At the start of the American Civil War, neither side had warships on either side of the Mississippi River and in the first few months of the war, both sides scrambled to gather a flotilla, converting existing riverboats for naval use. These ships wrere converted into powerful naval weapons, despite a lack of resources, trained manpower and suitable vessels. The creation of a river fleet was a miracle of ingenuity, improvisation and logistics, particularly for the South. This title describes their design, development and operation throughout the American Civil War.

Author Biography

Angus Konstam hails from the Orkney Islands and is the author of over 15 books, many of which are published by Osprey. His other maritime titles include Elite 67: 'Pirates 1660-1730', Elite 69: 'Buccaneers 1620-1700' and Elite 70: 'Elizabethan Sea Dogs 1560-1605'. Formerly the Curator of Weapons in the Royal Armouries at the Tower of London, he also served as the Chief Curator of the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum in Key West, Florida. He is now based in London, where he combines a freelance museum consultancy business with a career as a historian and writer. Tony Bryan is a freelance illustrator of many years experience after initially qualifying in Engineering and working for a number of years in Military Research and Development. Tony has a keen interest in military hardware - armour, small arms, aircraft and ships - and has produced many illustrations for partworks, magazines and books, including a number of titles in the New Vanguard series.