Ironclads (film)
Encyclopedia
Ironclads is a 1991
made-for-television movie
produced by Ted Turner
's TNT
company about the events behind the creation of the CSS Virginia
from the remains of the USS Merrimack
and the battle between the Virginia and the USS Monitor
in the Battle of Hampton Roads
, March 8, 1862-March 9, 1862. Noel Taylor
received an Emmy Award
nomination for his costume designs for the production.
) extinguished a powder trail to destroy a dry dock. Although of military necessity, the act would have caused significant collateral damage to neighboring civilians.
Harmon is awaiting a court martial when he is brought to Navy Commander Smith (E.G. Marshall) and his son Lt. Joseph B. Smith, Jr. (Kevin O'Rourke). As the Union Navy is concerned as to reports of a Confederate ironclad, CSS Virginia, being built from the remains of the burned USS Merrimack, father and son Smith offer Harmon a pardon if he will conduct espionage on the project: indeed, Gosport regards Harmon a hero for his actions. He will be assisted by a socialite from a wealthy family, Betty Stuart (Virginia Madsen
), who detests slavery
. After a moment of apprehension, Harmon accepts.
Harmon gets to attend a test where the iron that makes up the hull is fired on. During the test the armor proves to be unable to withstand the cannon rounds. With the help of a slave, Cletus (Carl Jackson), he learns that the test firing is deliberate disinformation, manufactured for suspected Union sympathizers. He discovers plates in the barn from a previous secret test have almost no damage. Betty is able to provide more information on the Virginia from her social networks in the Confederate navy. Betty, in league with Cletus' wife Opal (Beatrice Bush), sends information north regularly.
However, after Betty urges Harmon to return North with the information, she falls in love with Catesby Jones
(Alex Hyde-White
) whom she later learns is to serve on the Virginia. Her love for Catesby compromises her love for the Union, and she tries to stop Harmon at the beach, threatening to alert the pickets on the beach. Harmon notes that he is responsible for having saved the dry dock and must stop the Virginia, and notes that having him shot would merely put him in the same spot he was in in the brig. He rows off for Union-occupied Fort Monroe across Hampton Roads
: Betty does not compromise him after all.
Betty and Opal have words over her anguish: Opal would rather see Cletus dead than be a slave, Opal disagrees that one man's life is more important than the war, and responds to Betty's concession of misunderstanding that Betty would understand if she was black. Betty confesses her role to Catesby before the Virginia sails off to break the Union blockade at Hampton Roads. Betty is promptly arrested by Lt. Guilford (Philip Casnoff) on suspicion of espionage.
The Virginia first approached the USS Congress as Lt. Smith rallies his men on board to "do their duty"; Virginia Captain Franklin Buchanan
(Leon B. Stevens) rallies his men, similarly. Congress fires a full broadside into Virginia to no effect. Buchanan wants to take the U.S.S. Cumberland first because it is a more dangerous warship with rifled cannon, sinks it, and returns to the Congress. Lt. Austin Pendergrast (Tom Width) has become a praying man. He becomes acting captain when Smith is killed rallying his men during the firefight. Prendergrast orders the ship surrendered, however, Brigadier General Joseph K. Mansfield's shore batteries prevent the Virginia from boarding the Congress, and wound Captain Buchanan when he goes on deck and returns fire with a carbine. Buchanan orders Catesby to set the Congress ablaze, which he does.
Opal joins Betty a short time later and they discover that the evidence found on Opal was not sufficient proof of Betty's guilt, and also that Catesby Jones did not report Betty to authorities. However, Opal reminds Betty of the predicament she is in, and shows her a gallows being built outside the window. Betty watches Lt. Guilford honor the courage of a Union spy, Spencer Brown (Christopher Northup), who is immediately hanged. That night, Guilford asks Betty not to die for a lost cause, as Lt. Smith had done, according to survivors from the Congress. Father Smith only needed to know that the Congress surrendered: his son would not have surrendered. Betty asks if she has to die for a lost cause, would he honor her, too? No, he says.
The USS Monitor sails in between the burning Congress and the Virginia to protect the USS Minnesota, which has run aground and is defenseless until high tide returns the next day. Only the low tide has prevented Virginia from finishing off the Minnesota. Captain Van Brunt (Joel Abel) offered instructions and Leslie Harmon to Captain John Worden (Andy Park) of the Monitor. Worden makes Harmon, familiar with Hampton Roads and the CSS Virginia, midshipman on the spot.
The morning of battle, Catesby Jones introduces his crew to the Monitor between them and the Minnesota. Worden does his best to engage Virginia as far from the Minnesota as he can. Virginia' s first shot demonstrates that Monitor' s armor will hold. Virginia "steers worse than Noah's Ark", Lt. Simms (J. Michael Hunter) informs Catesby that Virginia is leaking at the bow, Harmon tells Worden it would take Virginia 30 minutes to turn, and later adds that Virginia would be grounded in shallow water. It is. Engineer Ramsey (Michael Costello) is ordered to tie the safety valve closed, and the desperate attempt gets them free. Monitor' s two revolving turrets shake metal loose from Virginia but that is all. Finally, Virginia tries to ram Monitor but misses. Worden tries the same, trying to knock out Virginia' s rudder, but is temporarily blinded by a shell blast through the eye holes. Monitor has also missed. Monitor temporarily withdraws until Worden tells Lt. Samuel Green (George Kelly) to protect the Minnesota. But Virginia can no longer get near the Minnesota for a good shot, nor attempt a long shot with any accuracy. Risking splitting open the bow and short of steam pressure for the pumps, Catesby withdraws as Monitor returns to the Minnesota.
Both sides claimed victory, but the Monitor denied Confederate access to the ocean. John Ericsson (Fritz Weaver) has an argument with Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles (Conrad McLaren) over the use of insufficient powder in Monitor' s guns to sink the Virginia: Welles responds it was a calculated decision to save the lives of the crew. President Lincoln (James Getty) settles the row by saying Ericsson has made naval history and, moreover, offers to pay Ericsson's bill.
Lt. Guilford, glad not to hang a "pretty girl", releases Betty and Opal. Catesby had reported that Betty had communicated misinformation to the Union that made the Monitor fire the guns with reduced powder. She meets Catesby, and Catesby respects Betty's conscience, but notes that a relationship is impossible because she had to risk the life of Catesby and his men. He advises her to go North, and says goodbye.
A voiceover indicates that the Virginia was scuttled later that year after Union troops took Norfolk, and that the Monitor sank off Cape Hatteras later that year as well.
1991 in television
For the American TV schedule, see: 1991-92 United States network television schedule.The year 1991 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1991.-Events:-Debuts:-1950s:...
made-for-television movie
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
produced by Ted Turner
Ted Turner
Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III is an American media mogul and philanthropist. As a businessman, he is known as founder of the cable news network CNN, the first dedicated 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he founded WTBS, which pioneered the superstation concept in cable television...
's TNT
Turner Network Television
Turner Network Television is an American cable television channel created by media mogul Ted Turner and currently owned by the Turner Broadcasting System division of Time Warner...
company about the events behind the creation of the CSS Virginia
CSS Virginia
CSS Virginia was the first steam-powered ironclad warship of the Confederate States Navy, built during the first year of the American Civil War; she was constructed as a casemate ironclad using the raised and cut down original lower hull and steam engines of the scuttled . Virginia was one of the...
from the remains of the USS Merrimack
USS Merrimack (1855)
USS Merrimack was a frigate and sailing vessel of the United States Navy, best known as the hull upon which the ironclad warship, CSS Virginia was constructed during the American Civil War...
and the battle between the Virginia and the USS Monitor
USS Monitor
USS Monitor was the first ironclad warship commissioned by the United States Navy during the American Civil War. She is most famous for her participation in the Battle of Hampton Roads on March 9, 1862, the first-ever battle fought between two ironclads...
in the Battle of Hampton Roads
Battle of Hampton Roads
The Battle of Hampton Roads, often referred to as either the Battle of the Monitor and Merrimack or the Battle of Ironclads, was the most noted and arguably most important naval battle of the American Civil War from the standpoint of the development of navies...
, March 8, 1862-March 9, 1862. Noel Taylor
Noel Taylor
Noel Taylor was an American costume designer of the stage, television, and film. A four-time Emmy nominee, Taylor won an Emmy Award in 1978 for his designs for the PBS drama Actor: The Paul Muni Story....
received an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
nomination for his costume designs for the production.
Plot
As the Norfolk Naval Shipyard (Gosport Shipyard) fell to Confederate forces, and the Union forces withdrew, Leslie Harmon (Reed DiamondReed Diamond
Reed Edward Diamond is an American actor. He is best known for the role of Det. Mike Kellerman on Homicide: Life on the Street and the role of recurring character Laurence Dominic on Dollhouse...
) extinguished a powder trail to destroy a dry dock. Although of military necessity, the act would have caused significant collateral damage to neighboring civilians.
Harmon is awaiting a court martial when he is brought to Navy Commander Smith (E.G. Marshall) and his son Lt. Joseph B. Smith, Jr. (Kevin O'Rourke). As the Union Navy is concerned as to reports of a Confederate ironclad, CSS Virginia, being built from the remains of the burned USS Merrimack, father and son Smith offer Harmon a pardon if he will conduct espionage on the project: indeed, Gosport regards Harmon a hero for his actions. He will be assisted by a socialite from a wealthy family, Betty Stuart (Virginia Madsen
Virginia Madsen
Virginia Madsen is an American actress and documentary film producer. She came to fame during the 1980s, having appeared in several films aimed at a teenage audience...
), who detests slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
. After a moment of apprehension, Harmon accepts.
Harmon gets to attend a test where the iron that makes up the hull is fired on. During the test the armor proves to be unable to withstand the cannon rounds. With the help of a slave, Cletus (Carl Jackson), he learns that the test firing is deliberate disinformation, manufactured for suspected Union sympathizers. He discovers plates in the barn from a previous secret test have almost no damage. Betty is able to provide more information on the Virginia from her social networks in the Confederate navy. Betty, in league with Cletus' wife Opal (Beatrice Bush), sends information north regularly.
However, after Betty urges Harmon to return North with the information, she falls in love with Catesby Jones
Catesby ap Roger Jones
Catesby ap Roger Jones was an officer in the U.S. Navy who became a commander in the Confederate Navy during the American Civil War.-Biography:...
(Alex Hyde-White
Alex Hyde-White
Alex Punch Hyde-White is an English born, US raised film and television actor. He is sometimes credited as Alex Hyde White. In 1978 he signed with Universal Pictures as one of the last "contract players" in Hollywood, in a group that included Lindsay Wagner, Andrew Stevens and Sharon...
) whom she later learns is to serve on the Virginia. Her love for Catesby compromises her love for the Union, and she tries to stop Harmon at the beach, threatening to alert the pickets on the beach. Harmon notes that he is responsible for having saved the dry dock and must stop the Virginia, and notes that having him shot would merely put him in the same spot he was in in the brig. He rows off for Union-occupied Fort Monroe across Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
: Betty does not compromise him after all.
Betty and Opal have words over her anguish: Opal would rather see Cletus dead than be a slave, Opal disagrees that one man's life is more important than the war, and responds to Betty's concession of misunderstanding that Betty would understand if she was black. Betty confesses her role to Catesby before the Virginia sails off to break the Union blockade at Hampton Roads. Betty is promptly arrested by Lt. Guilford (Philip Casnoff) on suspicion of espionage.
The Virginia first approached the USS Congress as Lt. Smith rallies his men on board to "do their duty"; Virginia Captain Franklin Buchanan
Franklin Buchanan
Franklin Buchanan was an officer in the United States Navy who became an admiral in the Confederate Navy during the American Civil War, and commanded the ironclad CSS Virginia.-Early life:...
(Leon B. Stevens) rallies his men, similarly. Congress fires a full broadside into Virginia to no effect. Buchanan wants to take the U.S.S. Cumberland first because it is a more dangerous warship with rifled cannon, sinks it, and returns to the Congress. Lt. Austin Pendergrast (Tom Width) has become a praying man. He becomes acting captain when Smith is killed rallying his men during the firefight. Prendergrast orders the ship surrendered, however, Brigadier General Joseph K. Mansfield's shore batteries prevent the Virginia from boarding the Congress, and wound Captain Buchanan when he goes on deck and returns fire with a carbine. Buchanan orders Catesby to set the Congress ablaze, which he does.
Opal joins Betty a short time later and they discover that the evidence found on Opal was not sufficient proof of Betty's guilt, and also that Catesby Jones did not report Betty to authorities. However, Opal reminds Betty of the predicament she is in, and shows her a gallows being built outside the window. Betty watches Lt. Guilford honor the courage of a Union spy, Spencer Brown (Christopher Northup), who is immediately hanged. That night, Guilford asks Betty not to die for a lost cause, as Lt. Smith had done, according to survivors from the Congress. Father Smith only needed to know that the Congress surrendered: his son would not have surrendered. Betty asks if she has to die for a lost cause, would he honor her, too? No, he says.
The USS Monitor sails in between the burning Congress and the Virginia to protect the USS Minnesota, which has run aground and is defenseless until high tide returns the next day. Only the low tide has prevented Virginia from finishing off the Minnesota. Captain Van Brunt (Joel Abel) offered instructions and Leslie Harmon to Captain John Worden (Andy Park) of the Monitor. Worden makes Harmon, familiar with Hampton Roads and the CSS Virginia, midshipman on the spot.
The morning of battle, Catesby Jones introduces his crew to the Monitor between them and the Minnesota. Worden does his best to engage Virginia as far from the Minnesota as he can. Virginia
Both sides claimed victory, but the Monitor denied Confederate access to the ocean. John Ericsson (Fritz Weaver) has an argument with Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles (Conrad McLaren) over the use of insufficient powder in Monitor
Lt. Guilford, glad not to hang a "pretty girl", releases Betty and Opal. Catesby had reported that Betty had communicated misinformation to the Union that made the Monitor fire the guns with reduced powder. She meets Catesby, and Catesby respects Betty's conscience, but notes that a relationship is impossible because she had to risk the life of Catesby and his men. He advises her to go North, and says goodbye.
A voiceover indicates that the Virginia was scuttled later that year after Union troops took Norfolk, and that the Monitor sank off Cape Hatteras later that year as well.