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BALLARAT'S CONNECTION TO THE AMERICAN CIVIL WAR

by Peter Butters


America's bloodthirsty civil war, which took a great human toll began on the 9th January 1861 and was entering its last phase in late January 1865 when the American Confederate warship 'Shenandoah' arrived in Melbourne.

PICTURE: THE "SHENANDOAH IN MELBOURNE FROM THE ILLUSTRATED AUSTRALIAN NEWS. (COLORIZED VERSION © ROBERT MARTIN).


The arrival of the ship created controversy because Queen Victoria had branded the Confederacy as 'belligerent' and she had laid down a number of neutrality rules for British subjects.

British subjects were not permitted to enlist in the armed forces of either of the waring sides, they were not permitted to break a lawful blockade, fit out, arm or equip any vessel which was to be used as a ship of war or privateer, or carry military stores, soldiers or despatches.

The Confederates, after the loss of one of their ships required a replacement, but because of the difficulties created by the neutrality they had to acquire one by 'stealth'. They chose a fast merchantman to convert to a raider and selected the 'Sea King'.

The 'Shenandoah' was formerly the 'Sea King', a screw steamer built in Glasgow in 1863 by Alexander Stephens & Sons, and originally intended for merchant service. It was of 790 tons, 240 horsepower, of iron beams and frame and planked with rock elm below the water line and with East Indian teak above. She was rigged as a full clipper ship, and carried eight guns including four 55cwt 8 inch shell guns and two 32 pounder Whitworth rifled guns. She could make 17 knots under sail but a mere eight under steam.

Waddell the captain did not sail from England when the 'Sea King' departed but joined the ship in a rendezvous off Madeira, when it became the 'Shenandoah'. In its Confederate Army role it captured and burned eleven ships between the Cape and its arrival in Melbourne.

The Ballarat 'Star' Melbourne correspondent was most impressed, on the arrival of the 'Shenandoah'. The local paper on Friday the 27th carried his report including,'...... I was much struck with the appearance of the crew - a finer looking set of fellows never trod a deck. Captain Waddell, before showing me around his vessel, invited me into his cabin. He is a fine gentlemanly looking man, about thirty five years of age, well set up, frank and polished in his bearing, and evidently very determined. His officers are all young looking men, evidently well educated, cadets of good Southern families.' He described the 'Shenandoah' as being 'comfortably fitted up, but with no pretensions to luxury or elegance'.

The 'Shenandoah' required repairs and if the Government and terms of international laws did not permit a stay in port of over twenty four hours it was proposed to steam out to sea every day, taking with her the repairmen so as not to interfere with the law. On arrival the captain landed nineteen captured prisoners at Sandridge, including two women.

The 'Shenandoah' was permitted to remain sufficiently long to refit, and to make all repairs that were required to place her in a proper sea-going condition.

The local Ballarat connection arose when two locals, William Eves and C.J. Brayton made the invitation to the visitors, which was to inspect the leading mines and to attend a subscription ball in their honour. Brayton, a mining speculator hailed from New York.

When the deputation from the Shenandoah arrived in Ballarat at midnight they were greeted by a brass band and about two thousand people.

The 'Star' of Friday the 10th February informed us, 'The commander and officers of the Confederate cruiser Shenandoah will arrive in Ballarat this day, and we have sufficient confidence in the good sense of the people of Ballarat to feel assured that they will receive a fit reception.....' The officers had also been invited to a private ball to be held on Friday evening.



PICTURE: BALL GIVEN TO THE OFFICERS OF THE "SHENANDOAH" IN BALLARAT - FROM THE ILLUSTRATED MELBOURNE POST. (COLORIZED VERSION © ROBERT MARTIN)


The editorial of Saturday the 11th elaborates, '..... Four of the officers of the Confederate ship Shenandoah arrived in Ballarat by the last train on Thursday, and yesterday their hosts showed them the two greatest of our mining lions. The party were taken over the works of the Black Hill Quartz Company and then over the works of the United Extended Band of Hope Alluvial Company. Both shafts of the latter company were descended by the visitors, and we need hardly add that as this is the first gold field they have seen, they expressed themselves in terms of pleasure at the wonders they saw, as well as the courtesy shown by the officers of the companies whose mines were visited. The regatta was also visited, and we hope the seafaring 'proclivities' were to some extent gratified there. In the evening a ball was held at Craig's Royal Hotel, which was numerously attended including - Mr and Mrs Sherard, Major, Mrs and Miss Wallace, Mr and Mrs Dowling, Mr and Mrs McCormick, Mr and Mrs Russell, Mr and Mrs Dugald Macpherson (of Bungleetap), Mr, Mrs and Miss Gibson, Mr, Mrs and Miss Lamb, Mr and Mrs Fraser, Mr and Mrs Rowlands, Mr and Mrs Pike, Mr and Miss Welsh,, Mr and Miss Mount, Mr, Mrs and Miss Robinson, Mr & Mrs W. Craig, Mr & Mrs Eaves, Mr and Mrs E.C. Moore, Mr and Mrs Drury, Mr and Miss Coghlan, Mrs McDermott, , Mrs Huntly Hoskins, Misses Fitzmaurice,2; Beasley,2; Musgrove, Watton, Cunningham, Dr. Hudson, Messrs R. Walsh, Mitchell, Randall, Chomley, Brayton, Greville, Robson, Saddler, MacLeod, Lethbridge, Finn, Kelly, Tunbridge, Cusstan, etc. The Captain of the Shenandoah was not in the party, the gentleman who came being Dr. Linning, Second Lieutenant Grimball, Sailing Master Bullock, and Paymaster Smith. They are all quite young men, and have a quiet gentlemanly demeanour, which seems to be the antithesis alike of the traditional Yankee and of the swaggering buccaneer. It is said that so far from Captain Semmes being attached to the Shenandoah, he is believed to be at present in the Confederate States. Two of the four officers named above was with Captain Semmes in the Alabama. They will leave for Melbourne to-day.'

The local 'Evening Post' did not share the sentiments of the Ballarat 'Star' with respect to the American visitors and their role and made a vitriolic attack on the opposition newspaper. The 'Evening Post' editorial for Friday February 10th, the day of the ball was an incoherent rambling which contained an excessive use of the word 'flunkey'. The editorial began 'The people of Ballarat, we hope, are duly sensible of the distinguished honor done to them by the midnight visit to their famous town of the gallant officers of the Confederate cruiser Shenandoah. They are equally sensible, we have no doubt, of the compliment paid to them by the able and spirited organ which so faithfully misrepresent their sentiments from day to day. The 'Star' is pleased to express its 'confidence in the good sense' of its fellow-townsmen: the good sense of the people of Ballarat we are afraid, will prevent them from reciprocating the compliment. If dullness were genius, and servility proud independance, and plagiarism daring originality, no doubt the confidence of the people of Ballarat in their one 'bright particular 'Star' would be unbounded. But they are shrewd, hard headed, practical people, accustomed to discriminate between words and things, and by no means open to the imposture of glozing, hypocritical phrases....'

The editorial described the civil war situation as 'vulgar piracy garbed in the livery of legitimate warfare, or to commonplace buccaneering (wanting only the courage) masquerading under the guise of self-devoting patriotism...a batch of officers whose vocation is not fair warfare but practical predatory attack - whose 'chartered' mission it is to sink, burn and destroy defenceless and peaceable merchant vessels - and whose 'perfectly legitimate' daily business it is to repeat the worst deeds of the worst days of buccaneering in the Spanish Main, with all the reckless daring and wild uncalculating bravery of that epoch carefully eliminated...'

Unfortunately for the ladies, they did not escape the seething attack, 'In the days when cholera raged most fatally in Paris, the gay habitues of the Jardin Mabille were accustomed to hold 'Cholera Balls', nightly, at which all the beauty and fashion of the Quartier Latin 'assisted'. Gentlemen dressed up in masquerade as skeletons, conducted ladies, who, in fantastic garbs represented cholera fever, and other fatal diseases, through the mazes of the canan and cotillon. If there are ladies in existence who can revel in Cholera Balls, there are some of course, capable of thoroughly enjoying Buccaneer Balls. There are ladies, we doubt not who would dance to the music of the groans of sinking seamen, and exhibit their graceful attitudes in the mazt waltz or dashing polka by the light of blazing ships..... They are not such ladies as we would choose for wives for ourselves and our children, nor as companions for our daughters...'

One of the Americans attending the ball commented, 'It was decidedly a recherche affair. The wealth, beauty, and fashion of Ballarat were out in full force,.... Every attention that kindness and courtesy could suggest was shown us, and more than one heart beat quicker at such convincing evidence of the existence of sympathy in this country of the Antipodes... Many a gay uniform coat lost its gilt buttons that night, but we saw them again ere we bade a final adieu to Australia, suspended from watch guards depending from the necks of bright eyed women... God bless the gentle women of Melbourne and Ballarat.'

Whilst in Ballarat, after the Officers inspected the mines they then relaxed at Lake Wendouree whilst the regatta was in progress.

Strangely, the majority of the crew of the Shenandoah were not American, many were from captured prizes who agreed to join the crew and a local miner from Scarsdale actually joined the crew whilst the ship was in Melbourne. Many other crew were also recruited in Melbourne against the neutrality clauses.

There was controversy whilst the 'Shenandoah' was in Melbourne as the city was divided about the issue; the vessel departed on the 18th February and continued 'pirating'. In the thirteen months from leaving England, she had on her return circumnavigated the globe, captured thirty eight ships and taken 1,053 prisoners.

The war was over, the Confederates defeated and the ship was auctioned on the 22nd March 1866, fetching 15,750 pounds, a condition of sale being that it was not used for a war like purpose, although the American Civil War was now over. Two and a half years before, it had cost 35,000 pounds. She was re-named the Majidi, for the Sultan of Zanzibar and converted to a private yacht, being wrecked by a hurricane in April 1879.

The old 'Shenandoah' was salvaged by a British firm, and taken to Bombay, where she left with a German captain and a native crew, however for some reason the ex-warrior was scuttled.

However, photographs of the Americans and their ship in the foyer of Craigs Hotel remind us of Ballarat's unlikely link to the sadness of a war where American fought American and also highlighted another historic episode where Craig's Royal hotel was the centre of Ballarat's social life.