An ironclad is a steam-propelled warship protected by iron or steel armor plates, constructed from 1859 to the early 1890s. ... Ironclads were designed for several roles, including as high seas battleships, long-range cruisers, and coastal defense ships.

What were the ironclad ships called?

Ironclads were warships designed to be impervious to enemy shot and shell by virtue of their iron-armored wooden hulls. Other names for these ships include rams, armorclads, iron gophers, iron elephants, iron coffins, turtle-backs, and mud-crushers.

What was the first ironclad ship?

Designed by Swedish engineer and inventor John Ericsson, the U.S. Navy's first ironclad, USS Monitor, was commissioned on February 25, 1862 at New York City, New York. An innovative warship, she had a thick-armored round turret which was twenty-feet in diameter.