The frigate Minnesota is the sole survivor of the Union fleet off Norfolk, beached far from the battlefield. The CSS Virginia prepares to finish her off, but out of nowhere appears the USS Monitor, a Union Navy experiment, the brainchild of CS Bushnell and the Swedish-born, New York-adopted captain, John Ericsson. The Monitor happens to be nearby almost by chance. Union Captain Worden, upon spotting his Confederate rival, orders a full-steam attack. The battle, with point-blank, zero-elevation cannon fire, becomes extremely fierce, but their respective armor holds. The Virginia even manages to ram the Monitor after four hours of fighting, but in doing so, takes direct cannon fire from literally meters away. After several more hours of intense engagement, the battle ends with no results: both battleships retreat. But a revolution had taken place: battleships with revolving turrets would dominate the seas for over a century.
