Under the Blue Pennant: Or Notes of a Naval Officer 1863-1865

New York: John Wiley & Sons. New. 1999. Trade Paperback. Index. . 239 pages. This highly acclaimed eyewitness account of the Civil War at sea provides fascinating insights into command decisions made on the bridge as well as life below deck. Recently discovered in the Library of Congress archives, this memoir was written just after the Civil War by John Grattan, an ensign in the Union navy who witnessed some of the war's most significant naval operations. Under the editorship of acclaimed naval historian Robert Schneller, Grattan's account of the crucial struggle for control of the Atlantic seaboard bristles with the tension of combat. With sharply etched details of blockade running, guerrilla warfare, fierce underwater battles, the brutal advance on Richmond, and visits to the front lines by President Abraham Lincoln, this rare memoir includes personal observations of key naval and military leaders and rescues less-celebrated heroes from obscurity. Sparkling with Victorian wit, this from-the-front report opens a window into the lives of ordinary soldiers and the men who led them into war. .