Battle of Mobile Bay August 5, 1864

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Battle of Mobile Bay Historian Page The Battle of Mobile Bay took place on August 4, 1864 in Mobile, Alabama and ended on August 23, 1864. The key figures in this battle are Admiral David Glasgow Farragut, for the North and Admiral Franklin Buchanan, for the South. Admiral David Farragut was an orphan while he was young and got his educated in Washington D.C. and later in Pennsylvania. Admiral Farragut then joined the U.S. Navy in 1810. Two years later, he became captain of the USS Essex. When the War of 1812 was over Farragut served in the Mediterranean for five years.   Admiral Franklin Buchanan started in the U.S. Navy, but then resigned in 1861. Buchanan helped to plan the U.S. Naval Academy. He served in the Mexican War. Buchanan then traveled with Commodore Matthew Perry's expedition to China and Japan. He headed the Washington Navy Yard for three years, which was from the year 1859 to 1861. After this he became captain in the Confederate Navy and moved his way to Admiral. When the Battle of Mobile Bay was over he became the president of Maryland State Agricultural College.   The Battle of Mobile Bay all started because the Northern Union wanted to close the Confederates port at Mobile Bay. First Admiral Farragut took 18 of his ships to Mobile Bay and began to fight. The Union went to Dauphin Island and they attacked Fort Gains. When they entered Mobile Bay the Union received fire from Forts Gains and Morgan. They eventually got pass the forts and Admiral Farragut forced the Confederates Navy to surrender. The battle and exchange of amunichian continued for several days. What Admiral Farragut said here would be know as his most famous sayings. "Damn the torpedoes full speed ahead." After they had surrendered Mobile Bay was closed and they couldn't do any more of their oversea trades. It took till August 23rd when Fort Morgan, which was the biggest and last fort to surrender, finally surrendered to the Union. Though the port was closed the city was still in use. Since they couldn't get their goods from the port, they had people risk their lives to bring them the supplies they needed. The port was closed which meant the Union had won. The same year that this battle occured other soon to be important things happened around the world. Austria in Europe and Russia in Asia, took Schleswig-Holstein from Denmark. Russia also conquered Turkestan from the years 1864 to 1880. An allied Westen expedition participated in a violent civil war in Japan. Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay formed a military alliance against the Paraguayan Dictator, Francisco Solano Lopez.

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