From 1861 to 1865, the American Civil War saw numerous technological innovations in warfare--chief among them was the ironclad warship. Based on the Official Records, biographical works, ship and operations histories, newspapers and other sources, this book chronicles the lives of 158 ironclad captains, North and South, who were charged with outfitting and commanding these then-revolutionary vessels in combat. Each biography includes (where known) birth and death information, pre- and post-war career, and details about ships served upon or commanded.

The 1862 battle between the ironclads USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia (aka Merrimack) is rightly regarded as a key turning point in both the naval history of the American Civil War and world naval history. At a stroke, the wooden navies of the world were rendered obsolete by the unique craft. Despite the immense significance of the ships, however, comparatively little information is available about the six officers who commanded the Monitor during its brief history. "Ironclad Captains: The Commanding Officers of the USS Monitor" presents brief, carefully researched biographies of the six men who commanded the Monitor, ranging from John Worden, the man who fought his ship in the great battle, to John Payne Bankhead, who had to order the Monitor abandoned in sinking condition during a fierce storm off North Carolina's Outer Banks. Although none of these officers commanded the Monitor for very long (a mere four days in the case of Thomas Oliver Selfridge), these officers were involved in most of the major naval actions of the Civil War and participated in nearly every type of activity in which the Navy was involved in that five-year period. In short, their combined story constitutes a "case history" of the Union navy, as well as providing fascinating details of a career in the 19th century American navy.

Reproduction of the original.

One of history's greatest naval engagements, the Battle of Hampton Roads, occurred on March 8 and 9, 1862. On the first morning, the Confederate ironclad the CSS Virginia, formerly known as the Merrimack, sank two Union wooden warships, proving the power of the armored vessels over the traditional sailing ships. The next morning, the Virginia engaged the Union ironclad USS Monitor to a draw in a battle that significantly altered naval warfare. It was the first engagement between ironclads and ushered in a new era of warship construction and ordnance. The 25, 000 sailors, soldiers and civilians who witnessed the battle knew then what history would soon confirm: wars waged on the waters would never be the same. The seemingly invincible Monitor and Virginia were experimental ships, revolutionary combinations of new and old technology, and their clash on March 9, 1862, was the culmination of over 2, 000 years of naval experience. The construction and combat service of ironclads during the Civil War were the first in a cascade of events that influenced the outcome of the war and prompted the development of improved ironclads as well as the creation of new weapons systems, such as torpedoes and submarines, needed to counter modern armored warships.