Confederate States Navy

Confederate States Navy
Seal of the Department of the Navy
Founded	February 21, 1861 (1861-02-21)
Disbanded	November 6, 1865 (1865-11-06)
Country	Confederate States
Type	Navy
Engagements	American Civil War
Commanders
Commander in Chief	Jefferson Davis
Secretary of the Navy	Stephen R. Mallory
Insignia
Naval ensign 1864–1865
1861–1863
Naval jack 1864–1865
1861–1863

The Confederate States Navy (CSN) was the naval branch of the Confederate States Armed Forces, established by an act of the Confederate States Congress on February 21, 1861.^[1] It was responsible for Confederate naval operations during the American Civil War against the United States's Union Navy.

The three major tasks of the Confederate States Navy during its existence were the protection of Confederate harbors and coastlines from outside invasion, making the war costly for the United States by attacking its merchant ships worldwide, and running the U.S. blockade by drawing off Union ships in pursuit of Confederate commerce raiders and warships.

It was ineffective in these tasks, as the coastal blockade by the United States Navy reduced trade by the South to 5 percent of its pre-war levels. Additionally, the control of inland rivers and coastal navigation by the US Navy forced the south to overload its limited railroads to the point of failure.

The surrender of the CSS Shenandoah in Liverpool, England, marked the end of the Civil War and the Confederate Navy's existence.