Trent war - possible timeline of events, battles, and outcome

How wonderful! How sbsolutely spiffingly wonderful. We are most certainly in the country of Yeats' rough beast.

What canI say? The figure presented by Saproneth appears to be exactly what it claims to be. It has an NMM drawing number to chase if there is reason to check it further.

The length shown is not an OA length of any type as Saproneth originally suggested neither is it the length along the gun deck (Wikipedia), it might be a length between perpendiculars as I suggested ... (oh gawd ellipsis are so cool) or it might not.

The start of the length scale at the stern seems to be in the right place for a length between perpendiculars. I can see no stem post however although there appears to be a stem, the measurement scale goes right to the prow. I really would like rebelatsea's opinion on this matter. I can assure him that if he helps out I promise not to Shanghi him, rip his knickers off and make him dance a jig to the Tune of Rule Briannia with an huge cutlass in his hand played on ukelele and Theramin.

The net result of all this is that of this a length between perpendiculars all is with the world. The LOA is around 114-6 feet ex bowsprit and all the lbps on the davis website are correct. If not the Clown lbp is wrong and all of the other lbps are suspect.

Not finished battery is finished
 
Thought I understood this post at first reading but I lost your line of thought when you started talking about allocating guns particularly to the Presideo? Fort Point is not fully loaded out by this point, quite a long way off but it has enough to defend its rear approaches.
The February 1862 report on the defences of San Francisco bay suggested that Fort Point didn't have enough to defend its rear approaches. Unfortunately, the wooden traverse circles of the eleven 32pdrs covering the land front curtain have warped- and the guns are below the crest of the hill behind the fort in the first place. As such:

'At the Golden Gate it is proposed in addition to the present defences... to construct the platforms of the 10-gun battery on the hill, and to mount ten 42-pounders thereon immediately... Commencing at Point San Bruno and extending to the San Pedro road, where the San José road intersects it, is a continuous chain of impassable mountains, with the exception of a narrow roadway lately cut out of the rock side, which is called San Bruno turnpike.

This road is susceptible of being defended by sharp-shooters and a few field pieces until they reach Visitation Point, a distance of about two miles. On this point batteries should be erected to guard against the enemy’s occupying the Guadalupe Valley. On the other extremity of these mountains, as has already been mentioned, the two main avenues or roads, the San Pedro and San José, connect, and passing around the spurs of the mountains on the west reach the city through the extensive valley called the Rancho Rincon de las Salinas. It would become very important to establish batteries at and near the junction of those roads. Good positions for that purpose have been observed on the spurs of the mountains near the Abbey House, where the road passes. As the San Mateo Valley intervenes between this road and the Pacific Ocean, it will be necessary to establish batteries near the Laguna de la Merced to prevent the position from being turned by an approach on the seashore.

The next important point to be protected by batteries will be on the west end of the Black Hill near what is called Shear’s Five Mile House. From the Abbey House to Shear’s two roads are constructed, the one diverging from the other until they converge again and unite at a point called Alemany’s. From what has just been said of the Black Hills it becomes evident that the city must be defended at these important points by a series of batteries so placed as to command the two main avenues leading to it and at the same time overlooking the three principal and extensive valleys extending from the bay to the Pacific Coast, within the chain of the San Bruno Mountains. In the general plan of defenses for Fort Point and the Presidio there are two heights in the rear of the fort which it is proposed to occupy by permanent redoubts; the absence of sufficient appropriations has thus far prevented their construction, but it is probable that some means will be appropriated this session of Congress for an early commencement upon them. These redoubts are intended to prevent an approach on Fort Point by troops landing in the vicinity of Point Lobos and are in consequence very much needed in the defense of that position.'

The Presidio is an existing fortification without guns. As such, I imagine they would use the 24pdrs to arm the Presidio temporarily, until they've built a couple of redoubts behind Fort Point and can transfer some or all of the guns over. In either case, they're not going to let them be put on commerce raiders and sent away. As you can appreciate from the fuller list, ten 24pdrs for the landward defences is actually pretty stingy.

Perhaps you could go through this a little more methodically and explain why you think the Union will allocate/allocated naval guns as you suggest at this point OTL?
In addition to Fort Point and Alcatraz, the February 1862 report called for 90+ guns in various temporary batteries. Unfortunately, as there are only 69 32pdrs/8in guns in store, you have to prioritise. The batteries I chose were designed to provide flanking fire at the Golden Gate, and then to make life difficult for a ship attempting to run up to Mare Island and destroy the naval yard there:

20 guns 'in a temporary battery on the beach between the wharf and the fort at Fort Point'
20 guns at Lime Point
20 guns at 'Black Point or Point San Jose'
10 guns on 'Blunt’s Point on Angel Island'
20 guns at 'on the point of Angel Island, called Stewart’s Point'

Guns at Yerba Buena
Guns at Point San Pablo
Guns at Point San Pedro

As an aside do you think the Union had trucks for all of these naval guns and if so of what sort?
The commander of Mare Island Naval Yard informed Brigadier-General George Wright that 'These guns have none other than the common ship carriage, and it may be necessary to construct carriages to suit them in the batteries.' Nevertheless, I don't think that San Francisco couldn't build the carriages required.

Given the absurd way Esquimalt and New Westminster go thier mail I am slightly surprised by the latter part of the wuote.
It makes sense when you think about it. Before the war, letters came across the isthmus at Panama, to be collected by a US ship and taken to San Francisco, then taken to British Columbia on another US ship. Now, mail has to be collected by a British ship at Panama and taken up the California coast to British Columbia. At the same time, letters are also being collected by British mailships at Panama and taken down the South American coast (Callao/Valparaiso). If Maitland stations himself at Panama, he protects a critical nexus for information to both sides of the continent. He can also receive news and orders from Britain far more quickly than if he'd been at Vancouver, react to them, and send orders to his ships further up the coast.

what did they do with the other circa 130 that don't appear on your list? Were they coppered at all? Why were the larger majority of vessels not mentioned? The situation is not clear.
The other gunboats are either in active service, or are in the steam reserves of the three main ports- Portsmouth, Chatham, and Devonport. They are coppered, though in most cases not rigged, armed or stored. The reason they weren't mentioned is that we were talking specifically about Haslar. The gunboats at Haslar are those which are in the worst state, which is why they are drawn up on racks with copper removed- and, in many cases, with strakes of planking removed to allow air to circulate. If you can meet your requirements out of the gunboats which are ready for service, it allows you time to repair and copper the Haslar gunboats and bring them into service as required.
 
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Gulf Blockading Squadron analysis
I'm still not sure when and where this battle should take place, or indeed whether the GBS would be fully concentrated. The whole station's very spread out, and the commander (McKean) has his flag at Ship Island so that's where one might expect a warning message might go - but if the message leaves with the arrival of the news of war it won't even get there until on or after 4th February, by which point Dunlop has already started rolling up the coast. (Indeed, it looks like the ship with the message would go past Havana a day after Dunlop has had the declaration of war reach him.)

If instead the message to abandon the blockade and concentrate goes out on the last day of 1861, it reaches Ship Island on the 8th of January (n.b. assumes speed of 8 knots for the ship with the message). The problem is that there's almost no ships there - the Niagara is there, as are three ships (Sciota, South Carolina, Itasca) which are broken down and undergoing repairs, and possibly a sail ship.

It looks like this is enough time for the mail ship taking out the message to contact each individual station and have them return to the area of Ship Island (and then to Fort Pickens to await the fixing of the Mississippi - it's about 400 nm for the ones going the furthest, which means the 2-knot sustained speed of the sail ships will see them there at about 10 days after being alerted), which means the choice is essentially between Dunlop sweeping up the squadron in isolation and his catching them concentrated. I can't see any situation where they'd have dispersed to either make their own way home (very dangerous, especially as a lot of them are light on coal) or go out raiding shipping (before they know for sure about the declaration of war, anyway), but I could see McKean deciding to pull his ships together until he knows if there's going to be a war or not.

Assuming he does:



RN:
Donegal (99 gun liner)
Sans Pareil (70 gun liner)
Phaeton (50 gun frigate)
Ariadne (26 gun frigate)
Desperate (8 gun sloop)
Barracouta (6 gun paddle sloop)
Steady (5 gun gunvessel)
Plover (5 gun gunvessel)
(Jason removed from earlier appreciations)

n.b. all guns smaller than a 32 pounder will be listed as "light" here - the British gunvessels have light guns but so do a lot of Union ships:

Union:
Wanderer (sail, 5 light guns)
Tahoma (screw, 1 heavy 4 light guns)
Ethan Allen (sail, 6 heavy 1 light guns)
Mohawk (screw, 6 light 1 heavy guns)
Sagamore (screw, 1 heavy 4 light guns)
Marion (sail, 14 heavy 1 light guns)
Maria A. Wood (sail, 2 light guns)
Mississippi (at Fort Pickens, not fixed until ~4 Feb – if the Gulf Squadron wants to concentrate this limits when they can do it) (paddle, 11 heavy 1 light guns)
Brooklyn (screw, 22 heavy 2 light guns)
Huntsville (screw, 3 heavy guns)
R.R.Cuyler (screw, 9 heavy guns)
Wissahickon (screw, 1 heavy 3 light guns)
Niagara (reduced to 10 guns) (screw, 10 heavy guns)
Massachusetts (screw, 5 heavy guns)
New London (screw, 1 light 4 heavy guns)
Water Witch (paddle, 4 light guns)
South Carolina (not fixed until 31 Jan) (screw, 5 heavy guns)
Itasca (screw, 3 heavy 1 light guns)
Mercedita (screw, 8 heavy 1 light guns)
Winona (screw, 2 heavy 3 light guns)
Vincennes (sail, 6 heavy guns)
Preble (sail, 9 heavy 1 light guns)
Colorado (screw, 44 heavy guns)
Samuel Rotan (sail, 2 heavy 1 light guns)
De Soto (paddle, 8 heavy 1 light guns)
Montgomery (screw, 5 heavy guns)
Sciota (under repairs at Ship Island) (3 light guns)
Hatteras (paddle, 4 heavy 1 light guns)
Santee (sail, 4 heavy 1 light guns)
Rachel Seaman (sail, 2 heavy guns)
Kingfisher (sail, 4 heavy guns)
Kittatinny (sail, 4 heavy guns)
Midnight (sail, 4 heavy guns)
Arthur (sail, 6 heavy guns)
Portsmouth (sail, 16 heavy 1 light guns)
James L. Chambers (sail, 4 heavy guns)
James L. Davis (sail, 4 heavy guns)
Pampero (storeship)
Rhode Island (supply ship)
Supply (storeship)
Fearnot (collier)
JC Kuhn (collier)
Sam Houston (sail, 1 light gun)
Pursuit (sail, 6 heavy guns)
Nightingale (storeship)


Total for the US squadron is 230 heavy guns, so they are indeed outgunned by the RN squadron even before allowing for how the RN squadron is all purpose-built steam and the US squadron contains about 1/3 of their heavy guns on sail ships and some more on ships not built for purpose.


All of this assumes that Dunlop and Milne didn't have conditional war orders (i.e. go as soon as diplomacy breaks down). If they did - and I think it's unlikely the orders went that far - Dunlop can sweep up the lot before they can get even close to concentrated.
It's very unlikely that Sans Pareil would be actively employed. Andrew Lambert in "Battleships in Transition" has this to say :
Basically a failure on account of her weak and unreliable machinery, lack of stowage and stability. Used for subsidiary duties from 1855 until the end of her career in 1864.
 
It's very unlikely that Sans Pareil would be actively employed. Andrew Lambert in "Battleships in Transition" has this to say :
Basically a failure on account of her weak and unreliable machinery, lack of stowage and stability. Used for subsidiary duties from 1855 until the end of her career in 1864.
Sans Pareil was definitely down there at Vera Cruz, though, and put into use in a period when a large number of ships remained in the steam reserve.
It's possible I suppose that she would have been the ship left at Vera Cruz instead of Challenger, but she's only Dunlop's slowest ship by a tenth of a knot (9.3 knots, Desperate 9.4) and she's a liner with a much more significant battery than Challenger (it's mostly 32 pounders, but lots of them).
Since Dunlop had had only two liners until he ordered the St George away, I think he felt Sans Pareil could fight or it would have been S.P. he sent away - otherwise, if he felt S.P couldn't fight, then he'd have been left without any liners in the event of war.
 
rebelatsea,

Nice summary of the key dimensions issue, particularly your point about incorrect dimensions being propagated in good faith. The only place where I depart from your view is when you suggest speeds are 'easier'.

I am of course mortified beyond words by your views on my proposed time-line. However I did consider a 'locking up' element to the Mrs Lincoln - Victoria relationship aspect of Act 111 but in the end I concluded it was too much of an alternative life style to meet favour with the Alternative History community.
I dread to think what you have in mind for Mary & Victoria LOL.
As for speeds, I'm well aware of the tricks various builders got up to to show their vessels were faster that they actually were. However I had no intention of getting involved in the complications of runs with the tide ,against the tide, slack water, high water, with the wind, against the wind, salt brackish or fresh water or any combination thereof. Frankly the only speeds that can be relied on to be accurate are those carried out by the RN in Stokes bay over the measured mile for multiple runs..
 
Sans Pareil was definitely down there at Vera Cruz, though, and put into use in a period when a large number of ships remained in the steam reserve.
It's possible I suppose that she would have been the ship left at Vera Cruz instead of Challenger, but she's only Dunlop's slowest ship by a tenth of a knot (9.3 knots, Desperate 9.4) and she's a liner with a much more significant battery than Challenger (it's mostly 32 pounders, but lots of them).
Since Dunlop had had only two liners until he ordered the St George away, I think he felt Sans Pareil could fight or it would have been S.P. he sent away - otherwise, if he felt S.P couldn't fight, then he'd have been left without any liners in the event of war.
Yes ,she was being used as a transport, marines to Vera Cruz and troops to China.
 
It's very unlikely that Sans Pareil would be actively employed. Andrew Lambert in "Battleships in Transition" has this to say :
Basically a failure on account of her weak and unreliable machinery, lack of stowage and stability. Used for subsidiary duties from 1855 until the end of her career in 1864.

She was re-engined after paying off in 1859, and was recommissioned in 1860 with a reliable James Watt & co engine capable of 9.3 kts. She had a very successful second Commission in general service until 1864, when was paid off again. She was finally condemned and scrapped in 1867.

Within Lambert's temporal bounds he is correct, but that refers to her with her original Bouton & Watt engine.
 
I've seen no indication she was disarmed, though, and she remains Dunlop's most powerful combatant until he unites with Donegal.
I'm not positive this is still the case, but I haven't found a reference to her being rearmed:
'The screw steamship Sanspareil, 70, Captain Arthur P.E. Wilmot, CB, flag of Rear-Admiral Charles Talbot, at Queenstown, is under orders for Plymouth, where her crew will be paid up, and she will be prepared for re-commission. Her lower deck guns will be sent ashore. None of the internal fittings will be disturbed.' (Times, 21 June 1861)
'she will have a complement of 140 men' (Times, 8 July 1861)

Challenger - with Dunlop, detached to stay at Vera Cruz.
Spotted a problem with this: Challenger was Dunlop's flagship (pennant ship?). I think this is more support for Dunlop keeping St George, as it's the best candidate for him to transfer his flag (pennant?) to. After all, in the aftermath of the Crimea, is a Royal Navy officer really going to dare the negative press of detaching a battleship because he was worried about a royal princeling's feelings? Stiff upper lip, duty before emotion and all that. If necessary, the prince can go ashore at Havana and wait for the mail-ship to take him home.
 
I admit I hadn't found which ship was Dunlop's one.

As for the question of Sans Pareil's armament, I've found a reference to her being reduced to 66 guns in 1866. I'm probably going to be vague about her armament, but I don't really think it's going to make a huge difference.

So in toto that suggests St George stays with Dunlop, Sans Pareil does as well, and Challenger does too, but that Desperate is the one detached to stay at Vera Cruz.



I think that means the full list is now:


At Vera Cruz
Desperate (8 gun sloop)

Dunlop's main squadron (to Havana and then at the Gulf blockading squadron)

Donegal (99 gun liner)
St George (86 gun liner)
Sans Pareil (70 gun liner) (less armed than this? Possibly a 52 with only upper and quarter deck guns)
Phaeton (50 gun frigate)
Ariadne (26 gun frigate)
Challenger (21 gun corvette)
Barracouta (6 gun paddle sloop)
Steady (5 gun gunvessel)
Plover (5 gun gunvessel)

Bermuda
Terror (14 gun ironclad)
Nettle (2 gun gunboat)
Onyx (2 gun gunboat)

To Panama
Greyhound (21 gun corvette)

St Thomas
Cadmus (21 gun)
Diadem (32 gun)

To Halifax
Medea (4 gun paddle)
plus others

Bahamas
Bulldog (6 gun paddle) (finally found the ship with the engine trouble!)

Jamaica
Cygnet (5 gun gunvessel)
+ Imaum

Milne's squadron

Nile (90 gun liner)
Hero (91 gun liner)
Agamemnon (91 gun liner)
Aboukir (91 gun liner)
Immortalite (51 gun frigate)
Melopmene (51 gun frigate)
Jason (21 gun corvette)
Racer (11 gun sloop)
Spiteful (6 gun paddle sloop)
Hydra (6 gun paddle sloop)
Landrail (5 gun gunvessel)
Nimble (5 gun gunvessel)

Mersey joins Milne 11th April (4o gun frigate)

With Dacres for battle off Hatteras:

Algiers (91 gun liner)
Edgar (91 gun liner)
Queen (86 gun liner)
Shannon (51 gun frigate)
Severn (51 gun frigate)
Emerald (51 gun frigate)
Phoebe (51 gun frigate)
Amphion (36 gun frigate)
Doris (32 gun frigate)
Barrosa (21 gun corvette)
Scylla (21 gun corvette)
Zebra (17 gun sloop)
Rapid (11 gun sloop)
Flying Fish (6 gun gunvessel)
Vigilant (4 gun gunvessel)
Alacrity (4 gun gunvessel)
Warrior (40 gun ironclad)


Up around Halifax


Liffey (51 gun frigate)
Orlando (50 gun frigate)
Galatea (26 gun frigate)
Orpheus (21 gun corvette)
Rinaldo (17 gun sloop)
Rosario (11 gun sloop)
Styx (6 gun paddle sloop)
Medea (4 gun paddle sloop)




Later arriving reinforcements

Sutlej - sails from Portsmouth 16th January, arrives at Bermuda 12th February. (frigate 50)
Octavia - sails from Portsmouth 4th March, arrives at Halifax 17th March. (frigate 50)
Euryalus- sails from Portsmouth 13th January, arrives at Bermuda 10th February. (frigate 51)
Chanticleer - sails from Portsmouth 13th January, arrives at Bermuda 10th February. (sloop 17)
Tribune - sails from Portsmouth 15th February, arrives at Bermuda 12th March. (frigate 31)
Glasgow - sails from Portsmouth 9th February, arrives at Bermuda 6th March. (frigate 51)
Duncan - sails from Portsmouth 25th January, arrives at Bermuda 21st February. (liner 101)
Frederick William - sails from Portsmouth 3rd March, arrives at Bermuda 31st March (liner 86)
Rattlesnake - sails from Chatham 20th January, arrives at Bermuda 16th February. (corvette 21)



Plus any gunboats.

I don't think I've lost any ships in the shuffle...
ED: I had, Nimble. In addition, I missed the ordered-out Racoon (corvette 21) and Firebrand (paddle frigate 4) and some of the ships available or preparing for service:


Leander (51)
Arethusa (50)
Magicienne (16, paddle)
Perseus (17)
Icarus (11)
Peterel (11)
Vesuvius (6, paddle)


And, via Cerebropetrologist, here's all the gunboats and gunvessels that might be sent out to Milne:

HMS Charon (4-gun Albacore-class gunboat- R)
HMS Clinker (4-gun Dapper-class gunboat- R)
HMS Delight (4-gun Albacore-class gunboat- R)
HMS Porpoise (4-gun Albacore-class gunboat- SB)
HMS Partridge (4-gun Albacore-class gunboat- SB)
HMS Gleaner (4-gun Gleaner-class gunboat- SB)
HMS Ripple (4-gun Albacore-class gunboat- SB)
HMS Tilbury (4-gun Albacore-class gunboat- SB)
HMS Nightingale (4-gun Albacore-class gunboat- SB)
HMS Trinculo (2-gun Britomart-class gunvessel- SB)
HMS Coquette (4-gun Vigilant-class gunvessel)
HMS Dart (3-gun Philomel-class gunvessel)
HMS Britomart (2-gun Britomart-class gunvessel- R)
HMS Cormorant (4-gun Cormorant-class gunvessel)
HMS Racehorse (4-gun Cormorant-class gunvessel)
HMS Sandfly (4-gun Albacore-class gunboat- 110/32)
HMS Bullfrog (4-gun Albacore-class gunboat- R)
HMS Cochin (4-gun Albacore-class gunboat- R)
HMS Griper (4-gun Albacore-class gunboat- R)
HMS Carnation (4-gun Albacore-class gunboat- R)
HMS Julia (4-gun Albacore-class gunboat- R)

(-R refers to being rifle armed, SB to smoothbore armed.)
 
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I'm not positive this is still the case, but I haven't found a reference to her being rearmed:
'The screw steamship Sanspareil, 70, Captain Arthur P.E. Wilmot, CB, flag of Rear-Admiral Charles Talbot, at Queenstown, is under orders for Plymouth, where her crew will be paid up, and she will be prepared for re-commission. Her lower deck guns will be sent ashore. None of the internal fittings will be disturbed.' (Times, 21 June 1861)
'she will have a complement of 140 men' (Times, 8 July 1861)


Spotted a problem with this: Challenger was Dunlop's flagship (pennant ship?). I think this is more support for Dunlop keeping St George, as it's the best candidate for him to transfer his flag (pennant?) to. After all, in the aftermath of the Crimea, is a Royal Navy officer really going to dare the negative press of detaching a battleship because he was worried about a royal princeling's feelings? Stiff upper lip, duty before emotion and all that. If necessary, the prince can go ashore at Havana and wait for the mail-ship to take him home.
Re Sans Pareil having her lower deck guns sent ashore. From a stability point of view that doesn't make sense unless they were replaced with something equally heavy - like stores and supplies. having a complement of only 140 sounds like only the sailing crew. If that's right she wasn't a fighting ship anymore.
 
For the purposes of the foregoing analysis, I am making a number of assumptions which may be affected by the results of the battles I am to write up.

(1) To a first approximation, there are no RN ships actually lost, and there are no US ships captured - or, to put it another way, captures and lost ships balance out.
This is a valid assessment IMO because all three projected major battles have the strength of the USN significantly outmatched by the RN. In any case, there will hopefully be excess force available.
(2) Dunlop sweeps up the GBS and ends up off the Chesapeake a day after the battle off Cape Hatteras, for dispersal to blockade stations.
(3) There is no concentration of USN force that can seriously threaten a squadron containing a battleship, at least until ironclads are finished.
(4) The ships listed above are the total of what would be sent.



With this in mind, the following is an assessment of likely blockade requirements.


Available ships:

Liners - 12
Heavy frigates (40 guns or more) - 16
Light frigates (22-39 guns, plus Magicienne) - 7
Corvettes (21 guns, plus Chanticleer) - 10
Sloops (less than 21 guns, not gunvessel or gunboat) - 10
Paddle ships (except Magicienne) - 9
Gunvessels - 14
Gunboats - 17
(total 95)


We have two rough assessments of what would be needed for the blockade - Washington's one and Milne's one.
Washington's one was for the "first phase" and was very specific:
Portland 1 Frigate 2 Sloops 2 Gunboats
Portsmouth 2 Sloops
Boston Bay 1 Liner 2 Frigates 2 Sloops 2 Gunboats
Long Island Sound 1 Liner 1 Frigate 1 Sloop 2 Gunboats
New York Bay 2 Liners 2 Frigates 2 Sloops 2 Gunboats
Delaware 1 Liner 1 Frigate 2 Gunboats
Chesapeake 1 Liner 2 Frigates 2 Sloops 2 Gunboats
Port Royal 1 Frigate 1 Sloop

While Cay West and the Tortugas would need 1 sloop and 6 gunboats, but could be left to the West Indies squadron. (Here included in the ship counts above.)

Milne, meanwhile, suggested there should be about 65 total ships in six squadrons, each being
2-3 ships of force
2 corvettes "of Cadmus class"
3 sloops "of Rinaldo class"
1 gunvessel
2-3 paddle steamers

Milne's requirement is obviously not exact, because there were not enough Cadmus class and Rinaldo class ships in existence to fulfil his request. Since Washington's list was exact and based on the hydrography (e.g. 'one line-of-battle ship, two sloops, and two gunboats. The line-of-battle ship might lie in safety in Fisher Sound, under the lee of Fisher island, and the smaller vessels might watch the three passages between the islands which protect the entrance'), my assessment is that the 65 number allows for refits/coaling/etc for the major ports.


More ships than this appear likely to be available, however, so my assessment is as follows:

Chesapeake: 1 liner, 2 heavy frigates, 1 light frigate, 1 corvette, 2 sloops, 1 gunvessel, 2 gunboats
Delaware: 1 liner, 2 heavy frigates, 1 light frigate, 1 corvette, 1 sloop, 1 gunvessel, 2 gunboats
New York Bay: 2 liners, 1 heavy frigate, 1 light frigate, 1 corvette, 2 sloops, 1 gunvessel, 2 gunboats
Long Island Sound: 2 liners, 2 heavy frigates, 1 light frigate, 2 corvettes, 2 sloops, 2 gunvessels, 2 gunboats
Boston Bay: 1 liner, 2 heavy frigates, 1 light frigate, 1 corvette, 1 sloop, 1 gunvessel, 2 gunboats
Portsmouth: 1 heavy frigate, 1 light frigate, 1 gunvessel, 2 gunboats
Portland (pre attack): 1 liner, 2 heavy frigates, 1 light frigate, 2 corvettes, 2 sloops, 1 gunvessel, 2 gunboats

8 liners, 12 heavy frigates, 7 light frigates, 8 corvettes, 10 sloops, 8 gunvessels, 14 gunboats (total 67)
Left over: 4 liners, 4 heavy frigates, 2 corvettes, 6 gunvessels, 9 paddle ships, 3 gunboats

It's likely Milne would assign each station a paddle ship as well, for shallow work. That still leaves enough heavy ships for a good squadron for "particular service" (i.e. going up the coast punching out forts) and enough light ships to be sure of spares for other duties.

It also means that my assumption about losses of ships does not have to hold in practice.
 
Re Sans Pareil having her lower deck guns sent ashore. From a stability point of view that doesn't make sense unless they were replaced with something equally heavy - like stores and supplies. having a complement of only 140 sounds like only the sailing crew. If that's right she wasn't a fighting ship anymore.

Sans Pareil replaced Horatio in the blockship order. Unlike the other nine considerably more work was done. I just correct myself on a point - I assumed the new engine was refit between Commissions but this is not true. She was sent home to repair and refit after suffering extensive battle damage at Sebasatapol and during this period she was re-engined with the reliable 9.3 kt engine.

The reduction from 80 to 70 was the removal of 10 25 cwt guns from the quarter-deck and was done on conversion. There is no indication of any further reduction in armament until 1866, when her quarter deck armament was reduced again.
 
I think I may have a plan to resolve my indecision on the GBS...






USS Colorado
South West Pass
17 January 1862






"Sir."

"Ah, Bailey," William McKean said, looking up from his desk. "Come in, come in."

The Colorado rocked slightly at anchor as a wave hit them, and Bailey adjusted for the movement with a smooth precision as he entered his Flag Officer's cabin.

"Did you see the latest despatch?" McKean asked, tapping on a letter on his desk. "Came in on a special mail ship two hours ago."

"Sorry, sir," Captain Theodorus Bailey replied. "I've been busy with the foremast - one of the sails is a little torn, and we were seeing if any of it might be salvaged."

"Nothing major, I hope," McKean asked.

"No, sir."

"Would that all our problems were so easily solved," the Flag Officer said. "I have here orders from the secretary of the Navy, who informs me that there is what is called a 'risk' of war with England."

"Not the matter of the Eugenia Smith?" Bailey asked. "I had thought it was all above board."

"Goodness, Bailey, have you paid one whit of attention to the news?" McKean said, a little piqued. "The Trent affair, Bailey, the Trent. There is no war over it yet, but Wells has seen fit to tell me that there may be a war - and that I should prepare my squadron for the eventuality, and I quote, 'without taking action so as to prejudice the maintenance and the legality of the blockade in the event that the matter is resolved amicably'."

Bailey blinked. "That... does not sound like anything, sir. If you'll forgive the candour."

McKean tapped the despatch again. "The note was sent to Ship Island, but missed us there and the mail ship has spent the past week at least looking for us. And now that I have it, I do not know what I should do with it - it is a rare station of our blockade which has the luxury of more than one ship, and the latest news from the Mississippi was that she should take two more weeks to be in a state to move from her berth."

The Flag Officer stopped, clearly thinking, and after a long minute Bailey spoke up.

"Do you have orders, sir?" he asked.

"Orders, yes," McKean replied. "I am ordered to maintain the blockade, and so I shall - but I have this mail ship, so I shall use it. We will lift the blockade of the passes, and re-establish it at the head of passes, and distribute the lesser ships to other stations - and pull together the fastest and best armed ships of the squadron at Fort Pickens. If no news comes of war, then we will move our heavy ships back onto the blockade - while if war and news of war does come, we may send them out to raid and make their own way back to Northern shores."

Bailey nodded, seeing where his commander was going. "I am to make ready to sail for Fort Pickens?"

"With all due dispatch, Bailey," McKean confirmed. "With all due dispatch."
 
Re Sans Pareil having her lower deck guns sent ashore. From a stability point of view that doesn't make sense unless they were replaced with something equally heavy - like stores and supplies. having a complement of only 140 sounds like only the sailing crew. If that's right she wasn't a fighting ship anymore.
Regardless of the weight distribution issues, the sources are clear that at the very least the lower deck guns were ashore. The question is whether Sans Pareil had been rearmed and re-crewed for the Mexico voyage, to make her a proper battleship again. There are three pertinent voyages we're dealing with here:
1) Voyage to the Mediterranean in July 1861 in which she carried out supernumeraries and guns and brought back condemned stores, invalids and a few passengers.
2) Voyage to Mexico with the marines in late 1861
3) Voyage to China in July 1862:
'The screw steamship Sanspareil, 70, Capt. George Le G. Bowyear, at Plymouth, will be put out of commission on the 6th of June next. She will be re-commissioned the next day with a complement of 65 men only' (Times, 29 May 1862); 'She has on board nearly 1,000 supernumary officers, engineers, seamen, and others' (Times, 12 July 1862)

If you compare the Sans Pareil in the Navy list for September 1861, March 1862, and September 1862, she's clearly got a similar number of officers in the first two and about half that number in the third. As such, she doesn't seem to have been recrewed for the Mexico trip. My conclusion would be that, regardless of the newspaper reports, she's probably not a fighting ship as of the Trent Affair. Personally, I think her best use would be collecting the marines from Mexico and taking them to Fort Zachary Taylor: if she has any guns left, they can be landed for the siege.

EDIT: A mailship leaving St Thomas 27 January 1862 would arrive in Havana on 2 February 1862 and Vera Cruz on 7 February 1862. Allow a couple of days for boarding the Marines, and 8 days to cover the 811 nautical miles at 4 knots, and Sans Pareil would probably have arrived at Havana around 17 February 1862.
 
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If you compare the Sans Pareil in the Navy list for September 1861, March 1862, and September 1862, she's clearly got a similar number of officers in the first two and about half that number in the third. As such, she doesn't seem to have been recrewed for the Mexico trip. My conclusion would be that, regardless of the newspaper reports, she's probably not a fighting ship as of the Trent Affair. Personally, I think her best use would be collecting the marines from Mexico and taking them to Fort Zachary Taylor: if she has any guns left, they can be landed for the siege.
That sounds like a sensible plan, possibly accompanied by the Ariadne or Challenger to provide some naval combat power if needed. That or they'd leave her at VC for the first few weeks, then send her on once Dunlop's cleaned up.
 
I think I may have a plan to resolve my indecision on the GBS...



......

"Goodness, Bailey, have you paid one whit of attention to the news?" McKean said, a little piqued. "The Trent affair, Bailey, the Trent. There is no war over it yet, but Wells has seen fit to tell me that there may be a war - and that I should prepare my squadron for the eventuality, and I quote, 'without taking action so as to prejudice the maintenance and the legality of the blockade in the event that the matter is resolved amicably'."

....
To me that sounds rather like McKean is being hung out to dry by his superiors. If he withdraws ships and war doesn't occur he can be accused of reducing the blockade without good cause while if he doesn't and the ships are largely captured/destroyed by the RN he's likely to be blamed.

What he's proposing sounds like a decent compromise, if it works. The weaker ships are sacrificed to allow the more capable ones to escape and try and cause as many problems as possible for Britain. At the same time if war doesn't occur [which is something he's got to consider] the blockade may have a few more ships sneak through but won't be openly breached and I doubt the south has the strength to challenge it. However of course if that concentration of the core units run into a powerful RN squadron it could still all go pear-shaped for them.
 
To me that sounds rather like McKean is being hung out to dry by his superiors. If he withdraws ships and war doesn't occur he can be accused of reducing the blockade without good cause while if he doesn't and the ships are largely captured/destroyed by the RN he's likely to be blamed.

What he's proposing sounds like a decent compromise, if it works. The weaker ships are sacrificed to allow the more capable ones to escape and try and cause as many problems as possible for Britain. At the same time if war doesn't occur [which is something he's got to consider] the blockade may have a few more ships sneak through but won't be openly breached and I doubt the south has the strength to challenge it. However of course if that concentration of the core units run into a powerful RN squadron it could still all go pear-shaped for them.
McKean might ask himself, how valuable is the blockade right now, right here? How many ships have attempted/run the blockade in the Gulf in the last month? Perhaps leave one ship at Head of Passes, one at Mobile and perhaps one at Galveston and concentrate the rest. He can say he did not raise the blockade and he has the potential to save a many ships as his orders will allow. The outcome, of course, is little changed, but this is an alternative open to him.
 
Sans Pareil replaced Horatio in the blockship order. Unlike the other nine considerably more work was done. I just correct myself on a point - I assumed the new engine was refit between Commissions but this is not true. She was sent home to repair and refit after suffering extensive battle damage at Sebasatapol and during this period she was re-engined with the reliable 9.3 kt engine.

The reduction from 80 to 70 was the removal of 10 25 cwt guns from the quarter-deck and was done on conversion. There is no indication of any further reduction in armament until 1866, when her quarter deck armament was reduced again.
As she was decommissioned in 1864 she wouldn't have had any ordnance on board in 1866. She was lyingstripped in the Hamoaze awaiting sale.
 
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