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Five Flags: The Warship that Reshaped the World
2025 International Book Awards finalist and Book Sirens Selection.
As wooden ships gave way to ironclads in the middle of the nineteenth century, one warship stood out. Born in the American Civil War and buffeted by the rivalries of North and South and Europe, it ultimately helped secure the foundations of modern Japan. Its career encompassed two civil wars and featured high politics and secret diplomacy, arms dealers and royal courts, spies, sailors, and samurai. In a vivid narrative traveling from London to Paris, from Copenhagen to Havana, from Washington to Tokyo, Five Flags brings to life this incredible true story.
Strangled by the Union's naval blockade, the Confederacy needed ships--and turned to Europe to build them. In 1862 it hired a French shipbuilder to secretly construct one of the deadliest warships built to that time: an ironclad mounting a 300-pounder gun, two 70-pounders, two 6-pounders, four 4-pounders, a Gatling gun, and a 20-foot ram off its bow, and clad in armor nearly 5 inches thick.
Before the mighty ironclad was finished, U.S. agents discovered it, and the ship was sold to Denmark, which changed its mind but agreed to transfer it to the Confederacy. Christened Stonewall after the legendary general, the ship was damaged in a storm and took refuge in Spain. By now, the U.S. had located the Stonewall, but feared the gunship and did not give chase when the ironclad disembarked. The Stonewall reached Cuba in May 1865--after the end of the Civil War--and the captain sold the ship to Spain, which then sold it to the United States.
But the ironclad would not end its career mothballed at the Washington Navy Yard. In 1867 the Tokugawa shogunate approached the U.S. to buy naval vessels for its conflict with resurgent imperial forces in Japan. The U.S. agreed to sell the Stonewall, but by the time the warship reached Japan, imperial forces had taken the upper hand, and the U.S. now sold the ship to the new Imperial Japanese Navy, which deployed it--renamed Kotetsu--as the centerpiece of the fleet that would defeat the shogunate and secure the Meiji Restoration, setting Japan on the path of modernization, industrialization, and expansion that would end in World War II.
As wooden ships gave way to ironclads in the middle of the nineteenth century, one warship stood out. Born in the American Civil War and buffeted by the rivalries of North and South and Europe, it ultimately helped secure the foundations of modern Japan. Its career encompassed two civil wars and featured high politics and secret diplomacy, arms dealers and royal courts, spies, sailors, and samurai. In a vivid narrative traveling from London to Paris, from Copenhagen to Havana, from Washington to Tokyo, Five Flags brings to life this incredible true story.
Strangled by the Union's naval blockade, the Confederacy needed ships--and turned to Europe to build them. In 1862 it hired a French shipbuilder to secretly construct one of the deadliest warships built to that time: an ironclad mounting a 300-pounder gun, two 70-pounders, two 6-pounders, four 4-pounders, a Gatling gun, and a 20-foot ram off its bow, and clad in armor nearly 5 inches thick.
Before the mighty ironclad was finished, U.S. agents discovered it, and the ship was sold to Denmark, which changed its mind but agreed to transfer it to the Confederacy. Christened Stonewall after the legendary general, the ship was damaged in a storm and took refuge in Spain. By now, the U.S. had located the Stonewall, but feared the gunship and did not give chase when the ironclad disembarked. The Stonewall reached Cuba in May 1865--after the end of the Civil War--and the captain sold the ship to Spain, which then sold it to the United States.
But the ironclad would not end its career mothballed at the Washington Navy Yard. In 1867 the Tokugawa shogunate approached the U.S. to buy naval vessels for its conflict with resurgent imperial forces in Japan. The U.S. agreed to sell the Stonewall, but by the time the warship reached Japan, imperial forces had taken the upper hand, and the U.S. now sold the ship to the new Imperial Japanese Navy, which deployed it--renamed Kotetsu--as the centerpiece of the fleet that would defeat the shogunate and secure the Meiji Restoration, setting Japan on the path of modernization, industrialization, and expansion that would end in World War II.
- GenresNonfictionHistory
368 pages, Hardcover
First published April 15, 2025
2 people are currently reading
2850 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
August 17, 2025
There is a great concept for a book here - the opportunity to discuss changing naval technology, diplomacy, espionage, naval history, and three different conflicts - the American Civil War, Danish-German War over Schleswig-Holstein, and the conflicts related to the Meiji Restoration - using the story of one warship. Buxton has chosen a great concept, and he explores these themes in the book.
Unfortunately, the execution of this concept undermines the book.
The writing is uneven. In parts, it's fine, but there are times where the writing is choppy, unordered, and lacks cohesion. The worst parts are the summaries of portions of the American Civil War. These are often confused, disordered, and lack cohesion - to the point where I wonder if the author farmed them out to another writer or possibly used AI summaries without sufficient review and revision. One example begins, "The year 1863 started brightly for the Confederates." Buxton then discusses two events from early 1863 - the Battle of Galveston and the Enrollment Act of 1863.
So far, so good. It breaks down with the next paragraph:
"Northern pressure continued. After the ironclad Battle of Hampton Roads in March, the Union's Ulysses S. Grant prevailed at the Battle of Shiloh..." So Buxton starts by discussing events that happened in 1863, then says "pressure continued" and points to events that happened in the first half of 1862. To add to the confusion, Buxton next states "The red river was under Union control." Which river is this? Buxton then states that supplies that were on one side of the Mississippi were cut off from the other side - an event that wouldn't happen until the fall of Vicksburg and Port Hudson much later in 1863.
A second issue is the weakness of editorial review. With any book of any length, no matter how well edited and reviewed, an occasional mistake will inevitably make its way into the final copy. Unfortunately with this book, they’re more than occasional – here is a sampling from the first 30 pages:
On page 11, Buxton has Charles Ellet, Jr., dramatically « dying on the deck of the … Queen of the West…” In reality, he was wounded, refused amputation of the wounded limb, and died of blood infection 2 weeks later in Cairo, Illinois
On page 14, Buxton notes «Admiral Porter argued for speed of construction” of the USS Monitor which is odd because David Dixon Porter would not become an Admiral until a year after the Monitor was launched. I went to check the index to clarify if it was David Dixon Porter or a different Porter, and I discovered that the book has no index – an odd omission for a history book.
On page 17, we’re introduced to “Fighting Jo” Hooker.
On page 29, the Great White Arabia is noted as being "found in the middle of Kansas cornfield." Actually Missouri.
There are many more I could add (e.g., labeling the CSS Shenandoah as an ironclad, inaccurate casualty figures for the 26th North Carolina at Gettysburg, mangling Stonewall Jackson’s last words), but in the interest of time, I’m providing only the sample I found from the first 30 pages.
In and of themselves, each of these errors have limited, if any, impact on the main themes of the book. For me, the volume of these small errors gave me concern about the overall quality of the editing and review process. I’m fairly well read in the American Civil War, so I was able to quickly identify and note these errors. I’m not nearly as well read on other parts of the book, and I have some questions about the accuracy of that information.
Buxton also draws some odd conclusions at times. One example is on page 22, where he states, “The [CSS] Virginia’s loss meant the upper Mississippi, Cumberland, and Tennessee Rivers now served the North.” This is truly bizarre. The CSS Virginia represented a threat to the Union in Southeast Virginia and the Chesapeake Bay region, but it is hard to imagine that the Confederacy had the logistic capacity and would be willing to risk a significant naval asset with less than outstanding seaworthiness, a deep draft, and balky engines on the 1,000+ mile trip to contest these river systems.
The final chapter meanders into a number of counterfactuals as it winds it way to pick up the themes of the book and provide context for the significance of the ship.
Buxton came up with a great concept for a book. The extensive (8 page) bibliography points to the work he put into the book. Unfortunately, the execution of the concept was not good. It’s disappointing to see the potential for a book unrealized. A decent editor would likely have made this a good book – a good editor could have made it a very good or even excellent book.
Unfortunately, the execution of this concept undermines the book.
The writing is uneven. In parts, it's fine, but there are times where the writing is choppy, unordered, and lacks cohesion. The worst parts are the summaries of portions of the American Civil War. These are often confused, disordered, and lack cohesion - to the point where I wonder if the author farmed them out to another writer or possibly used AI summaries without sufficient review and revision. One example begins, "The year 1863 started brightly for the Confederates." Buxton then discusses two events from early 1863 - the Battle of Galveston and the Enrollment Act of 1863.
So far, so good. It breaks down with the next paragraph:
"Northern pressure continued. After the ironclad Battle of Hampton Roads in March, the Union's Ulysses S. Grant prevailed at the Battle of Shiloh..." So Buxton starts by discussing events that happened in 1863, then says "pressure continued" and points to events that happened in the first half of 1862. To add to the confusion, Buxton next states "The red river was under Union control." Which river is this? Buxton then states that supplies that were on one side of the Mississippi were cut off from the other side - an event that wouldn't happen until the fall of Vicksburg and Port Hudson much later in 1863.
A second issue is the weakness of editorial review. With any book of any length, no matter how well edited and reviewed, an occasional mistake will inevitably make its way into the final copy. Unfortunately with this book, they’re more than occasional – here is a sampling from the first 30 pages:
On page 11, Buxton has Charles Ellet, Jr., dramatically « dying on the deck of the … Queen of the West…” In reality, he was wounded, refused amputation of the wounded limb, and died of blood infection 2 weeks later in Cairo, Illinois
On page 14, Buxton notes «Admiral Porter argued for speed of construction” of the USS Monitor which is odd because David Dixon Porter would not become an Admiral until a year after the Monitor was launched. I went to check the index to clarify if it was David Dixon Porter or a different Porter, and I discovered that the book has no index – an odd omission for a history book.
On page 17, we’re introduced to “Fighting Jo” Hooker.
On page 29, the Great White Arabia is noted as being "found in the middle of Kansas cornfield." Actually Missouri.
There are many more I could add (e.g., labeling the CSS Shenandoah as an ironclad, inaccurate casualty figures for the 26th North Carolina at Gettysburg, mangling Stonewall Jackson’s last words), but in the interest of time, I’m providing only the sample I found from the first 30 pages.
In and of themselves, each of these errors have limited, if any, impact on the main themes of the book. For me, the volume of these small errors gave me concern about the overall quality of the editing and review process. I’m fairly well read in the American Civil War, so I was able to quickly identify and note these errors. I’m not nearly as well read on other parts of the book, and I have some questions about the accuracy of that information.
Buxton also draws some odd conclusions at times. One example is on page 22, where he states, “The [CSS] Virginia’s loss meant the upper Mississippi, Cumberland, and Tennessee Rivers now served the North.” This is truly bizarre. The CSS Virginia represented a threat to the Union in Southeast Virginia and the Chesapeake Bay region, but it is hard to imagine that the Confederacy had the logistic capacity and would be willing to risk a significant naval asset with less than outstanding seaworthiness, a deep draft, and balky engines on the 1,000+ mile trip to contest these river systems.
The final chapter meanders into a number of counterfactuals as it winds it way to pick up the themes of the book and provide context for the significance of the ship.
Buxton came up with a great concept for a book. The extensive (8 page) bibliography points to the work he put into the book. Unfortunately, the execution of the concept was not good. It’s disappointing to see the potential for a book unrealized. A decent editor would likely have made this a good book – a good editor could have made it a very good or even excellent book.
June 19, 2025
You'll find yourself 1/3 into the book before the ship makes a tangible appearance, but it's worth it. Let's see... who would like this book? Anyone interested in...
History
Naval history
Fans of Naval components of the American Slaveholders’ Rebellion
Japanese 19th century history, particularly the civil war in the latter half
19th century ship displacements and armaments
late 19th century naval battles of the two civil wars
ship construction
and of course... ironclads
I received a review copy of this from the author through LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program. Mr. Buxton has complied a history of a long lost/little known ironclad warship that sailed under multiple flags (some for disguise reason) and for multiple countries, plus the Confederate slave holding rebellious states, for which she was originally intended. There are displacement and gun numbers on nearly every ship mentioned. Clearly a labor of love. Tremendous amount of research, annotated thoroughly. There is also a robust “selected” bibliography (with all the notes, it makes sense to curate those) for those wanting jumping off points.
The flow is good, and where possible, Mr. Buxton adds the human elements with either best guesses from the history, or actual logs/dispatches/news articles. I enjoyed corresponding with him about some questions I had.
All in all, a solid history of a single ship that had an impact on opposite sides of the globe, plus a solid history of what was going on around her.
History
Naval history
Fans of Naval components of the American Slaveholders’ Rebellion
Japanese 19th century history, particularly the civil war in the latter half
19th century ship displacements and armaments
late 19th century naval battles of the two civil wars
ship construction
and of course... ironclads
I received a review copy of this from the author through LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program. Mr. Buxton has complied a history of a long lost/little known ironclad warship that sailed under multiple flags (some for disguise reason) and for multiple countries, plus the Confederate slave holding rebellious states, for which she was originally intended. There are displacement and gun numbers on nearly every ship mentioned. Clearly a labor of love. Tremendous amount of research, annotated thoroughly. There is also a robust “selected” bibliography (with all the notes, it makes sense to curate those) for those wanting jumping off points.
The flow is good, and where possible, Mr. Buxton adds the human elements with either best guesses from the history, or actual logs/dispatches/news articles. I enjoyed corresponding with him about some questions I had.
All in all, a solid history of a single ship that had an impact on opposite sides of the globe, plus a solid history of what was going on around her.
May 5, 2025
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
This book follows an ironclad warship meant to be used in the US Civil War to end up in a Japanese Civil War instead. While it’s interesting to learn how much the naval capacity mattered in the US Civil War and how the English supplied the Confederates in secret, it’s sometimes hard to keep track of the ship with all the historical detours with many dates and persons.
For me, the book could be halved and focused only on the ship’s story, but people with a deep interest in naval warfare, the US Civil War or Japan’s historical step from being closed off from the rest of the world to actively partake in the West industrialisation and international trade, I think this will be a five star.
This book follows an ironclad warship meant to be used in the US Civil War to end up in a Japanese Civil War instead. While it’s interesting to learn how much the naval capacity mattered in the US Civil War and how the English supplied the Confederates in secret, it’s sometimes hard to keep track of the ship with all the historical detours with many dates and persons.
For me, the book could be halved and focused only on the ship’s story, but people with a deep interest in naval warfare, the US Civil War or Japan’s historical step from being closed off from the rest of the world to actively partake in the West industrialisation and international trade, I think this will be a five star.
August 26, 2025
Good book. Loved how instead of just sharing this ships life story it gave readers much needed info on the politics and such going on that impacted the ships life. I also liked how the author appeared mostly factual not necessarily taking political sides.
Book was intriguing and attention getting. Worth the read for history lovers. I’ve mostly read of land battles during the civil war so hearing of sea battles helped understand more.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Book was intriguing and attention getting. Worth the read for history lovers. I’ve mostly read of land battles during the civil war so hearing of sea battles helped understand more.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
June 8, 2025
I enjoyed this book. It was interesting. It told history by way of warships. The topic was not dry and boring. It brought to light part of my own country's history that I did not know. Plus it opened me up to aspects of world history that I now want to explore more.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
September 16, 2025
Five Flags isn’t just about one ship, it unfolds the 1800s through the journey that ship takes. From the wheeling and dealing of the American Civil War to the fall of Japan’s samurai, the ship is the unlikely main character tying it all together. It showed me how the moving parts of 1800’s all linked together, and how a single warship became a thread weaving through very different worlds.
June 3, 2025
Bring this is not something I knew a whole lot about due to not studied in Australia in this detail this is a good book. It really gave me a more in-depth study into the time and happenings during the Civil War. Having such detail in this it was still a captivating and easy read to enjoy for the history buff.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews