How the First Combat Submarine Actually Worked #engineering #history #submarine Views, stats and 30-day YouTube chart

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About this video

See how a Confederate submarine sank a Union warship during the American Civil War using a hand-cranked propulsion system. We analyze the engineering of this cramped iron vessel, which relied on eight sailors turning a long crank to move underwater. The commander navigated by candlelight while the crew operated in silence, eventually ramming the enemy vessel with a bomb attached to a long pole. This breakdown examines how the craft functioned and why it failed to return from its mission. By looking at this early naval warfare technology, we gain a clearer picture of the risks taken by those operating underwater during the 1860s. We examine the specific design choices that allowed the vessel to attack, providing an objective look at this unusual piece of maritime history. Subscribe for more military history analysis and let us know which experimental naval weapons you want us to break …

Channel

Denis Shmalts

Published

Nov 4, 2026

Length

0:34

Tags

Confederate submarine, American Civil War, Union warship, naval warfare, maritime history, history documentary, civil war, naval history, history channel, ocean, civil war documentary, union, american history, submarine, disaster