Ironclads

=**Introduction** = = = ** -- **  The term "ironclad" describes any of the warships built in the 1800s armored with iron plating. Naval weaponry had toc become far more advanced than naval defense, and wooden hulled ships were sunk by explosive shells with ease. In the mid-eighteenth century, modern navies began to evolve. The power of iron armored warships to demolish wooden fleets became increasingly apparent, sparking a revolution in naval warfare and a turning point in history.
 * Ironclads **A Revolution in Naval Warfare 

=**Use Outside the Civil War** = = = ** -- ** The eighteenth century does not see the birth of the ironclad warship, but its rise to prominence.  The Korean Admiral Yi Sun Shin lead a fleet of armored ships to defeat Japanese forces in the late 1500s. After Shin's death his invention was put to rest, its power untapped for two centuries. It was not until the 1850s that ironclads were used again, this time in Europe. In the Battle of Sinope, November 1853, Russian naval forces utilized explosive shells against Turkish ships, demolishing an entire squadron. The need for better defense was clear, prompting France to undertake the 1859 construction of the first ironclad in Europe, La Gloire. Great Britain followed shortly after, producing its first ironclad, the Warrior, in 1860. The Civil War saw the first clashes between ironclads, revealing the potency of ironclads to the west and leaving every country in Europe scrambling to replace its wooden warships. Wooden-hulled warships became obsolete almost overnight. Iron was eventually replaced by steel in the construction of warships, and the term "ironclad" fell out of use upon the 1906 construction of the Dreadnought, a new class of battleship. The effect of ironclad warships can still be seen today: modern navies are armored entirely by metal.

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=**The Race to Build Ironclads** = = = ** -- **  When the U.S. Civil War began, neither side possessed ironclad ships of any kind. The South, aiming to negate the advantage the North possessed in number of ships, took the initiative. The Confederate navy had limited access to the iron necessary to build ironclads, as it was used for munitions and railroads. Even if materials had been readily available, the South lacked the factories to build all of the needed parts. Working around the shortcomings in its resources, the Southern navy fitted wooden vessels with iron plating, in effect producing ironclads. By the wars end, the Confederacy had created 25 ironclad warships in this manner. The South attempted to procure European ironclads as well, but pressure from the North largely prevented this. The Confederacy was able to purchase only one ironclad, the Stonewall of France, but even this arrived after the war had ended. The Union navy started out larger and with far superior resources. Soon after the war began, the North commenced the production of three ironclads: the New Ironsides, the Galena, and the Monitor. By the time the Civil War ended, the North possessed 71 ironclad warships, about three times that of the Confederacy.

=**Physical Characteristics** = = = ** -- ** Civil War Ironclads varied greatly, but they mostly belonged to two groups: Casemates and Monitors. All ironclads made use of a steam engine, not sails, allowing movement regardless of the wind speed and direction. Neither type possessed the agility of wooden ships, but made up for it in sheer durability. Monitors, named after the original, the USS Monitor, were the primary ironclads use by the North. Monitors had low decks that were close to the water, which lessened the surface area open to attack. They possessed revolving turrets, though limited in number, and a steam engine. Casemates, mostly used by the South, were larger than monitors. They had slanted sides and looked somewhat like a box. Casemates were armed with fixed guns in their hull, greater in number than with monitors. As they were not very maneuverable, casemates were best used for defensive operations or the attack of land targets. Perhaps the most famous ships of the two types were the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia, which faced off to mark the first battle in history between two ironclad warships.

=**Engagements throughout the War** = **-- ** Ironclad warships were new technology in the Civil War, still not under widespread use. Although the use of ironclad ships remained less common compared to wooden ones, upon deployment they were a force to be reckoned with. The following is a list of the engagements involving ironclads throughout the Civil War:

**1862** March 8- The Merrimack battles and destroys the USS Cumberland and forces the USS Congress to surrender, killing 241 men in the process. March 9- The Battle of Hampton Roads occurs; the ironclads Merrimack and Monitor battle. March 28- The ironclad CSS Louisiana is destroyed in the Battle of Forts Jackson and St. Philip. May 8- The ironclad USS Galena, aided by two other ships, destroys two Confederate batteries at the mouth of the James River in Virginia. May 11- The Merrimack is sunk by its own crew on the James River to avoid its capture. May 15- The Union ironclads Monitor, Galena, and E.A. Stevens, along with the Aroostook and the Port Royal, attack Fort Darling on the James River, near Richmond. July 22- The ironclad USS Essex, assisted by the wooden Queen of the West, engage but fail to destroy the CSS Arkansas at Vicksburg, Mississippi. December 31- The USS Monitor sinks in a storm off the North Carolina coast. April 7- Nine Union Ironclads assault Sumter, South Carolina. January 24- Confederate Ironclads fail in an attempt to descend the James River. June 3- The ironclad CSS Missourri surrenders to Union forces on the Red River.
 * 1863**
 * 1864**
 * 1865**

=**The Battle of Hampton Roads** = = = ** -- ** It was a turning point in history. On March 9, 1862, two ironclad ships battled for control over the shore of Hampton Roads, Virginia. By the day's end, it was clear that a new era of naval warfare had begun. Befittingly name the Battle of Hampton Roads, it was between the Union ironclad: the Monitor, and the Confederate ironclad: the Merrimack (Renamed the CSS Virginia). Fighting began the day before, on March 8. In an attempt to break the Union blockade of Hampton Roads, the Merrimack attacked and destroyed two wooden warships from the North and killed more than 300 men, sustaining little damage in the process. In hope of confronting the Merrimack by the next morning, the Monitor was sent on an hazardous overnight journey to Hampton Roads from New York in which it nearly sank on two occasions. Despite this, the Monitor arrived at Hampton Roads the morning of March 1862, operational and ready for battle. The two ironclads were exceedingly different in size and attributes. The Merrimack had been a wooden-hulled Union warship, captured by the South and modified with iron plating. It was a casemate, 275 feet along its length and armed with a ram and ten guns in its hull. A new design by the Swedish engineer John Ericsson, the Monitor was made entirely of iron, possessing the previously described attributes of a monitor, of which it was the first. Stretching only 172 feet, the Monitor was dwarfed by its opponent. It possessed only two cannons mounted in a rotating turret on its deck, an inferior arsenal to that of the Merrimack. Though different, the two ironclads proved an even match. Soon after its arrival on March 9, the Monitor engaged the Merrimack, and the Battle of Hampton Roads commenced. After four hours of close range combat in which neither ship sustained serious damage, the commander of the Monitor, John L. Worden, was transiently blinded when a shell hit the pilothouse. The Monitor temporarily retreated, at which point the Merrimack withdrew from battle to avoid the ebbing tide and for need of ammunition and repairs. Thus ended the Battle of Hampton Roads. Neither of the combatants survived long after: the Merrimack was sunk on the James River by its own crew to avoid capture on May 10, 1862, and the Monitor sank in a storm off the North Carolina coast on December 31, 1862. Indecisive though it was, the Battle of Hampton Roads demonstrated the immense durability of ironclad ships to the world and beckoned in an era.



= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =**External Links** = = = ** -- ** If you are interested in more information, these links may prove helpful.

For extensive information on all aspects of the war go to: []

An interesting and informative documentary: []

For pictures and information regarding specific ships go to: []

For voluminous information regarding the USS Monitor go to: [|http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-m/monitor.htm]

=<span style="color: #086d08; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">**Bibliography** = = = ** -- **

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Barnhart, Adam. "//Monitor// and //Merrimack// naval battle." In Waugh, Joan, and Gary B. Nash, eds. //Encyclopedia of American History: Civil War and Reconstruction, 1856 to 1869//, vol. 5. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2003. //American History Online//. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp? ItemID=WE52&iPin=EAHV197&SingleRecord=True (accessed May 18, 2010).

Bruce, Anthony, and William Cogar. "ironclad warships." //An Encyclopedia of Naval History//. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 1997. //American History Online//. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE52&iPin=ENH524&SingleRecord=True (accessed May 16, 2010)

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal;">Mountjoy, Shane. __Technology and the Civil War__. New York: Chelsea House, 2009.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">//Shotgun's Home of the American Civil War//. Ed. Richard Weeks. 7 Jan. 1977. Web. 22 May 2010. <http://www.civilwarhome.com/>.