Captain Franklin Buchanan of the US Navy, circa 1855-1861, photograph by Mathew Brady.
The picture is thought to have been taken in May 1861, shortly after Buchanan resigned his commission in the belief that his home state of Maryland was going to secede from the Union. It did not, but Buchanan's attempt to take back his resignation was rejected, and he joined the Confederate Navy, commanding the CSS Virginia on the first day of the Battle of Hampton Roads and becoming a full admiral by 1864.
Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
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Cite This Work
APA Style
Brady, M. (2026, November 05). Captain Franklin Buchanan: First Commander of the CSS Virginia. World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/22317/captain-franklin-buchanan/
Chicago Style
Brady, Mathew. "Captain Franklin Buchanan: First Commander of the CSS Virginia." World History Encyclopedia, November 05, 2026. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/22317/captain-franklin-buchanan/.
MLA Style
Brady, Mathew. "Captain Franklin Buchanan: First Commander of the CSS Virginia." World History Encyclopedia, 05 Nov 2026, https://www.worldhistory.org/image/22317/captain-franklin-buchanan/.
