War at Sea in the Ironclad Age (Smithsonian History of Warfare)

The nineteenth century saw several major innovations in naval warfare. Reliable steam engines made it so that ships no longer depended on the wind and could maneuver more freely. At the same time, new explosive shells were developed, replacing cannonballs, and no wooden ship could withstand them. In response to these shells, a new class of self-propelled, armored "ironclads" was invented and quickly revolutionized naval warfare.

• A comprehensive look at the makeup of these "ironclad" warships.

• A technical view of the powerful weaponry that compelled these radical innovations.

• A look at the historic battles that proved the necessity of engines and armor.

• A discussion of the new tactics employed by nineteenth-century navies and the revival of an old classic -- the "ram."

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• Wars of National Liberation (Smithsonian History of Warfare)
• War at Sea in the Age of Sail (Smithsonian History of Warfare)
• The Civil War and the Wars of the Nineteenth Century (Smithsonian History of Warfare)
• The Renaissance at War (Smithsonian History of Warfare)
• History of Warfare: The Napoleonic Wars
• The Warfare in the Eighteenth Century (Smithsonian History of Warfare)
• Roman Warfare (Smithsonian History of Warfare)
• Wars of the Ancient Greeks (Smithsonian History of Warfare)
• The Art of War (Smithsonian History of Warfare): War and Military Thought