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 …showed first 75 words of 600 total…

…showed last 75 words of 600 total…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.