1862 Confederate Ship SAVANNAH New York Piracy Trial for Privateer Raider Ship
POB#59127
TITLE: Trial of the officers and crew of the privateer Savannah : on the charge of piracy, in the United States circuit court for the southern district of New York. Hon. Judges Nelson and Shipman, presiding
AUTHOR: Reported by A.F. Warburton, Stenographer
PUBLISHER: New York: Baker & Godwin
DATE: 1862
DESCRIPTION: xxii, 385 pages ; 24 cm
CONDITION NOTES: GOOD due to some poor restorations - tape repairs to a several leaves in the center of the volume. Also, a tight front gutter that impedes enjoyment of title page and the first gathering. Period gift inscription on title page. Foxing. Corner creases. Pages well attached and book is not falling apart, though the tape repairs are intrusive and not entirely effective.
BINDING: Black cloth.
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At the outset of the American Civil War in 1861, Confederate President Jefferson Davis, emulating Queen Elizabeth I, issued letters of marque to encourage privateer attacks on Union shipping. The action bolstered the South's outclassed sea power and diverted US Navy resources from the blockade of Confederate controlled ports. The insurrection's privateers created a problem in maritime law when captured: are privateering sailors to be considered warriors under a flag of war (and thus, prisoners of war), or pirates under no flag (and thus criminals committing a capital offense)?
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The Savannah was the first privateer to set sail in 1861, capturing the first prize, the brig Joseph. Her next chase, the USS Perry, ended in the capture of the Savannah's crew.
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Thus the trial in the Southern District of New York would decide whether the crew were pirates, or prisoners of war, and what the penalty may be.
