby, but not shabbier or seedier than those worn bv white men in the rebel ranks.
(Cont)
TheBoberton 1 year ago
(Cont)
Most of the negroes had arms, rifles, muskets, sabres, bowie-knives, dirks, etc. They were supplied, in many instances, with knapsacks, haversacks, canteens, etc., and were manifestly an integral portion of the Southern Confederacy Army. They were seen riding on horses and mules, driving wagons, riding on caissons, in ambulances, with the staff of Generals, and promiscuously mixed up with all the rebel horde.' - Dr. Lewis Steiner.
TheBoberton 1 year ago
@TheBoberton Yes, these are what is called "anecdotal" reports. It does not show a trend, and such incidents are very rare. A few blacks unofficially fighting doesn't mean all that much. Some slaves were very loyal to their masters, and even thought slavery was good. It's basically stockholm's syndrome.
What is important is the official status, because that shows the trends and beliefs of the Confed government. And officially, there weren't any black soldiers in the Confederacy-
borbo23 1 year ago
@TheBoberton -until the very end of the war when they officially had about 140, I believe. This was 2-3 days before Appomattox.
So why did they not officially have soldiers until then? Well, it's because the Confederacy was based "Its cornerstone rest(ed)" on the idea that blacks were inferior, slavery was good for them, and they were fighting to keep slavery.
That's why 140 officially served the Confederacy (possibility of freedom), a few unofficially served (slaves), and hundreds-
borbo23 1 year ago
@borbo23 actually, the exact number of black who faught in the confederate army is unknown, but it is estimated that about 65,000 free and slaves were "unofically enlisted" in the confederate army. The reason that there isnt many reports of it is the politicans did not want blacks to be in the confederate army, but many confederate officers did not obey the mandate set by the confederate congress.
Ty032392 11 months ago 2
@Ty032392 While I can't add anything from the unofficial blacks in the CSA, I can tell you the amounts official known. In 1864-1864 the CSA congress finally consented to allowing slaves to be used. First 20,000 were hired on a short term. When that didn't work out to well, 40,000 were bought and promised freedom at the end of their long term service. Those 60,000 were laborers, wagon drivers, cooks, etc. but not soldiers. In 1865 the CSA congress decided to allow black soldiers.
AngelofMaddness 11 months ago
@AngelofMaddness A call went out, freedom was offered at the end of the service, and they couldn't be forced into uniforms, they had to volenteer. One week before Richmond was overrun the first company of CSA black soldiers was assembled. After that point I haven't found any more records about what happened to them. Likewise I don't know how many unofficially fought for the CSA, due to all the records being lost. I hope that helps.
AngelofMaddness 11 months ago 2
@TheBoberton -hundreds of thousands risked their lives just to JOIN the Union armies of liberation. Because that's exactly what they were.
Regardless of how you try to spin the Union's goals, there is an unmistakable trend; where the Confederate army went, blacks were enslaved. Where the Union army went they were freed (and minor events to the contrary either way are outliers).
It was the North who made constitutional amendments to make men free.
borbo23 1 year ago
the british got blamed for lengthening the civil war
thearbiter221 1 year ago
@thearbiter221 Well the ship and many others were built in Birkenhead,Liverpool.
RedZHunter 1 year ago
ROLL ALABAMA ROLL
O. M. Roberts camp #178 SCV
O'Neal's 26th Alabama
"The Little Regiment that Did"
fprtclvs 1 year ago
God hates men who treated his fellow brethren like shit
felnaris 1 year ago
One of the most beautiful patriotic songs i've ever heard! Thanks, CommandCentre!
P.S. Can someone tell me more about the last battle of the ship, PLEASE?
dumdebadaba 1 year ago
A prayer;
God bless the brave men who served in the Confederacy, their service should still be recognized as they answered the call of their government, just like a northern soldier was expected too, just as we are expected too in modern days.
God remember the men of the south.
Amen
gene9156 1 year ago 4
@gene9156 Why should god bless traitors whose goal was to keep his children as slaves?
If I recall correctly, the deepest level of hell is reserved for traitors, and I would call breaking your oath of allegiance and attacking the country that trained you is betrayal.
borbo23 1 year ago
@borbo23 england could say the same about the revolution.
smizerene 1 year ago
@smizerene They could, but there's a major difference; the US rebelled under the belief that the only legitimate form of government can be one that is by the people. This was a contradiction with slavery, but slavery died off in the north fairly quickly.
The Confederacy was actually a rebellion against this idea; it was a more aristocratic government whose sole goal was to maintain slavery. Much of the southern pop. wasn't even pro-Confed. They could in no way claim to be a legitimate gov't.
borbo23 1 year ago
@borbo23 agree to disagree. slavery is over but somehow people want to keep bringing it up and it really angers me. i mean all of our ancestors at some point in our history were probably slaves somewhere. africans were not the only slaves in history; but they think so by god
smizerene 1 year ago 2
@smizerene LOL.
I sense some bitterness. No one here has said they were the only slaves in history, but some people try to re-write history and pretend some of the worst scum of humanity (the Confederates) were fighting for "libertah" or something instead of just being selfish wastes of skin who wanted to keep slavery long after it was recognized as a crime against humanity. That's the problem, not people believing they were "the only slaves in history".
borbo23 1 year ago
@borbo23 worst scum in history i will save for nazi germany and any country trying to exterminate a race of people. so fuck u. im from the south and im proud of it. not gonna argue with a fucktard nigger apologist
smizerene 1 year ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
@smizerene LOL Looks like I touched a nerve there. The Nazis were probably worse but I'd put the Confederates at second, how's that?
"Fucktard nigger apologist", wow, you've made your side look real good.
borbo23 1 year ago
@borbo23 both of yall are being insane.
comradeshow 1 year ago
These wonderful Yankee guys do sing the best version of this great song!
EMesaros 1 year ago
Roll Alabama Roll!
Monopoly907 1 year ago
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zbullock0597123 1 year ago
rosa parks
turquoise770 1 year ago
@turquoise770 was a nigger on a bus. thats it.
smizerene 1 year ago
There definitely is a connection between Roll Alabama Roll and Roll Tide Roll.
AlabamaCCC 1 year ago
@AlabamaCCC if you want to go to heaven and walk the streets of gold you got to know the password.
ROLL TIDE ROLL!
utubecenseorstruth 1 year ago
There IS no connection to the Tide football team and this song. The CSS Alabama was a fast little ship that sank many tons of enemy shipping. There is a community in Alabama named for its captain, Raphael Semmes. The ship was 220 feet long and weighed 1050 tons. Semmes, Alabama is near Mobile.
SpeedyNeutrino43 2 years ago
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gorozon 2 years ago
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gorozon 2 years ago
I cant help but connect this to Roll Tide Roll. Is there any connection whatsover?
historian56 2 years ago
supposedly there is, but no one can prove it. i like to think so.
MrDickMoore 2 years ago
Don't also forget he part that the Port of Liverpool played in this saga, Many Liverpool seafararers signed for the Confederate Navy, and CSN Ship - The Shnendoah - Even refused to surrender to Union forces, She actually gave up her Colours to Royal Marines in Liverpool Bay, and that was how they discovered the nationallity of a lot of the crew
Kopsinger 2 years ago 3
I believe there are members of "Sons of Confederate Veterans" in Liverpool.
scottcarey64 2 years ago
The USA and the CSA had the strongest fleet in the world during the civil war with the mighty Iron clads leading the way to war.
ReconAndRecovery 2 years ago 4
@ReconAndRecovery
Very true, when the ironclads came out all other navy's in the world were rendered obsolete.
airsoftguy111 2 years ago
@ReconAndRecovery As if always has been royal navy. Germany who were then Prussia had a considerable navy as well
RedZHunter 1 year ago
ROLL TIDE IN THE INDEPENDANCE BOWL
musicisexpression23 2 years ago 2
As far as I'm aware, there is some confusion over which building is the Confederate Embassy in Liverpool. There is the One That's now used by Liverpool University, Complete with the Ceiling Mural of the Snake coiled round the base of a palmetto tree, and there are also the offices in Rumford Street, Alabama , Dunwoody and SemmesHouse (if I remember right) which still fly the American Flag to this day (akthough somebody told me these were used as warehouses can
Super8wannabe confirm this
Kopsinger 2 years ago
Never heard this song before, it gives a big tip of the hat to Birkenhead and the Mersey - quite right to!
btw - I once heard an anecdote that Semmes had to pay a huge bar tab when I he picked up this crew just after sailing out of the Mersey. Can anyone confirm this?
btw 2 - The old Confederate Embassy building still stands in Liverpool, England.
super8wannabe 2 years ago
no super8wannabe but i hope its tru jesse james would have run up a big one hisself
lvcivs11 2 years ago
easily one of the most beautiful southern songs there are
BTW im a Georgian not Alabaman
V87776 2 years ago 15
@V87776 Well I'm a Marylander so I can go either way :D lol.
tachikoma747 1 year ago
Fort Monroe will finally be surrendered back to the state of Virginia in 2011. It would be a grand show if, when the Union Army marches out of the fort, that a Confederate Re-enactment unit march in and raise the flag of the South. Please, someone organize this. It would just be for show but would mean a lot.
johninva123 2 years ago 6
Is it a fort that still use by the military?
zacharyk 2 years ago
Yes Zack Fort Monroe was comstructed in 1816 because it was a strategic point to the defence at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. It is still today an active fort built almost as a castle with a moat around it. The fort was held by the Union troop at the beginning of the civil war and never captured because Gen Lee knew how well it was built.
johninva123 2 years ago 2
Once again in the history of our nation a ship called Alabama is immortalized.On this Easter Sunday in the Year of Lord 2009 theUS Navy and USMC smited our enemie's.Also,weii done Captain Phillip's and crew of the Maarsk Alabama. I know Adm. Semmes would be proud to see it all come out the way it did.Funny,in a way.The U.S.Navy ended his his commerce raiding off Cherbourg. Roll Alabama.
yuckahills8776 2 years ago
GOD HELPS THOSE WHO HELP THEMSELVES,come see the css alabama ehibt or godive on the site if the french dont get you first Mobile Al.
seachef587 2 years ago
seachef587 thats why we r the crimson tide didnt surrender we helped rselves jesse james would be proud of that pirate crew though we did our business on land far from the sea i have an affininity for u deep southern people dont forget us out here on the great plains like mongols we ride and we r devoted to freedom with order no doubt god save the queen
lvcivs11 2 years ago
i tired looking that up on Wikipedia... cause i noticed the similarities between the Alabama and Alabama Crimson Tide...
could u explain a bit more?
BinLadenMustDie368 2 years ago
God Bless the Republic of Alabama
parisauburn 3 years ago 41
A lot of good, Liverpool lads served on that ship.
Great song.
Scytalte 3 years ago 6
beautiful
USMCguns567 3 years ago 2
It's sad the CSS Alabama never saw Alabama. . . my beloved home.
tylerpharaoh1989 3 years ago 6
amazing song! I love it!
bullyboy1863 3 years ago
This is a great old song, the CSS Alabama was a great commerce raider and Rafael Semmes did leave but his job was to return if possible and sail again. The funny thing is the Kersarge and the Alabama were very similar looking ships not sisters but very similar. If the Alabama had had her refit and repair I think the out come of the battle would have been different
Bigbadjohn562 3 years ago 11
@Bigbadjohn562 Similar looking, sure, but Kearsarge was armored and Alabama was not. Semmes himself said afterward that in light of that he should have declined action.
FatToad12 7 months ago in playlist 97th regimental string band
@FatToad12 He should have declined action in any case. Privateers do not profit their owners by engaging men of war
ajferet 7 months ago
@ajferet (from my own history books, I suspect Kearsage had the weather gauge)
ajferet 6 months ago
@ajferet Of course both ships had steam engines as well as sails, which may have lessened the need for the weather guage. Kearsarge had some armor plating installed and her gunners were better-drilled than the Alabama's. And her Dahlgren guns had more range and firepower than the 8-inch smoothbores and 10-pounder Blakely upon which Captain Semmes chiefly depended. The Alabama's powder was old and unreliable to boot. In short, I'd have tried to avoid this duel if I'd been in Semmes's shoes!
galoon 6 months ago
@galoon
True, but as late as the Jutland, Naval commanders sought the weather gauge. The goal was to keep the smoke of the engines and guns in the (still visual) aiming of the gunners. Also, remember that the goal of Alabama was to destroy/raid Yankee commerce (to make money), not to engage the United States Navy, especially as the CSN did not have resources to pay prize, head or gun money. :)
ajferet 6 months ago
@ajferet Thanks for the info on the weather guage--avoiding smoke that would impede aiming and visibility makes perfect sense! I agree completely on the Alabama's role--it was against Semmes' mission to challenge Captain Winslow of the Kearsarge to a duel. The only possible reason would be the fact that Winslow was waiting for the Alabama to leave port--maybe Semmes figured he'd have to fight anyway and that risking a defeat was better than having to abandon the ship in Cherbourg.
galoon 6 months ago
@galoon Exactly so. Kearsage, whose logs survive (probably), and Alabama's (almost certainty not) (as would British and French newspaper accounts) that the Kearsage was waiting to sink Alabama as soon as she left port. Fleeing was the best option, but Kearsage might have been faster as well.
ajferet 6 months ago
@ajferet Yes--fleeing was Semmes' most desirable option. I think he'd have waited for favorable conditions and tried it if international law hadn't given him such a limited time in port. I'll have to look up their performance stats, but I think the Alabama and Kearsarge had about the same top speeds; they were both steam sloops of similar design. Thanks for mentioning Kearsarge's log--I'll have to look and see if it's available. Luckily Semmes wrote a book on his "Alabama" career.
galoon 5 months ago
I live in Birkenhead
mintguide 3 years ago 7
I, as an Irish Yankee am more proud of your Virginia, than this..a mere privateer in all but name, legitimately engaged outside a French port and sunk, not with one shot, as the song portrays, but after an hour or more of battle...fyi, its noble Captain fled, on a British yacht.
olderwiserdrunker 3 years ago
i love this song
usnlp100 3 years ago 3
that's the Black Ball Line in a different key!
just2w4tch 3 years ago
I'm so proud of our Confederate navy, especially the CSS Hunley,Alabama, Virginia and last but certainly not least, the CSS Shenandoah, the last Confederates to surrender on Nov 6,1865. Deo Vindice
3rdconfederate 3 years ago 28
God bless the memory of these brave soldiers.
Rubystars1000 3 years ago 6
what about the css tennessee the only iron clad at the battle of mobile bay
50TNCSA 3 years ago 5
@3rdconfederate Yeah by Captain Waddell css shenandoah you know your history.
fprtclvs 1 year ago
@3rdconfederate
Just an interesting fact about the Shenandoah, They were busy sinking Yank fishing ships when they were found by a British ship. They took them to port, and made them surrender, after the war. I'm sure the men were glad to get away from where they were stationed at.....near the north pole.
You probably already knew that though.
133caboose 1 year ago
What a beautiful song!
Rubystars1000 3 years ago 4
great song!
clsteele 3 years ago 4
Oh... wow...
Such beauty. I really am speachless. Roll Alabama, roll!
AlabamaSoldier 3 years ago 2
great song great band
bullyboy1863 3 years ago 6
This is so typicaly irish....brilliant
Noel from Ireland
Juliusthebastard 3 years ago 9
@Juliusthebastard Nothing to do with Ireland whatsoever
RedZHunter 1 year ago