Duel of the First Battleships is perhaps the most valuable work of naval history that I have personally read. Davis presents an extensive “Chapter Documentation” at the end of his work, which essentially serves as a sixteen-page fact-check source. Rather than cluttering the bottom of each page with long-winded footnotes and references to other works, William C. Davis instead chose to end the book with his bibliography. His references show an incredible amount of good resources that he used to build Duel Between the First Ironclads. He used both secondary and primary resources, many of them from 1861, when boats were first thought of. While no technical terms were mentioned, several intriguing (and cited) photographs are placed in the center of the book. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Duel of the Early Ironclads essentially describes the epic battle between the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia (once the USS Merrimack, and often called such even after the Confederate refit), the first two "American" iron steamships . Instead of dwelling on the necessary (and more advanced) naval history, Davis creates a sort of pseudo-narrative that supports the historical context of the topic. In a way, he brings these historical figures to life within the pages of his book, and works wonders when it comes to covering such a considerably "boring" subject that tends to be marketed incorrectly throughout recorded history. The theme of the two ships develops quickly until the Battle of Hampton Roads, perhaps one of the most important and "inevitable" naval battles between the newly formed Confederacy and the Industrial Union. On March 9, 1862, the two unique ships met off the coast of present-day Norfolk, Virginia. The context behind this battle has been discussed in depth throughout the entire work, and we as readers seem to see an internal perspective towards the more "desperate" Confederate Navy and the more "in step with the times" than the Union Navy. While Confederate Secretary of the Navy (and former Florida Senator) Stephen Mallory sought resources by salvaging the sunken remains of a Union ship, Union Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles fought tooth and nail in a timed Congress of war to finance the prototypes and, ultimately, the first fully realized American ironclad. It depicts the ingenuity of a poorer South, an industrious North, and a battle of wits that will ultimately go down in history as one of the most compelling naval battles in American history. What personally interested me in the introductory pages was just how intriguing the story was. of the so-called "iron" ships, as they have been throughout history, not only in the American states. Davis openly admits that the use of iron in naval warfare was nothing original and traces the roots of such materialized fighting to both Scandinavian and Mediterranean naval advances centuries earlier. What made the “race” of ironclads between the warring states unique was the progress it attempted to make: from simple plating to actual construction – or, in the case of the Confederacy, to reconstruction. As the piece continues, Davis describes the battle in great detail. Move on from discussing the overall background story of both sides. My final assessment of William C.'s Duel of the First Battleships to the in-depth description of the actual events of the battle. The two ironclad warships met off Sewell's Point, and the Union blockade prevailed over the attempted.