Information about this national park and what you can do at this park

All good things have to come to an end, and in this final, elegiac bittersweet episode of Shenandoah Down Under Rob and Mob follow the story of the Shenandoah to where so many good stories end, the courtroom. First, Mob recounts the history over 53 episodes of this now award winning podcast*, Shenandoah Down Under. Rob follows up with the final bit…

In this, the 52nd and final episode in the ‘regular season’ of the Shenandoah Down Under podcast, Rob and MOB discuss the fate of the officers of the Shenandoah after the American Civil War (we’ll go on to discuss the ruinously expensive Alabama Claims in our forthcoming “Christmas Special”) Branded as “pirates” and unable to return the US, heading…

At last, after its 13 month circumnavigation of the globe, the CSS Shenandoah returns to Liverpool! The Confederate flag is lowered for the final time and the ship is taken into the charge of the British Customs Office. With the American Civil War back home now over for many months, its reappearance is something of an embarrassment for everyone. Wh…

All things come to an end, and the 50th episode of Shenandoah Down Under sees the end drawing very close… months after the war has ended, the last Confederate cruiser slips quietly into into English territorial waters, and is therefore unlikely to be taken by a US gunboat. This means the ship’s company can be paid off. But instead of the “buckets o…

Illness and death haunt the CSS Shenandoah in this week’s episode, as William Bill the Hawaiian and Sergeant Canning the mysterious Englishman lie on their deathbeds. The very skies seem to bear witness to the despair of the crew as a total eclipse of the sun blocks out even the light of day. Poor William Bill is suffering from final stages of vene…

Oh dear, in this new episode, the feuding on board the ship has reached new heights, with Surgeon McNulty calling Mr Blacker an “English Irish Orangeman”, and thereby deftly uniting race and religion in one deadly insult. Can things get worse? Can they ever! When Executive Officer Whittle tries to remonstrate with the drunken McNulty, McNulty “show…

As the CSS Shenandoah heads towards the Falkland Islands, Rob and MOB explain how the sadly deficient wi-fi services offered in one-star German Youth Hostels has contributed to the recent lack of regularly appearing “Shenandoah Down Under” episodes. How good was this wi-fi? About as good as the relationships of the officers and the captain aboard t…

In Episode 46 of Shenandoah Down Under, the ship navigates the perilous waters of Cape Horn, seeking to get back to Liverpool without encountering Union warships (or indeed anyone else who could alert Union warships). But the Captain is otherwise preoccupied, asserting his authority in the most unlikely of places. Last month, it was fruitlessly try…

In Episode 45 of Shenandoah Down Under, Rob and MOB are once again very proud to host Barry Crompton of the American Civil War Round Table of Australia, and there is a a typically wide-ranging discussion, largely concerning the various primary and secondary sources used to research the CSS Shenandoah. Barry talks about a couple of new books about t…

As the Shenandoah sails further into the Southern Pacific heading for Cape Horn there is trouble aboard for Lieutenant Lee. Surely this couldn’t be worse than hearing the news that his uncle (General Lee) had surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox Court House?No, not worse than that, but pretty close, as Sydney Smith Lee is caught …

As the Shenandoah continues through the Pacific on the way back to Liverpool, Captain Waddell’s behaviour grows increasingly erratic, and, to quote Surgeon Lining, things are going “from worse to worst”. First Lieutenant Debney Minor Scales is removed from his watch for the terrible crime of sleeping in, and then Lieutenant Cornelius Hunt is also r…

After a brief hiatus, MOB and Rob return to find the CSS Shenandoah in the Pacific at the equator, still half the world away from Liverpool, their final destination. However there are none of the jolly japes of their previous crossing of the line: all of the crew are feeling ‘very blue’ as they contemplate their fate being branded pirates. To suit …

As the Shenandoah cruises towards San Francisco, looking for intelligence before launching a frankly ambitious attack on that famous seaport, the worst of all possible news is bought to them by the English ship Barracuda. The American Civil war has been over for several months, during which time they have taken most of their prizes in the Arctic an…

As the Shenandoah travels further back into the Pacific and closer to the American mainland the weather is warmer, and the ship is travelling at a fair clip, but all is not well in the hearts of men. After a month where whaling crews have been trying to tell them, with increasing stridency that the war is over, are the crew of the Shenandoah beginn…

Rob and Mob interview horticulturist, eighteenth century reenactor and polymath Michael Hagen about some fascinating relics of the civil war that can still be visited today. the first of these is the Waterbury Button Company, which cheerfully made brass buttons for both sides of the American Civil War, and is still operating today at the same locat…

In part two of Rob and MOB’s interview with author and historian Chris Gidlow, Chris continues to entertainingly detail the tortuous history of the Confederate States’ attempts to design a suitable flag – one that couldn’t be confused with the Stars & Stripes on the battlefield, or look like a flag of surrender. This somewhat contentious process ha…

In this week’s episode of Shenandoah Down Under Robert and Michael are delighted to interview author and historian Christopher Gidlow, the Live Interpretation Manager at the Historic Royal Palaces, UK (his office is actually in the Tower of London). In a wide ranging interview that naturally manages to touch on the bad false beards in American Civi…

When the American Civil War comes to Alaska the officers and crew of the CSS Shenandoah have their day in the (admittedly coolish) midsummer sun. There are unsuspecting prizes aplenty, and the only thing that can save the hapless whalers is ice and fog, which tends to be rather prevalent up towards the Arctic circle. Amid the destruction of proud s…

It is the best of times and the worst of times for the CSS Shenandoah and her crew, in a week that is so busy that they have to have two Thursdays to fit it all in (sailing back and forth over the international date line will do that). For a start they find whalers: lots and lots of whalers, in fact too many to capture all at once! There are prizes…

With the Shenandoah unable to proceed any further into the Sea of Okhotsk, the crew reluctantly abandons Siberian waters and start sailing out through the Kuril Straits, and towards the Arctic Circle. For three weeks there has been only one prize. The Officers are muttering about the captain, the mates are fighting duels (sort of) in steerage, and …

With a large part of the crew recovering from the biggest (and northernmost) hangover of their lives, the Shenandoah attempts to continue its cruise in the Okhotsk sea, off the coast of Siberia. Following the shipboard breakdown in discipline due to staggeringly immense quantities of liquor they captured from the whaler Abigail last week, what more…

After a month of little excitement, the CSS Shenandoah captures the whaler Abigail, in the Okhotsk Sea off the coast of Siberia. The Abigail is carrying twenty barrels of whale oil, but also has fifty barrels of brandy, rum, whiskey and gin, together with 180 cases of ‘assorted spirits, wines and ciders’ on board. To make things plain, that is a lo…

As the CSS Shenandoah prepares to steam into the Sea of Okhotsk, things are getting decidedly chilly. In three weeks of sailing and steaming the ship has gone from 100 fahrenheit temperatures (38 celsius) to a below freezing 26 (-3 Celsius). It is just lucky that Midshipman Mason has been making so many pairs of pants, although with his chilblains …

The CSS Shenandoah forges ever northwards towards the sea of Okhotsk, its path taking it close to the Kuril Islands, an archipelago running between Japan and Russia. Rob and MOB examine the complicated history of these islands, whose ownership is disputed to the present day. This involves describing the unfortunate fate of the Russian Baltic fleet …

As the CSS Shenandoah continues her journey into the Northern Pacific, Midshipman Mason wonders if the ventilation duct in the Midshipman’s berth is about to turn from a turn from a pleasant supply of cool tropic breezes to a less pleasant supplier of arctic gales. Arctic gales spoiler alert: he is right to worry about this! Back in the USA, the No…

As the CSS Shenandoah scuds north, towards towards the Russian sea of Okhotsk (not to be confused with toddlers fashion label Oskosh Bigosh) they look in vain for a sail on the ‘China Path’, the route between San Francisco and the Orient. With not a prize in sight, Midshipman Mason wrestles with one of the most difficult parts of the sailors life –…

As the Shenandoah moves deeper into the Pacific Michael and Robert are delighted to welcome Hawai‘i Pacific University associate professor of History Justin Vance, who has just been named the 2015 Hawaii History Educator of the Year. Justin takes us through the suprisingly profound and long lasting consequences for Hawaii and other Pacific islands …

The peregrinations of the CSS Shenandoah this week take it to the island Kingdom of Pohnpei, where four Yankee whaler captains out on a ‘Bust’ get the worst possible introduction to their hangover, a Confederate warship arrived to loot and burn them. But it is not all plain sailing for the Confederates either. Pohnpei has very high rainfall, and it…

With the Shenandoah about to land in Pohnpei in what is now the Federated States of Micronesia, Rob, Mob and guest Rick Meints step back a bit to consider events in early April in the sideshow theatre of the American Civil War that was actually happening in America, populated by minor and little known figures called Lincoln, Grant and Lee. Also, in…

With the 150th anniversary of the arrival of the CSS Shenandoah at the Caroline Islands, now the Federated States of Micronesia, Mob and Rob reflect on the reign of the the king who gave his name to the islands, Charles II of Spain, last of the Spanish Hapsburgs, a family who though that too much in-breeding was never enough! Charles had one black …

With the Shenandoah travelling through the equatorial Gilbert Islands, Rob and Mob reflect on the famously laconic declaration of victory made by the American General in the Second World War who took the main island, Makin, from the Japanese. The declaration was, of course, “Taken Maken”, which manages to be shorter than Veni, Vidi, Vici by one wor…

Rob and Mob are joined by Barry Crompton from the American Civil War Round Table of Australia, to launch his intensively researched tome Dixie Down Under. Barry describes the efforts made to track down the Australian members of the Shenandoah’s crew, including William Kenyon, the only Australian born member of the crew, and the only Australian crew…

With the Shenandoah heading through a patch of sea that Executive Officer Whittle calls ‘Oh, the terrible monotony’ Rob and Mob are lucky enough to have a listener alert them to the fact that they rather neglected the Shenandoah’s departure from Melbourne, which was much more exciting. In full flashback mode they describe the troubles of Union Cons…

After leaving Melbourne in 1865, Captain Waddell falls into what seems to be a depressive episode. Worn down by the cares of command, he constantly finds fault with his officers, and the situation is not helped as the long days pass without the sight of a Yankee prize. . . . Back in 2015, we have the second half of our interview with Byard Sheppard…

in 2015, Mob and Rob are delighted to interview Byard Sheppard from the Victorian Civil War Round Table, who is an expert in the history and construction of the Sea King/CSS Shenandoah. In the first part of this two part interview you can hear how composite iron and wood construction was the latest thing in shipbuilding in the 1860’s, and how Cunni…

After the excitement of the Ball serious events are brewing back in Melbourne for the crew of the Shenandoah. Union Consul Blanchard is busy building a case, and is accusing officers of the Shenandoah of recruiting British subjects. As this is precisely what they are doing it is not surprising that the police become involved. As the Ship lies helpl…

In Ballarat in 1865 the officers of the Shenandoah are feted by the locals, being entertained at a grand ball where at least one Lieutenant gets his hand tenderly squeezed. there was also culture shock, with the officers going 420 feet down into a gold mine, and deciding that the lazy life of the sailor was preferable to digging for gold. Back in M…

The visit of the Shenandoah to Melbourne proves to be the social event of the year, with thousands flocking for tours of the ship, and the Officers hosted for dinner at the Establishment Melbourne club. But some among the populace are not happy about this, and are sending stern letters to the editor (and probably threatening to cancel their subscri…

On 25 January 1865, the Shenandoah arrived in Melbourne, Australia, on a day that will forever afterwards be known as the day before Australia day. So significant is this day that 150 years later, Rob and Mob were able to lift a tankard of Shenandoah Anniversary ale at the Seaworks museum in Williamstown, at the heart of Melbourne’s historic port d…

As the Shenandoah nears Australia the action continues. Hurrying to Melbourne to catch the Mail Steam Packet Captain Waddell overloads the engine and the Ship’s propeller gets cracked again. On the personal side, the unfortunate Lieutenant Chew is proving to be under something of a curse, losing his possessions and almost his person overboard. Exec…

On the way to Australia the Shenandoah makes a stopover at the isolated (aren’t they all) island of St Paul. With six square kilometres of barren rock surrounding a sea filled volcanic crater, St Paul today looks like the perfect island for a James Bond supervillian, but in 1865 it is the haunt of two Frenchmen who sell the Shenandoah a chicken and…

Executive Officer Whittle and Captain Waddell are in great disagreement about Lieutenant Chew. Whittle sees Chew as having been appointed by the Senate of the Confederacy, and ultimately by Jefferson Davis himself. Captain Waddell does not respect Chew’s commission or his person, in those words and to his face, and does not trust him to take a watc…

As the Shenandoah heads into the Roaring Forties (not to be confused with the Roaring Twenties) Executive Officer Whittle and Captain Waddell are still a feuding. Mob and Rob (joined by Hundred Years’ War enthusiast John Coleman) also discuss the various memories and echoes of the Shenandoah in modern day Melbourne, including the Steve Irwin, flags…

Good and bad fortune attends the Shenandoah after she leaves Tristan de Cunha. On the good side, the Yankee Captain Rogers, following in the USS Iroquois with intent to do the Shenandoah harm, heads off to completely the wrong part of the planet. On the bad side, the crew discovers that the propeller is cracked, and they must put into port for urge…

As the Shenandoah approaches Tristan da Cunha, it almost encounters a suspected Yankee gunboat, but salvages the situation by running away. Two days later the Shanandoah captures it’s first whaling ship but just too late to save one unfortunate whale. On Tristan da Cunha, the crew bargain for some very overpriced supplies, but make some money back …

The Shenandoah sails towards Tristan da Cunha, the most isolated inhabited archipelago in the world. Executive Officer Whittle continues his enthusiastic experiments with naval discipline, most of which include tricing, the gentle art of hanging men from their thumbs. Captain Waddell also begins to show himself an autocrat and stickler, insisting t…

As the Shenandoah continues it’s voyage towards the Southern Ocean, Mob and Rob dramatically foreshadow the dangers that await them there, along the great Australian Bight and the Shipwreck Coast. Elsewhere in 1864, the consequences of the Australian drought are laid out. These include an early example of climate scientists being ignored (with unfo…

With the Shenandoah traversing the Atlantic, Rob and Mob fill in the previous biographies of the junior officers of the Shenandoah. These include Sydney Smith-Lee, nephew of the famous General Robert E Lee, and the splendidly named Debney Minor Scales. There is also Lieutenant Chew, who gave up drugs for the sea (he was a pharmacist, not a addict).…

Robert explains in perhaps overly enthusiastic detail how the narrative progression in Shenandoah Down Under differs from that in the cult tv series ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’. Perhaps more to the point, there is also a description of the consequences of the Treaty of Paris in 1856, and how the agreement of Paris (which came after) has had repercus…