Sale!

Gabriel Rains and the Confederate Torpedo Bureau

Amazon.com Price:  $14.40 (as of 06/05/2019 09:18 PST- Details)

Description

“Ironclads are said to master the world, but torpedoes master the ironclads.” Gabriel J. Rains used to be a Confederate Brigadier General who used to be more than a military officer—he used to be a scientist. His Civil War appointment gave him a chance to develop explosives. He invented three mines: the “subterra shell” (land mine), the keg torpedo, and the submarine mortar battery (both naval mines). After the Battle of Seven Pines in 1862, he served the Confederacy in two ways, Superintendent of Conscription and Commander of the Torpedo Bureau. He and his men mined the roads around Jackson and the harbors of Mobile, Savannah, and Charleston. His naval mines sank many ships and were more effective than heavy guns.

In 1864, on the request of President Jefferson Davis, he mined the principal roads leading into Richmond in addition to the lines around Fort Harrison. When it came time to evacuate the city, Rains and his circle of relatives joined the president and cabinet as they traveled by train to Greensboro.

After the war, he earned a patent, prepared a notebook for West Point, and wrote an editorial on mine warfare. Rains had a significant military career as he introduced a new type of weaponry. To a couple, he is thought of as the “father of up to date mine warfare.”

Gabriel Rains and the Confederate Torpedo Bureau by W. Davis Waters and Joseph I. Brown tells his remarkable story.

Home » Shop » Books » Subjects » Arts and Photography » History and Criticism » History » Americas » United States » Civil War » Confederacy » Gabriel Rains and the Confederate Torpedo Bureau

Recent Products