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The ''H. L. Hunley'' was a submarine of the Confederate States of America that played a small part in the American Civil War. The ''Hunley'' demonstrated the advantages and the dangers of undersea warfare. She was the first combat submarine to sink a warship, although the ''Hunley'' was not completely submerged and, following her successful attack, was lost along with her crew before she could return to base. The Confederacy lost 21 crewmen in three sinkings of the ''Hunley'' during her short career. She was named for her inventor, Horace Lawson Hunley, shortly after she was taken into government service under the control of the Confederate States Army at Charleston, South Carolina. The ''Hunley'', nearly 40 feet (12 m) long, was built at Mobile, Alabama, and launched in July 1863. She was then shipped by rail on August 12, 1863, to Charleston, South Carolina. The ''Hunley'' (then called ''Fish Boat'') sank on August 29, 1863, during a test run, killing five members of her crew. She sank again on October 15, 1863, killing all eight of her second crew, including Horace Hunley himself, who was aboard at the time, even though he was not a member of the Confederate militiary. Both times the ''Hunley'' was raised and returned to service. On February 17, 1864, The ''Hunley'' attacked and sank the 1240-short ton (1124 metric tons)〔(Housatonic )〕 screw sloop USS ''Housatonic'', which had been on Union blockade-duty in Charleston's outer harbor. Soon afterwards, the ''Hunley'' sank, killing all eight of her third crew. This time, the ship was lost. Finally located in 1995, the ''Hunley'' was raised in 2000 and is on display in North Charleston, South Carolina, at the Warren Lasch Conservation Center on the Cooper River. Examination, in 2012, of recovered ''Hunley'' artifacts suggests that the submarine was as close as 20 feet to her target, the ''Housatonic'', when her deployed torpedo exploded, which eventually caused the sub's own loss. == Predecessors == ''Hunley'' and two earlier submarines were privately developed and paid for by Horace Lawson Hunley, James McClintock, and Baxter Watson. While the United States Navy was constructing its first submarine in late 1861, the ''USS Alligator'', the Confederacy were doing so as well. Hunley, McClintock, and Watson first built a small submarine named ''Pioneer'' in New Orleans, Louisiana. The ''Pioneer'' was tested in February 1862 in the Mississippi River and was later towed to Lake Pontchartrain for additional trials. But the Union advance towards New Orleans caused the men to abandon development and scuttle the ''Pioneer'' the following month. The poorly documented Bayou St. John Confederate submarine may have been constructed about the same time as the ''Pioneer''. The three inventors moved to Mobile and joined with machinists Thomas Park and Thomas Lyons. They soon began development of a second submarine, the ''American Diver''. Their efforts were supported by the Confederate States Army. Lieutenant William Alexander of the 21st Alabama Infantry Regiment was assigned to oversee the project. The builders experimented with electromagnetic and steam propulsion for the new submarine, before falling back on a simple hand-cranked propulsion system. The ''American Diver'' was ready for harbor trials by January 1863, but she proved too slow to be practical. One attempted attack on the Union blockade was made in February 1863, but it was unsuccessful. The submarine sank in the mouth of Mobile Bay during a storm later that month and was not recovered. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「H. L. Hunley (submarine)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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