Civil War Illustrations
The Battle between the Monitor and the Merrimac (Virginia)
The battle between the ironclad ships the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia (formerly the USS Merrimac or Merrimack), took place on March 8 and 9, 1862. Also referred to as the Battle of Hampton Roads, it is significant in naval history because it was the first battle between ironclad ships. Afterwards, one news article concluded that "naval architecture of the world, for all purposes of war, must be changed, and iron-plated steamers take the place of all the wooden constructions now in use."
The Confederate States Navy constructed the CSS Virginia using the lower hull and steam engines of the USS Merrimac, which had been scuttled along with several other ships in an attempt to keep them out of Confederate hands. On March 8, the Virginia and supporting ships attacked several federal ships that were enforcing a Union blockade intended to cut Virginia off from international trade. The rebel ironclad was able to destroy two of the Union ships, the Cumberland and the Congress, while sustaining fairly minimal damage herself.
The Virginia returned the next morning, on March 9, intending to attack a third Union ship, the Minnesota, which had run aground the previous day. By then, however, the USS Monitor had arrived on the scene to defend the Minnesota. Designed by Swedish inventor John Ericsson and built in his Brooklyn shipyard, the Monitor was also an ironclad, commissioned by the U.S. Navy specifically in response to the Virginia. The two ironclads fought for several hours, but neither was able to damage the other significantly, and the battle eventually ended without either side being able to claim a decisive vistory: the Union's losses were far heavier, but the Confederates did not succeed in breaking the blockade.
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