C.S.S. Virginia

Wow I´ve read that she sank two Union-Frigates U.S.S. Cumberland and Congress at hampton Roads. Seems that she was quite successful, did she sink any other ships?

 

Was she the one that was rebuilt as the Merrimac (Or rebuilt from, I can't remember which) and was involved in the first naval battle between two Ironclads (Herself and USS Monitor)?

If so, neither apparently participated in any further naval battles, the Monitor was sunk when she was swamped in sea's too heavy for her.

There is a quite good but relatively obscure film about them called simply "Ironclads" which is worth watching.

 

Thanks I´ll try to get it, but the name of the film is probably different here in germany, so I´ve to search for it a little bit


BTW the story of the American Civil War and the CSA is very
interessting.

edit
*Holla, which ships were those, looks more pretty much the same as the CSS Virgina.*



Best wishes,
Che.

 

No, the confederate ironclad CSS Viginia (bulit form the remains of the ex USS Merrimac) never sank another ship. The following day she engeaged in a duel with the Union ironclad USS Monitor. Both sides claimed victory, but neither ship was sunk or suffered very serious damage. The Union was able to bottle up the CSS Virgina on the Potamac River and maintained the blockade. The Confederates were forced to destroy the Virgina later whenthey had to retreat and the ship's draft was too deep to allow her to go further up river. The USS Monitor floundered in a gale while being towed south and sank. Her remains were found and are now a US National Historical site.

 

No, she sank two frigates USS CUMBERLAND, USS CONGRESS and damaged another one USS MINNESOTA



a USS CUMBERLAND
b USS CONGRESS
c USS MINNESOTA
d USS ST. LAWRENCE
e USS ROANOKE
f CSS VIRGINIA
g USS MONITOR

Look at this please http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CSS_Virginia

The Battle of Hampton Roads began on March 8, 1862 when Virginia set out for Hampton Roads. Despite an all-out effort to complete her, the ship still had workmen on board when she sailed. Supported by Raleigh and Beaufort, and accompanied by Patrick Henry, Jamestown, and Teaser, Virginia took on the blockading fleet.

The first ship engaged, USS Cumberland, was sunk after being rammed. However, in sinking, Cumberland broke off Virginia's ram. Seeing what happened to Cumberland, the captain of USS Congress ordered his ship grounded in shallow water. Congress and Virginia traded fire for an hour, after which the badly-damaged Congress surrendered. While the surviving crewmen of Congress were being ferried off the ship, a Union battery on the north shore opened fire on Virginia. In retaliation, the captain of Virginia ordered Congress fired upon with red-hot shot, to set her ablaze.





C.S.S. Virignia ruled !!

Best wishes,
Che.

 

Look into the CSS Tennessee at the Battle of Mobile Bay in 1864. It is a much bigger battle with many more ironclads. This is the battle where the phrase "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!" came from.

I live about 30 minutes north of where that battle took place.

 

Wow found that pic of the Battle of Mobile Bay, but i can´t find relevant sites with google. What happened there, did the CSS Tennese sink any Union-frigate?

 

Check here:
http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-u ... tenn-k.htm

http://www.answers.com/topic/battle-of-mobile-bay

 

Oh, thx for the links. I don´t know why but I really like the Confederates Navy. =)

However unfortuantely they lost their ironclad the CSS Tennessee, but so did the yankees with their USS Tecumseh.^^

 

There is a bouy (floating marker) at the location of the Tecumseh.

Admiral Raphael Semmes, the commander of the CSS Alabama was also a Mobile resident. That is a good story to look into if you really have an interest in the Confederate Navy.

Also, the submarine Hunley was built in Mobile at the Park & Lyons Machine Works. It was then sent to Charleston, SC for duty.

 

Pieces of the CSS Virginia can be found at the Museum of the Confederacy In Richmond Va and at the Navy yard in DC.

http://home.att.net/~iron.clad/thefateofthecssva.html


Parts of the Monitor are at the Mariners Museum in Norfolk.

 

Monitor in Norfolk

http://www.mariner.org/monitor/


http://www.monitorcenter.org/

Nearby battlefields

Gettysburg, Chancelorsville, Fredericksburg, Winchester, Sharpsburg, Richmond, Petersburg, Appomattox, Manassas I & II, Shenandaoh Valley Campaign, Spottsylvania Courthouse, Wilderness, Brandy Station, Cold Harbour, Cedar Ridge, the Peninsula Campaign, Five Forks and a few others..

 

CSS VIRGINIA was indeed a formidable warship, but she was also deeply flawed. For starters, she drew 23 feet of water, which made operating in the James River and Hampton Roads difficult, to say the least. In fact, she ran aground during her fight with USS MONITOR, and had the latter's gun crews been allowed to fire her guns with full powder charges, she might well have had her armor pierced. She was also quite slow, with a top speed of five knots, and had a turning circle of about a mile. And her engines, apart from being submerged when MERRIMACK was scuttled, had been condemned by the US Navy. This was why she was in the Norfolk Navy Yard in the first place, to have them replaced.

As for sinking CUMBERLAND and CONGRESS, both were obsolete sailing vessels and, for all intents and purposes, sitting ducks. They were in Hampton Roads because all they had to do to blockade that area was sit at anchor.

 

If you consider that Monitor and Virginia were both bodged together pretty quickly both did well. Their flaws ultimately resulted in the loss of both. (Virginia scuttled when she couldn't get up river, Monitor sunk in a storm).

Both interesting ships but I think their influence has been overstated.

 

To a point that may well be true, although the importance of the introduction of a working revolving gun turret , IMHO, can hardly be overstated.

 

The CSN ironclads had sloped armor. That's a fairly revolutionary design for the 1860s.

 

I think the turret was already on the way in. To the best of my knowledge Monitor proved the idea in combat. Which needless to say it still very important.

 

I think that the advent of the gun turret might well have been delayed if the Federal monitors hadn't proved the concept in combat, given the innate conservatism of so many admiralties of the day.

JCCalhoun made a point about how the sloped armor of the Confederate ironclads was a major innovation for the 1860s. True enough, but it didn't do much for naval warfare, although the concept has continued to be used in tanks and other AFV up to the present day.

 

Yep. I think it has something to do with the design and missions of ships that navies were/are using. Sloped armor worked well on the low and slow ironclads as they didn't have to go out to sea very far and all their engagements were close range.

It took almost 80 years for AFV's to use the same design.

 

I come across refences saying that Monitor not firing full charge is a myth. At the time of the battle with Virginia 15lbs was considered full charge. Only later in the war was it found that the type of guns Monitor used were able to handle 20 then 25lbs charge.