Naval Battles Essay, Research Paper

Civil War – Monitor vs. Merrimack

The battle on March 9, 1862, between the USS Monitor and the

CSS Merrimack, officially the CSS Virginia, is one of the most

revolutionary naval battles in world history. Up until that point, all

battles had been waged between wooden ships. This was the first battle

in maritime history that two ironclad ships waged war.

The USS Merrimack was a Union frigate throughout most of its

existence, up until the Union Navy abandoned the Norfolk Naval Yard.

To prevent the Confederate Navy from using her against them, the Union

Navy scuttled her. The Confederates, however, raised the ship from the

shallow floor of the ocean and began making some major modifications.

Confederate engineers cut the hull down to the water line and built a

slanted top on it. Then, they bolted four layers of iron sheets, each

two inches thick, to the entire structure. Also added was a huge

battering ram to the bow of the ship to be used in ramming maneuvers.

The ship was then fitted with ten twelve-pound cannons. There were

four guns placed on the starboard and port sides, and one on the bow

and stern sides. Due to its massive nature the ship’s draft was

enormous, it stretched twenty-two feet to the bottom. The ship was so

slow and long, that it required a turning radius of about one mile.

Likened to a “floating barn roof (DesJardien 2)” and not predicted to

float, the only individual willing to take command of the ship was

Captain Franklin Buchanan. After all the modifications were complete,

the ship was rechristened the CSS Virginia, but the original name

the CSS Merrimack is the preferred name.

The USS Monitor was the creation of Swedish-American engineer,

John Ericsson. The ship was considered small for a warship, only 172

feet long and 42 feet wide. Confederate sailors were baffled by the

ship. One was quoted describing her as “. . . a craft such as the eyes

of a seaman never looked upon before, an immense shingle floating on

the water with a giant cheese box rising from its center” (Ward 101).

The “cheese box” was a nine by twenty foot revolving turret with two

massive guns inside. “The USS Monitor used two of the eleven inch

Dahlgran guns . . .” (Lavy 2). These Dahlgran guns were massive rifled

cannons that were capable of firing a variety of shot. The armor of

this ship was a two inch thick layer of steel that shielded the ship.

The deck was so low to the water line, about one foot, that waves

frequently washed over the deck causing the ship to lose its balance

in the water. Due to the low profile, the entire crew was located

below the water line, so one armor piercing hit would kill the entire

crew. Like the CSS Merrimack, the USS Monitor was expected to sink, it

was referred to as “Ericsson’s Folly” (DesJardien 2). The only

individual willing to take command of the ship was Lieutenant John

Worden.

The battle at Hampton Roads was part of the Peninsula Campaign

that lasted from March to August of 1862. There was a total of five

ships engaged in the battle. From the US Navy, there were four ships,

the USS Congress, USS Minnesota, USS Cumberland, and the USS Monitor.

The CS Navy had one ship, the CSS Merrimack. On March 8, 1862, the CSS

Merrimack steamed into Hampton Roads. She proceeded to sink the USS

Cumberland and then ran the USS Congress aground. Captain Buchanan

then set his sights on the already handicapped USS Minnesota. The USS

Minnesota was run aground on one of the shores. Capt. Buchanan did not

know, but the USS Monitor was lying in wait, ordered to protect the

wounded USS Minnesota. Lt. Worden steamed out into the middle of the

bay to meet the CSS Merrimack. The USS Monitor fired first in a drawn

out battle that lasted about four and a half hours. “They fired shot,

shell, grape, canister, musket and rifle balls doing no damage to each

other” (Lavy 3).

After four and a half hours, the CSS Merrimack withdrew due to

falling tides. The USS Monitor did not make chase because of a crack

in the turret. The results of the battle were inconclusive, neither

side could claim victory. The estimated casualties resulting from the

battle were extensive. The Union lost about 409 sailors and the

Confederacy lost about 24 sailors. The battle was so impressive to

the leaders of both the Union and the Confederacy, that they

contracted their Naval yards to have more ironclad ships built.

Additions to the Confederate fleet included the CSS Tennessee, a 209

foot long blockade runner with four broadside cannons and pivoted

cannons at the bow and stern. Additions to the Union Navy included the

USS Carondelet. Armed with thirteen guns and stationed on the

Mississippi, she was a formidable opponent. Prior to the building of

the USS Monitor, the USS New Ironsides was built. “It was the

strongest ship ever built by the Northern Navy” (Lavy 4). Wooden ships

were now obsolete. Ironclad ships began to roll out of ship yards more

often than their wooden counterparts. “The invention of ironclads in

the Civil War set examples for the future of ship building in the

United States” (Lavy 5).

The ironclads were at an advantage over the wooden ships of

the two Navies because of their superior technology. Ironclads could

withstand hours of battering by artillery, and they could be used to

cut traffic lanes through mine fields. Their armor could resist the

blast from a mine considerably better than any wooden ship could. They

could also carry more powerful guns. Due to their increased stability

in the water these massive ships could easily endure the recoil of a

huge cannon. Another useful characteristic of the ironclads was their

ability to be used in ramming missions. The hull of the ship would not

be compromised by a hit associated with ramming a wooden vessel.

Because of Civil War technology, the United States has never

built another wooden battleship since the introduction of the

ironclads. Every armed conflict since then has seen more and more

improvements in the way ironclad ships were built. The introduction of

multiple massive turrets in the late 1800s improved the firepower

dramatically. Later renovations included improved power plants and

more devastating weapons. Perhaps the greatest renovation came in the

pre-World War I era with the introduction of the aircraft carrier.

Today, ironclad ships are so advanced that they are scarcely bigger

than the ironclads used in the Civil War, but they are hundreds if not

thousands times more powerful.

Although the wooden ship has proved extremely effective in

naval battles throughout history, the advent of the ironclad totally

revolutionized the way in which naval forces around the world approach

warfare. “From the moment the two ships opened fire that Sunday

morning, every other navy on earth was obsolete” (Ward 102).

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DesJardien, Matt. “The Ironclads.” www.shorelin.wednet.edu/Echo

Lake/Civil War/Matt D*Ironclads.html.

Lavy, Gabe. “A Comparison of the Role and Importance of the Northern

and Southern Navies to the Fighting of the Civil War.”

www.geocities.com/Athens/2391/Final.htm.

“Monitor v. Merrimack,” Microsoft Encarta 1996 Encyclopedia. Microsoft

Corp., Funk and Wagnalls Corp. 1993-95.

Ward, Geoffrey C. The Civil War: An Illustrated History. New York:

Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1990.