CSS ''Clarence'', also known as ''Coquette'', was originally a

brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the ...

from

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

captured by the

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

cruiser CSS ''Florida'' during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

and converted into a Confederate

cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles. The term "cruiser", which has been in use for several hu ...

for

commerce raiding Commerce raiding (french: guerre de course, "war of the chase"; german: Handelskrieg, "trade war") is a form of naval warfare used to destroy or disrupt logistics of the enemy on the open sea by attacking its merchant shipping, rather than enga ...

. Built in 1857 for

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

fruit dealer J. Crosby, it was transporting a cargo of coffee from

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, to Baltimore when the CSS ''Florida'' captured the ''Clarence'' off the coast of

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. Lt. Charles W. Read was appointed commander and a sufficient number of the ''Florida'''s crew were transferred to the new cruiser to man the ship. Lieutenant Read had requested that, rather than burn ''Clarence'', he might try, with the ship's papers, to sail into

Hampton Roads, Virginia Hampton Roads is the name of both a body of water in the United States that serves as a wide channel for the James, Nansemond and Elizabeth rivers between Old Point Comfort and Sewell's Point where the Chesapeake Bay flows into the Atlantic O ...

, and if possible destroy or capture a Union

gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-steam ...

and burn Union merchant vessels congregated at

Fortress Monroe Fort Monroe, managed by partnership between the Fort Monroe Authority for the Commonwealth of Virginia, the National Park Service as the Fort Monroe National Monument, and the City of Hampton, is a former military installation in Hampton, Virgi ...

. ''Florida'''s Commander John Newland Maffitt armed ''Clarence'' with one gun so that Read might capture prizes on his way to Hampton Roads. In its brief career as a Confederate cruiser it captured a number of ships: The ''Whistling Wind'', ''Kate Stewart'', ''Mary Alvina'', ''Mary Schindler'' were burned, and the ''Alfred H. Partridge'' was bonded. Its final capture was the bark ''Tacony'' on June 12, 1863, which being a better ship suited for

, the crew and armaments were transferred to it and the ''Clarence'' was destroyed.

Officers and crew

* Lt. Charles W. Read, commander * Billups, Matthewson, and Pride, master's mates * Brown, engineer * 16 men

Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clarence Cruisers of the Confederate States Navy Raids of the American Civil War 1857 ships Shipwrecks of the American Civil War Maritime incidents in June 1863