''Princess Royal'' was a British merchant ship and

blockade runner A blockade runner is a merchant vessel used for evading a naval blockade of a port or strait. It is usually light and fast, using stealth and speed rather than confronting the blockaders in order to break the blockade. Blockade runners usua ...

that became a

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 operational roles from search-and-destroy to ocean escort to sea ...

in the Union Navy during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

and later returned to civilian service.

British merchant service

''Princess Royal'' was launched on 20 June 1861 by the

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

shipbuilders Tod & McGregor in 1861 as a passenger-cargo ship for the

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

services of M Langlands & Sons, Glasgow, their first iron screw steamer. She measured 652 gross and 494 net register tons, with a length of , breadth and depth of hold . The ship was powered by a two-cylinder steam engine of 150-170 nhp driving a single propeller. She was registered at Glasgow and entered service in July 1861. In 1863 the Confederate Government had major contracts for large and specialised British manufactures, including steam engines and boilers for ironclads under construction at

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atla ...

, heavy artillery and armament-making machinery. The government's UK representative, Fraser, Trenholm & Co, arranged the purchase of ''Princess Royal'' by private investors to carry these and other supplies direct to Charleston. The ship sailed from London on 8 December 1862 but called at

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the most populous municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of 2024, it is estimated that the population of the H ...

, where Federal spies gained valuable information on the ship and her cargo. After a further call at

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

, ''Princess Royal'' sailed for Charleston, but in the early hours of 29 January 1863 she was seen as she approached the port entrance by the Federal blockade squadron and forced aground. The captain, pilot and some passengers and crew were able to escape before boarding parties from USS '' Unadilla'' and '' G. W. Blunt'' could arrive. The ship was sent to the

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Prize court A prize court is a court (or even a single individual, such as an ambassador or consul) authorized to consider whether prizes have been lawfully captured, typically whether a ship has been lawfully captured or seized in time of war or under the te ...

for adjudication.

US naval service

''Princess Royal'' was purchased by the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

from the prize court on 18 March 1863, fitted out as a cruiser and commissioned 29 May 1863, Commander Melancthon B. Woolsey in command. Assigned to the

West Gulf Blockading Squadron The Union blockade in the American Civil War was a naval strategy by the United States to prevent the Confederacy from trading. The blockade was proclaimed by President Abraham Lincoln in April 1861, and required the monitoring of of Atlantic ...

, ''Princess Royal'' participated in the

engagement An engagement or betrothal is the period of time between the declaration of acceptance of a marriage proposal and the marriage itself (which is typically but not always commenced with a wedding). During this period, a couple is said to be ''f ...

with Confederate forces at

Donaldsonville, Louisiana Donaldsonville (historically ) is a city in, and the parish seat of Ascension Parish, Louisiana, Ascension Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. Located along the River Road of the west bank of the Mississippi River, it is a part of the Baton ...

, 28 June 1863. Then ordered to the

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

coast, she captured the British

schooner A schooner ( ) is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel defined by its Rig (sailing), rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more Mast (sailing), masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than t ...

''Flying Scud'' near

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12 August, and assisted in seizing the schooner ''Wave'' 22 August. Continuing her patrols into 1864 she took ''Neptune'' off Brazos de Santiago, 19 November 1864; ran down the schooner ''Flash'' six days later; seized the schooner ''Alabama'', 7 December; and captured ''Cora'' off Galveston, 19 December. On 7 February 1865, she assisted in the capture of her last prize, the schooner ''Anna Sophia'' in

Galveston Bay Galveston Bay ( ) is a bay in the western Gulf of Mexico along the upper coast of Texas. It is the seventh-largest estuary in the United States, and the largest of seven major estuaries along the Texas Gulf Coast. It is connected to the Gulf of ...

. Five months later ''Princess Royal'' was ordered north, arriving at Philadelphia 21 July. She was sold at

public auction A government auction or a public auction is an auction held on behalf of a government in which the property to be auctioned is either property owned by the government or property which is sold under the authority of a court of law or a governmen ...

17 August 1865.

Post war

USS ''Princess Royal'', now measuring 932 grt, was purchased by William F Weld & Co of

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, renamed ''Sherman'' after the Federal

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

, and put onto the Boston-New York-New Orleans service.Some sources claim that this ship was the same as that involved in the ''General Sherman'' incident in Korea in 1866. That ship was a much smaller, side-paddle, wood hulled vessel which was destroyed by fire in the incident. On 8 January 1874, on a voyage from New York to New Orleans, ''Sherman'' sprang a leak off the North Carolina coast and anchored near

Little River Little River may refer to several places: Australia Streams New South Wales *Little River (Dubbo), source in the Dubbo region, a tributary of the Macquarie River * Little River (Oberon), source in the Oberon Shire, a tributary of Coxs River (Haw ...

. The following day she sank off Cape Fear. The passengers and crew were saved, along with some cargo. History of American Steam Navigation
(1908), p.496. Accessed August 24, 2018]

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