Iron Dawn by Richard Snow
Richard Snow, who ‘writes with verve and a keen eye’ (The New York Times Book Review), tells the thrilling story of the naval battle that changed the future of all sea power. Few battles had more far-reaching consequences than the one fought in the harbour at Hampton Roads, Virginia, in March 1862. The Confederacy, with no fleet of its own, built an iron fort containing ten heavy guns on the hull of a captured Union frigate named the Merrimack. The North got wind of the project when it was already advanced and, in desperation, commissioned an eccentric inventor called John Ericsson to build the Monitor, an entirely revolutionary iron warship. At the time, it was arguably the single most complicated machine ever made. Abraham Lincoln himself was closely involved with the ship’s design. Rushed through to completion in just 100 days, it mounted only two guns; but they were housed in a shot-proof revolving turret. The ship hurried south from Brooklyn (and nearly sank twice on the voyage), only to find the Merrimack had already arrived with all guns blazing that morning, destroyed half the Union fleet – and would be back to finish the job the next day. When she returned, the Monitor was there. She fought the Merrimack to a standstill and saved the Union cause. As soon as word of the battle spread, the Royal Navy – the foremost sea power of the day – ceased work on all wooden ships. A thousand-year-old tradition ended and the path to the naval future opened. Richly illustrated with photos, maps, and engravings, Iron Dawn is the irresistible story of these incredible war machines. The story of the Merrimack and Monitor has never been told in such immediate, compelling detail.
‘A masterful tale of the great Civil War ironclads, those strange, seemingly supernatural shipsOne, Richard Snow tells us, looked like a rhinoceros, the other like a “metal pie plate.” Their story – and that of the misunderstandings and manoeuvrings that preceded the Battle of Hampton Roads – is irresistible, nowhere more so than in this crackling, supremely poised account.’ -- Stacy Schiff, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of A Great Improvisation: Franklin, France, and the Birth of America.
‘With muscular vitality, vast knowledge of military technology, and a novelist’s gift for capturing vivid detail, Richard Snow retells the story of Civil War ironclads as if it is unfolding before our startled eyes for the first time. The Monitor and Merrimack have never seemed more modern, dangerous, or revolutionary as they reappear in the hands of this master storyteller.’ -- HAROLD HOLZER, author of Lincoln and the Power of the Press: The War for Public Opinion and winner of the 2015 Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize
‘Everybody knows about the Monitor and the Merrimack, right? Well, actually, as it turns out, we don’t … Richard Snow opens up the vast, enthralling world of politics, war, technology, maritime history, and human drama that lies just back of that momentous battle. Snow is a terrific writer. I can’t remember when I have had such sheer fun with a Civil War book.’ -- S. C. GWYNNE, New York Times bestselling author of Rebel Yell and Empire of the Summer Moon
‘Iron Dawn is a magisterial account of one of the most important battles in US naval history. It is also a wonderfully absorbing story about human beings in all their struggles both great and small. Richard Snow has struck gold – or better yet, iron.’ -- DR AMANDA FOREMAN, author of A World on Fire: Britain’s Crucial Role in the American Civil War and Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire
‘With muscular vitality, vast knowledge of military technology, and a novelist’s gift for capturing vivid detail, Richard Snow retells the story of Civil War ironclads as if it is unfolding before our startled eyes for the first time. The Monitor and Merrimack have never seemed more modern, dangerous, or revolutionary as they reappear in the hands of this master storyteller.’ -- HAROLD HOLZER, author of Lincoln and the Power of the Press: The War for Public Opinion and winner of the 2015 Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize
‘Everybody knows about the Monitor and the Merrimack, right? Well, actually, as it turns out, we don’t … Richard Snow opens up the vast, enthralling world of politics, war, technology, maritime history, and human drama that lies just back of that momentous battle. Snow is a terrific writer. I can’t remember when I have had such sheer fun with a Civil War book.’ -- S. C. GWYNNE, New York Times bestselling author of Rebel Yell and Empire of the Summer Moon
‘Iron Dawn is a magisterial account of one of the most important battles in US naval history. It is also a wonderfully absorbing story about human beings in all their struggles both great and small. Richard Snow has struck gold – or better yet, iron.’ -- DR AMANDA FOREMAN, author of A World on Fire: Britain’s Crucial Role in the American Civil War and Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire
Richard Snow worked at 'American Heritage' magazine for nearly four decades and was editor-in-chief for seventeen years. He is the author of several books, including 'A Measureless Peril: America in the Fight for the Atlantic', and was made a Guggenheim Fellow for his most recent work, 'I Invented the Modern Age: The Rise of Henry Ford'. Snow has served as a consultant on several motion pictures, most recently Ken Burn's World War II series, 'The War'.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781445663463 |
| ISBN 10 | 1445663465 |
| Title | Iron Dawn |
| Author | Richard Snow |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Amberley Publishing |
| Year published | 2016-11-15 |
| Number of pages | 416 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |