Original subtitles

[MISSILE ROARS]

Narrator: FOR CENTURIES, AN EXTRAORDINARY WAR HAS RAGED

ACROSS THE WORLD'S OCEANS, ABOVE AND BELOW THE WAVES.

Man: YOU COULD KILL HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE WITH ONE BROADSIDE.

THESE WERE EXTREMELY POWERFUL WAR MACHINES.

Narrator: SHIPBUILDERS DESIGNED BIGGER AND FASTER VESSELS

TO OUTWIT AND CRUSH THEIR OPPONENTS.

Man: THAT NATION THAT HAS THE MOST POWERFUL BATTLESHIP FLEET

CAN DESTROY THE ENEMY'S BATTLESHIP FLEET

AND THEREFORE CONTROL THE SEAS,

AND IF YOU CONTROL THE SEAS, YOU CONTROL THE WORLD.

Narrator: THEY CARRIED TERRIFYING WEAPONS.

Man: THIS WAS GONNA BE THE FIRST TIME

THAT SOMEBODY HAD FIRED A TORPEDO IN ANGER

SINCE WORLD WAR II.

THEY NEEDED TO GET IT RIGHT.

Narrator: BUT SHIPS HAVE ALSO LIBERATED

AND RESCUED THOUSANDS.

Man: YOU COULD THINK OF GERDA III

AS BASICALLY A LIFEBOAT FOR PERSONS HUNTED BY THE NAZIS.

Narrator: AND INSPIRED MEN AND WOMEN

TO ACTS OF INCREDIBLE BRAVERY.

Man: I WILL TAKE YOU THERE NOW, TO YOUR CANNONS,

TO YOUR DEATH, WE WILL SINK BEFORE SURRENDER.

Narrator: THESE VESSELS AND THEIR CREWS

HAVE SHAPED WORLD HISTORY.

Man: AS THE COMMANDING OFFICER OF A MISSILE‐CARRYING SUBMARINE,

I WAS DIRECTLY RESPONSIBLE

FOR HELPING TO PREVENT WORLD WAR III.

[MISSILE ROARS]

Narrator: THIS TIME, THE AGE OF METAL WARSHIPS ARRIVES.

Man: WHEN SHE WAS LAUNCHED, SHE WAS THE FASTEST,

THE LARGEST, THE MOST POWERFULLY ARMED,

AND PROBABLY THE MOST POWERFULLY DEFENDED WARSHIP IN THE WORLD.

Narrator: THIS IS THE STORY

OF 60 GROUNDBREAKING AND EXPERIMENTAL YEARS.

Man: SOME OF THEM SHOUT,

"GO ON WITH YOUR METALLIC COFFIN.

YOU'LL NEVER AMOUNT TO A THING."

Narrator: BUT BY THE DAWN OF THE 20th CENTURY,

THE GREAT METAL BATTLESHIP IS SET TO DEFINE A NEW WORLD ORDER.

Man: YOU HAVE THIS HEADLINE‐GRABBING SHIP,

IT LOOKS SINISTER AND POWERFUL,

IT LOOKS LIKE THE FUTURE, AND EVERYBODY WANTS IT.

♪

♪

Narrator: IN MARCH 1845, A COMPETITION TOOK PLACE

THAT WOULD CHANGE THE FUTURE OF NAVAL WARFARE.

TWO WOODEN ROYAL NAVY SHIPS

RENDEZVOUSED IN THE ENGLISH CHANNEL.

BOTH BOASTED A CUTTING‐EDGE STEAM ENGINE.

HMS ALECTO WAS POWERED BY PADDLE WHEELS.

BUT HMS RATTLER HAD AN EXPERIMENTAL NEW PROPELLER.

IT WAS A TUG OF WAR...AT SEA.

Andrew Lambert: THE TWO SHIPS ARE LASHED STERN TO STERN,

AND AS THE POWER IS PUT TO THE PROPULSION,

RATTLER SLOWLY BUT SURELY TAKES CONTROL

AND PULLS ALECTO BACKWARDS AT TWO TO THREE MILES AN HOUR.

HER WHEELS THRASHING AROUND FURIOUSLY,

HUGE AMOUNTS OF WATER BEING THROWN UP TO VERY LITTLE EFFECT.

Narrator: RATTLER'S PROPELLER WAS TAKING THE ROTATION

PRODUCED BY THE ENGINE

AND TURNING IT INTO UNSTOPPABLE THRUST.

THE SPINNING BLADES CREATED PRESSURE DIFFERENCES

BETWEEN THEIR UPPER AND LOWER SURFACES,

PUSHING WATER AWAY WHILE DRAWING MORE WATER IN

TO FILL THE SPACE BEHIND THE BLADES.

RATTLER WAS BEING PUSHED THROUGH THE WATER IN SUPERIOR STYLE.

Lambert: IT BECOMES VERY FAMOUS,

THERE ARE GREAT PICTURES OF IT, EVERYBODY TALKS ABOUT IT.

Narrator: THE LONDON TIMES DECLARED,

"THE SUPERIORITY OF THE RATTLER

HAS BEEN FULLY SHOWN."

Lambert: BRITAIN IS A GREAT MARITIME EMPIRE,

AND THE ROYAL NAVY IS THE SENIOR SERVICE.

IT CONTROLS THE TRADE ROUTES

ACROSS WHICH BRITAIN'S PROSPERITY

AND THE VERY FOOD THAT, THAT WE EAT IN THIS COUNTRY FLOWS.

SO, THE BRITISH PUBLIC ARE VERY ENGAGED WITH THE SEA.

THE NATIONAL HERO IS STILL HORATIO NELSON,

SO, THIS IS RIGHT AT THE HEART OF ENGLISH IDENTITY.

Narrator: AND IN THE 40 YEARS SINCE TRAFALGAR,

VERY LITTLE HAD CHANGED IN THE WORLD OF WARSHIPS...

UNTIL NOW.

BUT THE BATTLE BETWEEN THE RATTLER AND THE ALECTO

WAS NOT ENTIRELY WHAT IT SEEMED.

THE ADMIRALTY HAD CHEATED.

THE FAMOUS CONTEST OF 1845 HAD BEEN RIGGED FROM THE START.

Lambert: SO THE RATTLER'S ENGINES

WERE ACTUALLY TWICE AS POWERFUL AS THE ALECTO'S ENGINES.

IT WAS NOT A TEST.

THE NAVY DIDN'T NEED TO DO A CRUDE TUG OF WAR

TO KNOW THAT THE PROPELLER WAS THE ANSWER,

AND SHE WON THE TUG OF WAR QUITE EASILY.

Narrator: THE ADMIRALTY WAS DETERMINED TO SHAKE OFF

ANY PUBLIC AFFECTION FOR THE PADDLE WHEEL.

THEY HAD ALREADY CONCLUDED THAT FOR THE SAKE OF THE FUTURE,

THIS WAS A CONTEST THE RATTLER MUST WIN.

Eric Grove: WHEN STEAM WAS FIRST APPLIED TO SHIPS,

MERCHANT SHIPS AS WELL AS WARSHIPS,

IT WAS BY USING PADDLES,

BUT PADDLES WERE PROBLEMATICAL FOR WARSHIPS

BECAUSE THEY TOOK A LOT OF THE SIDE OF THE SHIP AWAY.

SCREW PROPELLERS MEANT THAT YOU COULD PUT THE ENGINES

LOWER IN THE SHIP.

YOU HAD, MOST IMPORTANTLY, HAD ALL THE SIDE

AVAILABLE FOR THE ARMAMENT.

Narrator: AND GREATER ARMAMENT WOULD REQUIRE GREATER DEFENSES.

BY THE LATE 1850s,

VESSELS HAD MOVED FROM METAL ENGINES TO METAL ARMOR.

AND AS A NEW DECADE DAWNED, BRITAIN REVEALED

THE MOST FEARSOME NAVAL WEAPON EVER BUILT‐‐HMS WARRIOR.

♪

WARRIOR WAS THE BRAINCHILD

OF PRINCE ALBERT, QUEEN VICTORIA'S HUSBAND.

IN 1858, HE'D SEEN A FRENCH WARSHIP UNDER CONSTRUCTION.

CALLED "GLOIRE," IT HAD ONE KEY NEW FEATURE‐‐

THE WOODEN HULL WAS IRONCLAD.

Tim Ash: AND WITHIN 18 MONTHS, WARRIOR WAS OFF THE SLIPWAY.

THAT'S UNUSUALLY FAST FOR WARSHIP BUILDING,

THEN AND TODAY.

Narrator: WARRIOR WASN'T MERELY CLAD IN IRON;

IT WAS ACTUALLY MADE OF IRON.

HER SIZE, ARMOR AND WEAPONRY

MADE HER THE FIRST TRUE BATTLESHIP OF THE MODERN ERA.

Lambert: SHE HAS ALL THE CHARACTERISTICS

THAT WOULD DEFINE SHIPS OF THE NEXT 150 YEARS.

HER HULL IS MADE OF METAL, HER PRIMARY PROPULSION

IS BY MECHANICAL POWER USING FOSSIL FUELS.

Ash: WHEN SHE WAS LAUNCHED, SHE WAS THE FASTEST,

THE LARGEST, THE MOST POWERFULLY ARMED,

AND PROBABLY THE MOST POWERFULLY DEFENDED WARSHIP IN THE WORLD.

PRETTY MUCH OVERNIGHT

ALL WOODEN WARSHIP‐BUILDING AROUND THE WORLD,

OR WARSHIPS OF ANY SIZE, CEASED.

Narrator: WARRIOR'S FOUR INCHES OF SOLID IRON

PROTECTED HER FROM THE NEW GENERATION OF ARMAMENTS

ALREADY IN USE ACROSS THE CHANNEL.

Lambert: IN THE 1820s THE FRENCH DEVELOPED EXPLODING SHELLS

THAT COULD BE FIRED FROM CONVENTIONAL GUNS,

AND IF THESE LODGED IN THE TIMBERS OF A BATTLESHIP,

SOMETHING LIKE HMS VICTORY,

WHEN THEY EXPLODED, THEY COULD CAUSE MAJOR STRUCTURAL DAMAGE.

NAVAL BATTLES ARE GOING TO BE VERY SHORT,

AND SHIPS ARE GOING TO BLOW UP.

Narrator: DEVELOPMENTS IN WROUGHT IRON MANUFACTURE

OFFERED THE PROTECTION NEEDED.

Grove: IT COULD BE BENT.

IT COULD BE...IT COULD BE RIVETED AND SO ON,

AND YOU COULD BUILD A SHIP

WITH ALL THE ADVANTAGES OF SIZE AND LENGTH THAT IRON GAVE YOU.

Narrator: THE WARRIOR COULD ABSORB PUNISHMENT,

BUT SHE COULD DISH IT OUT AS WELL.

Ash: THE MAIN ARMAMENT OF THE SHIP

WAS THE 68‐POUNDER MUZZLE‐LOADING GUN.

IT COULD FIRE A CHOICE OF EITHER SOLID SHOT OR MOLTEN SHOT

OR ANYTHING UNPLEASANT YOU WANT TO PUT DOWN THE BARREL.

THE GUN IS VERY MUCH LIKE WHAT YOU'D SEE ON HMS VICTORY,

JUST A LOT BIGGER.

EFFECTIVE RANGE OF THE BROADSIDE,

WE CALCULATED AND RESEARCHED RECENTLY,

WAS ABOUT 500 YARDS.

THAT'S LONG AND FAR FOR GUNS OF THAT PERIOD.

IT WAS THE BEST MUZZLE‐LOADING GUN IN THE WORLD AT THE TIME.

♪

Narrator: WARRIOR'S INNOVATION AND PRESTIGE

RESONATED WITH HER CREW.

CREW MEMBERS WEREN'T DRAFTED.

THEY WERE PROFESSIONALS.

AND DURING THEIR TIME ON BOARD,

THE SHIP WAS THE CENTER OF THEIR WORLD.

Ash: NOW, THE MEN IN THE SHIP WERE DIVIDED INTO DIVISIONS,

AND EACH DIVISION WAS 18 MEN STRONG.

AND EACH DIVISION LIVED AROUND THE TABLES

YOU SEE BEHIND ME BETWEEN EACH GUNS.

THEY LIVED THERE, THEY SLEPT THERE.

IN THE GUN DECK THEY LIKE TO KEEP THE GUN PORTS SHUT

BECAUSE THEY FELT THAT KEPT THE WARMTH IN,

IT WAS DARK, AND IT WOULD HAVE BEEN CANDLELIGHT

BECAUSE, WHILST THE SHIP HAD AN ENGINE,

THE ONLY THING THE ENGINE DROVE WAS THE PROPELLER.

WARRIOR IS FASCINATING FOR THE NAVAL TECHNOLOGY,

BUT TO ME AN EQUALLY INTERESTING STORY

IS THE HUMAN STORY ATTACHED TO THE SHIP.

BECAUSE THIS MUST HAVE BEEN

QUITE A SCARY PIECE OF TECHNOLOGY

FOR SOMEBODY IN THEIR 30s AND 40s.

BECAUSE THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN BROUGHT UP

WITH WOODEN SHIPS WITH SAILS,

AND SUDDENLY YOU GOT TO TAKE INTO BATTLE A PIECE OF EQUIPMENT

THAT YOU'VE MAYBE NOT USED VERY MUCH BEFORE.

Narrator: THE TECHNOLOGY POSED A CHALLENGE FOR HER CREW

AND FOR THE ADMIRALS AS WELL.

WARRIOR REWROTE THE BOOK ON NAVAL TACTICS.

WHILE BATTLING UNDER SAIL,

WIND AND WEATHER WOULD DETERMINE WHO WOULD WIN.

NO LONGER.

Lambert: YOU COULD NOW MAKE A 360‐DEGREE CHOICE OF COURSE,

AND YOU COULD CHOOSE WHETHER TO APPROACH

OR RETREAT FROM THE ENEMY.

THE WIND WAS NO LONGER DOMINANT.

Ash: SHE WAS DESIGNED TO FIGHT OUTSIDE THE LINE OF BATTLE.

IN THOSE DAYS, NAVY TACTICS

WERE STILL SQUADRONS OF SHIPS IN LINES TOGETHER.

WARRIOR AND HER SISTER SHIP WERE DESIGNED TO GO

ON THE OUTSIDE, LIKE SHEEPDOGS.

Lambert: SHE WOULD HAVE THE ABILITY TO FIGHT AT DISTANCE

AND TO KEEP AWAY FROM ANY MORE POWERFUL SHIP

THAT SHE MIGHT ENCOUNTER.

Ash: AND SHE WAS BUILT FOREMOST WITH DETERRENCE IN MIND.

IT'S A LITTLE BIT LIKE THE TRIDENT SUBMARINES TODAY.

THAT WAS HER ROLE, WAS DETERRENCE.

SHE SPENT HER LIFE PATROLLING THE FRENCH COAST

AND SAYING HELLO, FRANCE,

AND THEY WENT IN A DIFFERENT DIRECTION,

AND THEREFORE SHE WAS SUCCESSFUL.

Narrator: IN THE EARLY 1860s,

BRITAIN HAD THE LARGEST NAVY IN THE WORLD,

AND IN THE WARRIOR, THE DEADLIEST BATTLESHIP.

BUT ACROSS THE ATLANTIC,

AMERICANS WERE PRODUCING SOME VERY DIFFERENT METAL WARSHIPS.

SMALLER, MORE EXPERIMENTAL, BUT NO LESS DEADLY.

DURING THE RUN‐UP TO THE AMERICAN CIVIL WAR,

THE NATION'S ECONOMY WAS DIVIDED BY THE MASON‐DIXON LINE.

IN THE AGRICULTURAL SOUTH‐‐

LARGELY DEPENDENT ON SLAVE LABOR‐‐

COTTON WAS KING AND THE COUNTRY'S MOST VALUABLE EXPORT.

BUT IN THE NORTH,

THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION HAD TAKEN HOLD.

NEW TECHNOLOGIES IN MANUFACTURING

WERE RESHAPING IT INTO A VIBRANT COMMERCIAL ECONOMY.

AND SHIPBUILDING WAS NO EXCEPTION.

BUT IN 1861, JUST A FEW MONTHS INTO THE CIVIL WAR,

A SHIP WAS TAKING SHAPE IN GOSPORT NAVY YARD, VIRGINIA.

IT WAS UNLIKE ANY VESSEL EVER BUILT.

AN OBSERVER DESCRIBED IT

AS LOOKING LIKE "A CROCODILE INTENT ON EVIL."

ITS NAME WAS THE CSS VIRGINIA.

AT THAT TIME, THE CONFEDERATE SOUTH HAD NO NAVY TO SPEAK OF

AND WAS UNABLE TO BREAK THE UNION NORTH'S BLOCKADE

OF SOUTHERN PORTS.

♪

BY BUILDING A RADICAL NEW VESSEL,

CONFEDERATE LEADERS HOPED TO TAKE ON THE ENEMY

AND TURN THE TIDE.

John Quarstein: STEPHEN RUSSELL MALLORY,

SECRETARY OF NAVY FOR THE CONFEDERACY,

TELLS THE CONFEDERATE CONGRESS THAT WE WANT TO BUILD A SHIP

THAT HERETOFORE HAS NEVER BEEN SEEN IN NAVAL SERVICE‐‐

IRON‐PLATED WITH RIFLED GUNS AND A RAM.

Craig Symonds: IF WE COULD COME UP WITH A SHIP THAT COULD...

THAT WAS INVULNERABLE, THAT COULD NOT BE SUNK,

AN IRONCLAD WARSHIP,

IT WOULD COMPLETELY REBALANCE THE POWER AT SEA

BETWEEN NORTH AND SOUTH.

Narrator: BUT THE CONFEDERACY WAS SHORT OF MATERIALS.

TO BUILD A SHIP FROM SCRATCH WOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE.

BUT THEY HAD AN IDEA.

THEY WOULD USE THE HULL OF A SHIP‐‐THE USS MERRIMACK‐‐

WHICH HAD BEEN ABANDONED AND BURNED BY THE NORTH

IN THE EARLY DAYS OF THE WAR.

Quarstein: THE CONFEDERATES ARE ABLE TO RAISE HER.

USING THE MACHINERY INSIDE OF THE MERRIMACK,

THEY CUT HER DOWN AND START TO TRANSFORM HER.

Symonds: SO THEY STRUCK OFF ALL THE MASTS,

AND THERE WERE GUNS ALONG BOTH SIDES

AND ONE GUN IN BOTH THE BOW AND THE STERN,

BUT THREE DIFFERENT GUN PORTS FOR IT,

SO IT COULD BE POINTED SLIGHTLY AT AN ANGLE

OR STRAIGHT AHEAD OR STRAIGHT ASTERN.

Quarstein: THE WORKMEN OF GOSPORT NAVY YARD

PLEDGED TO WORK FOUR HOURS EXTRA INTO THE NIGHT

BECAUSE IT WAS DESPERATE TO GET THIS SHIP COMPLETED.

Narrator: THE MERRIMACK, RECHRISTENED THE VIRGINIA,

WAS COVERED WITH TWO LAYERS OF TWO‐INCH IRON PLATES.

ON HER BOW WAS THE TERRIFYING 1,500‐POUND CAST‐IRON RAM.

THE VIRGINIA WAS AN IMPORTANT PROJECT,

BUT SURPRISINGLY, NOT A SECRET.

Symonds: IT WAS OBVIOUS THEY WERE DOING THIS.

THERE WERE NO REAL SECRETS IN THOSE DAYS.

YOU COULD READ ABOUT IT IN THE NEWSPAPER,

SO IN THE NORTH, THE UNION SECRETARY OF THE NAVY,

GIDEON WELLES, THOUGHT, "WELL, WE HAVE TO HAVE

A COUNTERMEASURE TO THIS,

WE'LL HAVE TO HAVE OUR OWN IRONCLAD."

Narrator: WELLES PUT OUT A REQUEST FOR BIDS.

ONE CAME FROM JOHN ERICSSON, WHO HAD HELPED THE BRITISH

DEVELOP THEIR SCREW PROPELLER SYSTEM.

HIS DESIGN WAS NAMED THE MONITOR.

WITH ITS DECK ONLY 18 INCHES ABOVE THE WATERLINE,

AND AT JUST 179 FEET LONG,

THE MONITOR WAS DESIGNED TO GIVE ENEMY GUNNERS A SMALL TARGET.

BUT ERICSSON'S MOST INNOVATIVE FEATURE

WAS A REVOLVING GUN TURRET

MADE OF EIGHT LAYERS OF ONE‐INCH IRON PLATE

AND TURNED BY A SMALL STEAM ENGINE.

HAVING WON THE CONTRACT,

THE DESIGNER WAS GIVEN JUST 100 DAYS TO BUILD HIS SHIP

AND HAVE IT READY TO TAKE ON THE VIRGINIA.

Wisteria Perry: NOW, UNFORTUNATELY,

IT TAKES HIM 118 DAYS, BUT, HONESTLY,

I DON'T THINK ANYONE IS GONNA CARE THAT HE WAS LATE.

SOMETHING BRAND NEW, 40 BRAND NEW INVENTIONS,

AND WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE MONSTER

THAT IS THE CSS VIRGINIA, YOU KNOW,

YOU'RE DEFINITELY WANTING TO DEFEND WHEREVER YOU CAN.

♪

THIS IS ACTUALLY A PICTURE OF THE CREW.

ALL DIFFERENT AGES, ALL DIFFERENT NATIONALITIES,

INCLUDING SIAH CARTER, WHO WAS ONE OF SEVEN AFRICAN AMERICANS

ON BOARD THE USS MONITOR.

Narrator: ON MARCH 6, 1862, THE MONITOR LEFT NEW YORK

TO TRAVEL SOUTH AND FIND THE VIRGINIA

BEFORE SHE COULD WREAK HAVOC ON THE BLOCKADING UNION FLEET.

HER SKIPPER WAS JOHN L. WORDEN.

A MEMBER OF THE MONITOR'S CREW

RECALLED THE FRUSTRATION OF THE VOYAGE SOUTH.

William Keeler: OH, HOW WE LONGED TO BE THERE,

BUT OUR IRON HULL CREPT SLOWLY ON,

AND THE MONOTONOUS CLANK, CLANK OF THE ENGINE

BETOKENED NO INCREASE OF ITS SPEED.

NO SUPPER WAS EATEN THAT NIGHT, AS YOU MAY SUPPOSE.

Narrator: SURE ENOUGH, THEY WERE TOO LATE

TO INTERCEPT THE VIRGINIA.

UNDER THE COMMAND OF FRANKLIN BUCHANAN,

THE CONFEDERATES' NEW BATTLESHIP

CAUTIOUSLY EMERGED FOR THE FIRST TIME

FROM GOSPORT NAVY YARD.

ITS DESTINATION

WAS HAMPTON ROADS HARBOR.

AND ITS TARGET?

THE UNION FLEET

THAT WAS BLOCKADING IT.

ON MARCH 8, 1862,

THE VIRGINIA HEADED FOR HAMPTON ROADS HARBOR,

INTENT ON SCUTTLING THE UNION'S BLOCKADE.

EVEN SUPPORTERS OF THE CONFEDERACY

DOUBTED THIS STRANGE VESSEL COULD SUCCEED.

Quarstein: PEOPLE THRONG ALONG THE WATER BANK.

SOME OF THEM SHOUT, "GO ON WITH YOUR METALLIC COFFIN,

YOU'LL NEVER AMOUNT TO A THING."

BUCHANAN ADDRESSES THE CREW.

"THE CONFEDERACY EXPECTS EVERY MAN

TO DO THEIR DUTY TODAY."

AND THEN HE POINTS AT THE UNION FLEET AND SHOUTS,

"THOSE SHIPS MUST BE TAKEN.

SOME OF YOU ALL HAVE COMPLAINED

I HAVE NOT TAKEN YOU CLOSE TO THE ENEMY.

I WILL TAKE YOU THERE NOW, TO YOUR CANNONS, TO YOUR DEATH,

WE WILL SINK BEFORE SURRENDER."

AND WITH THAT, THE VIRGINIA COMES INTO HAMPTON ROADS.

A LOOKOUT ON THE MINNESOTA

SHOUTS DOWN TO THE OFFICER OF THE WATCH, SAYING,

"SIR, I THINK YOU SHOULD TAKE A GLASS, A TELESCOPE,

AND TAKE A LOOK OVER THERE,

'CAUSE I THINK THAT THING IS A‐COMING."

Narrator: THE GREAT HOPE OF THE SOUTH

WAS ABOUT TO BE TESTED IN BATTLE FOR THE FIRST TIME.

Symonds: THE VIRGINIA CAME OUT OF HAMPTON ROADS

ON THE 8th OF MARCH

AND DESTROYED TWO EXISTING UNION WARSHIPS,

UTTERLY DESTROYED THEM,

RAMMING ONE, SENDING IT TO THE BOTTOM,

SETTING THE OTHER ON FIRE WITH HOT SHOT

AND COMPLETELY DESTROYED IT.

SO THIS WAS A DEVASTATING BLOW.

Narrator: IT WAS THE FIRST TIME AN IRONCLAD

HAD SUNK A WOODEN SHIP.

THIS IS ONE OF THE VIRGINIA'S GUNS

FROM THE FIRST DAY OF WHAT BECAME KNOWN

AS THE BATTLE OF HAMPTON ROADS.

IT BEARS THE SCARS OF THE FIGHT WITH THE USS CUMBERLAND.

Quarstein: THIS IS A HOT SHOT GUN,

SET UP TO FIRE RED‐HOT SHOT,

SO THEY'VE LOADED IT, AND THEY ARE BRINGING IT INTO ACTION

WHEN A SHOT FROM THE CUMBERLAND WILL STRIKE RIGHT THERE,

KNOCKING OFF THE CHASE OF THE GUN,

FIRING THE GUN SO IT GOES INTO RECOIL,

INJURING SEVERAL CONFEDERATES.

Narrator: BUT THIS SMALL SUCCESS WAS AS GOOD AS THINGS GOT

FOR THE USS CUMBERLAND.

Symonds: IT WAS THE WORST DEFEAT FOR THE UNITED STATES NAVY

IN ITS ENTIRE HISTORY UNTIL PEARL HARBOR.

AND UP IN WASHINGTON THE GOVERNMENT WAS VERY NEAR PANIC.

SECRETARY OF WAR EDWIN STANTON KEPT GOING OVER TO THE WINDOW

AND LOOKING OUT TO SEE IF IT WAS COMING UP THE POTOMAC RIVER

TO SHELL THE WHITE HOUSE.

Narrator: THE CONFEDERATES HAD EVERY INTENTION

OF DESTROYING THE ENTIRE UNION FLEET.

BUT AT MIDNIGHT, A STRANGE‐LOOKING IRONCLAD

SLID INTO HAMPTON ROADS FROM THE DIRECTION OF NEW YORK.

IT WAS THE MONITOR. THE BATTLE WASN'T OVER.

♪

AT DAWN, THE VIRGINIA SET OUT TO CRIPPLE THE USS MINNESOTA

THAT HAD RUN AGROUND THE PREVIOUS DAY.

THE CREW OF THE VIRGINIA HAD NO IDEA

THAT THE TINY MONITOR WAS HIDING BEHIND HER,

EAGER TO TEST OUT HER NEW WEAPONS.

Quarstein: ON THE MORNING OF MARCH 9th,

THE MINNESOTA IS RIGHT OUT THERE RUN AGROUND.

SO THAT'S WHERE THE MONITOR IS,

ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MINNESOTA.

BACK OVER THERE WHERE YOU SEE THE AIRCRAFT CARRIERS

IS WHERE THE VIRGINIA IS GOING TO BE ANCHORED.

NOW, SHE STARTS TO SEND A SHOT THROUGH THE MINNESOTA'S RIGGING,

AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN THE LITTLE MONITOR EMERGES.

Keeler: AS WE PASSED DOWN THROUGH THE TURRET,

THE GUNNERS WERE LIFTING A 175‐POUND SHOT

INTO THE MOUTH OF ONE OF OUR IMMENSE GUNS.

"SEND THEM THAT WITH OUR COMPLIMENTS, MY LADS,"

SAYS CAPTAIN W.

Narrator: BUT BACK ON THE CONFEDERATE SHIP,

COMMANDER ROGER JONES HAS SOME USEFUL INFORMATION.

Quarstein: HE ACTUALLY HAS THE PLANS FOR THE MONITOR

FROM THE SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE.

SO HE KNOWS WHAT HE'S UP AGAINST,

AND SO BASICALLY HE KNOWS HE HAS TO GO AGAINST THE MINNESOTA.

THE MONITOR GETS IN HIS WAY,

AND AS A RESULT OF THAT THEY GO IN CONCENTRIC CIRCLES, RIGHT.

NOW, THE VIRGINIA TAKES A HALF HOUR TO TURN AROUND,

THE MONITOR IN ABOUT 12 MINUTES,

SO YOU CAN SEE HOW THE MONITOR

CAN CUT OFF THE VIRGINIA AT EVERY TURN.

Keeler: BELOW, WE HAD NO IDEA OF THE POSITION

OF OUR UNSEEN ANTAGONIST,

HER MODE OF ATTACK, OR HER DISTANCE FROM US,

EXCEPT WHAT WAS MADE KNOWN

THROUGH THE ORDERS OF THE CAPTAIN:

"THAT WAS A GOOD SHOT, WENT THROUGH HER WATER LINE!"

"THAT LAST SHOT BROUGHT THE IRON FROM HER SIDES!"

"LOOK OUT! NOW, THEY'RE GOING TO RUN US DOWN!

GIVE THEM BOTH GUNS!"

Symonds: AND THEY FOUGHT, AND THEY FOUGHT ALL DAY LONG

ALMOST FOR FOUR FULL HOURS, SLUGGING IT AWAY,

NEARLY TOUCHING ONE ANOTHER AT TIMES,

FIRING THE HEAVIEST ORDNANCE THEY HAD AVAILABLE,

PUTTING DENTS IN THE ARMOR‐PLATING OF EITHER SIDE,

BUT IN NEITHER CASE CAUSING THE KIND OF DAMAGE

THAT WOULD REQUIRE THE OTHER TO GIVE WAY.

Narrator: BOTH SIDES CLAIMED VICTORY.

BUT THE FACT THAT THE MONITOR WAS ABLE TO KEEP THE VIRGINIA

FROM SINKING ANY MORE UNION SHIPS

WAS A SIZABLE FEAT FOR THE LITTLE METAL BOAT.

ALTHOUGH THE MONITOR HELD OFF THE VIRGINIA THIS TIME,

JUST NINE MONTHS LATER IT PERISHED

AT THE HANDS OF A FAR GREATER ENEMY.

Perry: THE MONITOR, UNFORTUNATELY,

DECEMBER 31, 1862,

HITS A STORM OFF THE COAST,

AND THEY ACTUALLY START TO START OFFLOADING THE SAILORS.

THERE'S ANOTHER SHIP THAT'S FOLLOWING BEHIND IT,

THE RHODE ISLAND,

AND, SADLY, THE MONITOR SINKS

TO THE BOTTOM OF THE ATLANTIC OCEAN,

TAKING 16 SAILORS WITH HER.

Narrator: THE MONITOR WAS FOUND IN 1973.

ITS HEAVY IRON TURRET WAS BROUGHT TO THE SURFACE IN 2002.

TOGETHER WITH ITS GUNS, THE TURRET IS PRESERVED

IN AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL METALS LABORATORY

NEAR THE SITE OF ITS BATTLE WITH THE VIRGINIA.

Quarstein: IT WAS AMAZING.

I REMEMBER WHEN I FIRST TOUCHED THE SIDE OF THE TURRET,

IT WAS LIKE A DREAM COME TRUE.

Narrator: INSIDE THE TURRET WERE DOZENS OF ITEMS DISCARDED

AS THE MONITOR BEGAN TO SINK...

INCLUDING MUSTARD BOTTLES, FORKS AND EVEN CLOTHING.

Quarstein: THIS WAS FOUND INSIDE THE TURRET OF THE MONITOR.

WE ACTUALLY HAVE THE COMPLETE COAT.

THE SLEEVES, AND THE BACKS AND PART OF THE FRONT.

THIS FOLD RIGHT HERE IS THE USER'S FOLD.

IT'S A PRECURSOR OF WHAT WE CALL A PEA COAT...

PROBABLY WORN BY A PETTY OFFICER.

Narrator: THE MONITOR'S CREW TOOK PART

IN A NEW KIND OF NAVAL GUNFIGHT.

FROM NOW ON, THEY REFERRED TO THIS TYPE OF GUNBOAT

BY THE NAME OF THE ORIGINAL.

"MONITORS" WOULD BE USED FOR THE NEXT HUNDRED YEARS.

BUT IT WOULD TAKE A VERY DIFFERENT TYPE OF WARSHIP

FOR THE WORLD TO TRULY TAKE NOTICE OF AMERICA.

IN THE YEARS AFTER THE CIVIL WAR,

THE U. S. NAVY WAS IN TATTERS.

BY THE 1880s ITS PITIFUL FLEET WAS AN INTERNATIONAL JOKE.

IRISH PLAYWRIGHT OSCAR WILDE MOCKED THE NAVY

AS "A RUIN AND A CURIOSITY."

Grove: THE AMERICAN NAVY WAS IN NO REALLY GREAT STATE

AFTER THE AMERICAN CIVIL WAR.

IT WAS CONCERNED WITH COASTAL DEFENSE USING MONITORS,

COMMERCE RAIDING AND SO ON.

Narrator: BUT JUST A DECADE LATER,

THE UNITED STATES AND ITS NAVY

WOULD TRANSFORM THE COUNTRY INTO A GLOBAL SUPERPOWER.

Man: FIRE!

[BOOM]

Grove: IN THE 1880s THEY BEGAN TO BUILD

SOME NEW STEEL CRUISERS,

AND THEY WERE MOVING TOWARDS BUILDING BATTLESHIPS,

THEIR FIRST BATTLESHIPS.

Narrator: ONE OF THE FINEST EARLY EXAMPLES IS PRESERVED

AT A MUSEUM IN PHILADELPHIA.

THE USS OLYMPIA.

♪

THE OLYMPIA IS A "PROTECTED CRUISER."

HER VULNERABLE AREAS ARE SHIELDED,

BUT NOT HER ENTIRE HULL.

John Brady: THEY DIDN'T FEEL THAT THE SHIP COULD CARRY

THE WEIGHT OF FULL ARMOR, A SHIP THIS SIZE AND POWER,

SO WHAT THEY CAME UP WITH WAS A DEFENSE MECHANISM,

TO BUILD A TURTLE OF ARMOR INSIDE THE SHIP

THAT PROTECTED THE BOILERS, THE ENGINES, THE STEERING GEAR,

THE POWDER MAGAZINES, ALL THE ESSENTIALS.

THE SIDES OF THE SHIP

WERE PROTECTED ACTUALLY BY THE COAL BUNKERS.

SO THE IDEA BEING THAT THEY ARE EACH A WATERTIGHT COMPARTMENT,

AND THE SHOCK OF AN INCOMING SHELL OR TORPEDO

WOULD BE ABSORBED BY THE COAL ITSELF.

Narrator: BY THE 1890s, AMERICA HAD BECOME ONE "UNITED STATES,"

EAST COAST TO WEST COAST.

THE NATION BEGAN TO LOOK BEYOND ITS BORDERS

TO NEW FRONTIERS.

Grove: THE AMERICANS WERE BECOMING

A SIGNIFICANT NAVAL POWER‐‐

NOT IN THE SAME CLASS AS FRANCE OR RUSSIA OR BRITAIN‐‐

BUT THEY WERE BEGINNING TO FLEX THEIR MUSCLES SOMEWHAT.

AND THE OBVIOUS TARGET WAS SPAIN.

SPAIN WAS AN EMPIRE IN TERMINAL DECLINE.

Narrator: BUT THE SPANISH EMPIRE STILL STRETCHED

FROM THE FAR EAST TO THE GULF OF MEXICO,

AND CUBA, IN PARTICULAR.

HERE WAS AN ISLAND THAT MIGHT BE QUITE VALUABLE AS A U. S. BASE.

IN LATE JANUARY 1898, ONE OF AMERICA'S NEWEST BATTLESHIPS,

THE USS MAINE, SAILED INTO HAVANA HARBOR

AS A SHOW OF SUPPORT FOR CUBAN REVOLUTIONARIES.

Symonds: WE THOUGHT OF OURSELVES AS THE EXAMPLE OF A PEOPLE

WHO HAD THROWN OFF EUROPEAN CONTROL

AND GAINED THEIR INDEPENDENCE.

WE WANTED THE SAME FOR THE CUBANS;

THAT WAS OUR SORT OF EXPLANATION TO OURSELVES.

Narrator: BUT ON FEBRUARY 15th,

THE USS MAINE SUDDENLY BLEW UP IN HAVANA HARBOR.

266 MEN WERE KILLED.

IT WAS CLAIMED A SPANISH MINE WAS RESPONSIBLE, BUT IN TRUTH,

THE MOST LIKELY CAUSE WAS A FIRE IN A COAL BUNKER.

THE AMERICAN PRESS, HOWEVER, DEMANDED REVENGE.

"REMEMBER THE MAINE!" BECAME THE BATTLE CRY.

Grove: THIS LED TO PRESIDENT McKINLEY

DECLARING WAR ON THE SPANISH EMPIRE

TO LIBERATE CUBA FROM THE SPANISH YOKE

AND ALSO TO GIVE THE AMERICANS THE OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE A GO

AT THE SPANISH POSITION IN THE PACIFIC.

Symonds: WHEN WAR WAS DECLARED IN 1898,

BECAUSE OF THE BELIEF THAT THE FIRST THING YOU MUST DO

IS DESTROY THE ENEMY MAIN BATTLE FLEET,

THE UNITED STATES DECIDED IT WOULD DESTROY

THE SPANISH FLEET IN THE PHILIPPINES,

WHICH HAD NOTHING TO DO WHATSOEVER WITH THE CUBANS.

Narrator: THE UNITED STATES' ASIATIC SQUADRON

WAS CLOSEST TO THE PHILIPPINES.

IT WAS LED BY 60‐YEAR‐OLD ADMIRAL GEORGE DEWEY.

ON BOARD THE OLYMPIA,

HE RECEIVED CLEAR ORDERS TO ATTACK THE SPANISH FLEET:

"YOU MUST CAPTURE VESSELS OR DESTROY.

USE UTMOST ENDEAVORS."

DEWEY'S FLEET OF NINE SHIPS SAILED FOR THE PHILIPPINES.

WAITING FOR THEM OFF THE COAST OF THE CAPITAL, MANILA,

WAS THE ELDERLY SPANISH FLEET,

COMMANDED BY REAR ADMIRAL DON PATRICIO MONTOJO Y PASARÓN.

Lambert: THE SPANISH ADMIRAL MONTOJO REALIZED

THAT HIS FORCE OF COLONIAL CRUISERS,

MANY OF THEM BUILT OF WOOD,

QUITE OBSOLETE WITH SHORT‐RANGE WEAPONS,

WOULD BE COMPLETELY OUTCLASSED BY THE AMERICANS.

SO, HE PUT THEM AS CLOSE TO THE SHORE AS POSSIBLE

SO THAT WHEN THEY SANK

THE CREW MIGHT HAVE A CHANCE OF GETTING ASHORE.

Narrator: ADMIRAL MONTOJO ORDERED HIS SHIPS

TO TAKE A TRADITIONAL LINE‐AHEAD FORMATION

TO PREPARE FOR THE AMERICANS.

ON THE EARLY MORNING OF MAY 1, 1898,

THE OLYMPIA LED DEWEY'S FLEET INTO MANILA BAY.

WITH HER FOUR 8‐INCH GUNS MOUNTED ON TURRETS,

TEN 5‐INCH GUNS FOR BROADSIDES,

AND 21 SMALLER 15‐CALIBER GUNS,

THE FLAGSHIP WAS AN IMPRESSIVE SIGHT.

AND UNLIKE HIS PREDECESSORS,

DEWEY DIDN'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT THE WIND.

STEAM POWER OFFERED HIM A VARIETY OF TACTICS.

Lambert: AS HE COMES INTO MANILA BAY, DEWEY HAS A CHOICE.

HE CAN EITHER ANCHOR UP OPPOSITE THE SPANISH FLEET

AND JUST EXCHANGE FIRE WITH THEM UNTIL HE WINS,

OR HE CAN REDUCE THE RISK TO HIS OWN SHIPS

BY KEEPING UNDER WAY

AND MAKING HIS SHIPS A MORE DIFFICULT TARGET

FOR THE SPANISH GUNNERS.

Narrator: ADMIRAL DEWEY STOOD IN HIS WHITE DRESS UNIFORM

ON THE OLYMPIA'S BRIDGE,

AND AFTER 15 MINUTES OF FIRE FROM THE SPANISH,

TOLD THE OLYMPIA'S CAPTAIN TO "FIRE WHEN READY."

Man: FIRE!

[BOOM]

Lambert: HIS SHIPS OPEN FIRE

AND THEN CIRCLE AROUND AND OPEN FIRE AGAIN.

THEY JUST BOMBARD THE SPANISH

UNTIL THE SPANISH SHIPS STRIKE THEIR FLAGS, BLOW UP OR SINK.

Narrator: THE OLYMPIA'S GUNS WERE VIBRATING THE SHIP SO MUCH

THAT IN THE ENGINE ROOM,

THE STOKERS FOUND IT HARD TO STAY UPRIGHT.

UP ABOVE THEM, THE GUNNERS' SHOES

KEPT THEIR FEET FROM BURNING ON THE HOT DECK.

LIKE THE BATTLE OF HAMPTON ROADS 36 YEARS EARLIER,

MANILA BAY HAS BEEN DESCRIBED SIMPLY AS A GUN DUEL.

Lambert: MANILA BAY IS ONE OF THE LAST BATTLES

OF THE 19th CENTURY.

THERE ARE NO SUBMARINES, THERE ARE NO AEROPLANES,

THERE ARE NO SOLDIERS.

IT REALLY IS JUST A FIGHT BETWEEN TWO FLEETS.

Narrator: BUT THE MARKSMANSHIP IN THIS GUNFIGHT WAS TERRIBLE.

THE AMERICANS FIRED 5,859 SHELLS,

BUT LESS THAN 2% HIT THEIR TARGETS.

THE SPANISH RESULTS WERE EVEN WORSE.

AFTER A BATTLE LASTING SIX HOURS,

WITH MANY OF HIS SHIPS SINKING BUT STILL FIRING,

ADMIRAL MONTOJO SURRENDERED.

Lambert: THE SPANISH FLEET HAD BEEN SHOT TO PIECES,

HALF OF IT HAD SUNK,

AND THE REST OF IT WAS OF NOT MUCH FURTHER USE.

Narrator: 330 MEN DIED ON THE REINA CRISTINA,

AND 90 WERE WOUNDED.

THE WOODEN CASTILLA CAUGHT FIRE AND SANK

WITH THE LOSS OF 25 MEN.

THE OLYMPIA, HOWEVER, SAILED FOR MANILA,

WITH THE SHIP'S BAND PLAYING SPANISH TUNES FOR THE LOCALS

WHO'D COME TO STARE AT THE VICTORIOUS FLEET.

BACK HOME, ADMIRAL DEWEY BECAME A NATIONAL CELEBRITY.

Brady: HE'S PROBABLY ONE OF OUR FIRST REAL POP STARS,

IF YOU WILL.

HE WAS ON EVERYTHING‐‐

ADVERTISEMENTS FOR MEDICINE OR MUSIC BOXES.

PEOPLE HAD PICTURES OF HIM IN THEIR HOMES.

HE WAS A REAL HERO.

Narrator: BUT THE GREATEST LEGACY

OF THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY WAS

A DECISION DEWEY MADE NOT LONG AFTER THE SMOKE HAD CLEARED‐‐

A DECISION THAT AFFECTS AMERICAN FOREIGN POLICY TO THIS DAY.

DEWEY ASKED FOR AN ARMY OF OCCUPATION.

Symonds: HE SHOULD THEN PERHAPS HAVE STEAMED AWAY

AND GONE BACK TO HIS BASE AT HONG KONG.

BUT HE DID NOT, HE STAYED THERE,

AND THE AMERICANS CAME TO THE BELIEF

THAT, "WELL, LOOK, WE'VE CREATED THIS VACUUM OF POWER.

WE DESTROYED THE SPANISH FLEET,

NOW THERE'S NOBODY ELSE THERE," EXCEPT THE GERMANS,

WHO CAME SIDLING IN TO MANILA BAY,

AND SAID, "WELL, LISTEN, IF YOU, YOU HAVE TO GO

AND TAKE CARE OF THINGS, WE'LL LOOK AFTER THINGS HERE."

AND THE BELIEF WAS, WELL, IF WE LEAVE,

THE GERMANS WILL TAKE IT

OR SOMEONE ELSE WITH NEFARIOUS PURPOSES,

OR, OR IT'LL TURN INTO CHAOS.

NO, NO, WE HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO STAY HERE

AND SUPERVISE THE PHILIPPINES.

THIS WAS CLEARLY NOT PART OF ANY OF THE MOTIVE

THAT HAD BEGUN THE WAR IN THE FIRST PLACE,

BUT IT LED TO AMERICAN STEWARDSHIP

OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS,

WHICH CREATED AN AMERICAN OVERSEAS‐‐

FOR LACK OF A BETTER WORD‐‐ EMPIRE.

Narrator: THE PEACE TREATY WITH SPAIN

GAVE THE UNITED STATES THE PHILIPPINES, GUAM,

WAKE ISLAND AND PUERTO RICO.

WITHIN WEEKS OF THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY,

THE UNITED STATES ALSO TOOK POSSESSION OF HAWAII.

Symonds: THE ANNEXATION OF HAWAII, OF GUAM,

AND OF THE PHILIPPINES

CREATED A SERIES OF STEPPING STONES

ACROSS THE PACIFIC

THAT MADE IT EASIER FOR AMERICANS TO HAVE ACCESS

TO THE MARKETS OF CHINA,

AND SO IN, IN A VERY IMPORTANT WAY,

THE BATTLE OF MANILA BAY MADE AMERICA A GLOBAL POWER.

Narrator: AND AMERICA'S NEW STATUS WOULD BE THE CATALYST

FOR RAPID NAVAL DEVELOPMENT.

JUST 12 YEARS AFTER MANILA BAY,

THE UNITED STATES WOULD ORDER A VESSEL

THAT MADE THE OLYMPIA LOOK LIKE A VICTORIAN RELIC.

IT WOULD COPY A REVOLUTIONARY NEW BATTLESHIP DESIGN

FROM THAT OLD NAVAL SUPERPOWER, BRITAIN.

IT WAS TO BE THE AGE OF THE DREADNOUGHT.

IN THE EARLY 1860s, THE HMS WARRIOR WAS HOME

FOR ONE OF HER FIRST LIEUTENANTS,

A YOUNG RISING STAR NAMED JACKIE FISHER.

Gordon: HE USED TO GO FOR WALKS IN THE SOUTH DOWNS

BARKING OUT GUNNERY ORDERS TO TRAIN HIS VOICE

SO THEY COULD BE HEARD, YOU KNOW, 200 FEET AWAY.

HE WAS DETERMINED THAT HE WAS GOING TO BE

THE SMARTEST GUNNERY OFFICER IN THE NAVY.

Narrator: AND THROUGHOUT A METEORIC CAREER,

FISHER ALWAYS EMBRACED THE LATEST INNOVATIONS.

BY 1904, HE WAS FIRST SEA LORD AND IN A POSITION

TO RADICALLY CHANGE THE DESIGN OF BATTLESHIPS.

HIS GOAL WAS TO CREATE A NEW SHIP

FOR A NATION STRUGGLING TO MAINTAIN ITS POSITION

AS A NAVAL POWER.

Gordon: THE BRITISH NAVY WAS HUGE.

AT THE 1897 DIAMOND JUBILEE NAVAL REVIEW,

IT WAS CALCULATED THAT THERE WERE MORE SHIPS PRESENT

THAN THE NEXT SIX NAVIES COMBINED...

BUT WE HAD KIND OF BEEN FIRST IN INDUSTRIALIZATION,

AND WE'D REACHED A SORT OF TECHNOLOGICAL PLATEAU,

OR SO IT SEEMED, AND OTHERS WERE BEGINNING TO CATCH US UP.

Narrator: FISHER'S NEW VESSEL WOULD DRAW ITS INSPIRATION

FROM BRITAIN'S NAVAL PAST.

Gordon: WHAT DID WARRIOR BRING TO THE NAVAL SCENERY?

SHE WAS FAST AND SHE WAS STRONG.

AND JACKIE FISHER REMEMBERED THAT.

Narrator: THE NEW BATTLESHIP TOOK SHAPE

IN PORTSMOUTH DOCKYARD... IN SECRET.

IT WAS BUILT IN ONLY 130 DAYS AND NAMED HMS DREADNOUGHT.

Gordon: WHEN IT WAS LAUNCHED IN EARLY 1906,

THE WORLD WAS JUST ASTONISHED.

Lambert: AT THE END OF WHAT HAD BEEN A 55‐YEAR DESIGN PROCESS,

WE END UP WITH A SHIP

THAT DOES ALL THE SAME THINGS THAT WARRIOR HAD DONE.

IT WAS LARGER THAN ANY CONTEMPORARY WARSHIP.

IT HAD MORE FIREPOWER THAN ANY CONTEMPORARY WARSHIP.

IT USED ADVANCED TECHNOLOGIES.

Narrator: AND AS A FORMER GUNNERY OFFICER,

FISHER WAS KEEN TO OVERCOME ONE CLEAR FLAW IN EARLIER SHIPS.

Gordon: BATTLESHIPS HAD THIS MULTIPLICITY OF ARMAMENTS.

EVERY GUN WAS AIMED AND FIRED AT THE TURRET

BY THE OFFICER IN CHARGE.

YOU COULDN'T SPOT AND CORRECT YOUR FALL OF SHOT

BECAUSE EVERYONE ELSE WAS SHOOTING,

AND WHO KNEW WHICH SPLASH BELONGED TO WHICH GUN.

Narrator: INSTEAD, DREADNOUGHT WOULD GIVE CONTROL

OF TEN IDENTICAL 12‐INCH GUNS TO JUST ONE GUNNERY OFFICER.

Gordon: AND HE COULD FIRE IN SALVOS,

HE COULD PRESS THE BUTTON THAT FIRED THE GUNS,

HE WAS ABOVE THE SMOKE, HE WAS ABOVE THE SPRAY,

HE HAD A BETTER VIEW,

AND HE COULD WATCH THE SHELL SPLASHES OF EACH SALVO

TO ADJUST AND CORRECT THE NEXT SALVO.

SO SUDDENLY IT BECAME POSSIBLE TO ENGAGE ENEMY SHIPS

AT CONSIDERABLE RANGE.

Lambert: IT RAISED THE GAME IN TERMS OF NAVAL DESIGN.

IT WAS A SHIP THAT MEANT THAT EVERY OTHER WARSHIP IN THE WORLD

WAS NOW OBSOLETE,

AND EVERY BATTLESHIP BUILT AFTERWARDS

WOULD BE CALLED A DREADNOUGHT.

Narrator: AND THE DREADNOUGHTS WERE FAST.

THEY WERE THE FIRST LARGE SHIPS TO BE POWERED

BY THE LATEST ENGINE‐‐ THE TURBINE.

A TURBINE WORKS BY FORCING PRESSURIZED STEAM

OVER A SERIES OF ANGLED BLADES IN A SEALED CONTAINER,

WHICH POWER THE SHIP'S PROPELLER.

THE WORLD SOON FOLLOWED BRITAIN'S LEAD.

BUT OF ALL THE DREADNOUGHTS

BUILT IN THE EARLY YEARS OF THE 20th CENTURY,

ONLY ONE SURVIVES‐‐

THE MIGHTY USS TEXAS.

♪

♪

WHEN SHE WAS LAUNCHED, THE TEXAS,

LIKE OTHER DREADNOUGHTS, WAS A TECHNOLOGICAL MARVEL.

Andy Smith: WELL, I LIKE

TO THINK OF A LITTLE SAILOR,

16, 17, 18‐YEAR‐OLD BOY,

COMING ABOARD THIS SHIP IN 1914.

PUT IN PERSPECTIVE, IF HE LIVED IN UNITED STATES,

IF HE LIVED IN ENGLAND, IF HE LIVED ANYWHERE,

MOST LIKELY HE DIDN'T HAVE ELECTRICITY ALL THE TIME,

PROBABLY DIDN'T HAVE RUNNING WATER ALL THE TIME,

PROBABLY LIVED IN A HOUSE THAT WAS ONE OR TWO ROOMS,

PROBABLY SHARED A BED WITH HIS WHOLE FAMILY.

SO HE COMES ON BOARD THIS SHIP,

AND IT'S LIT UP FROM BOW TO STERN WITH ELECTRICITY,

THERE'S RUNNING WATER WHENEVER HE WANTS IT,

THREE HOT MEALS, HIS OWN BED.

IT WOULD BE LIKE STEPPING INTO THE SPACE SHUTTLE

OR A MOON CAPSULE RIGHT NOW.

IT'S JUST, IT WOULD ALMOST BE FOREIGN TO THE AVERAGE PERSON,

JUST ALIEN TECHNOLOGY ALMOST.

NOW, FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF WHAT THE SHIP WAS

AND HOW IT COMPARED TO OTHER SHIPS,

THERE'S NOTHING LIKE IT ON THE FACE OF THE PLANET.

SHE HAD BIGGER AND MORE GUNS THAN ANY OTHER SHIP,

SHE HAD BIGGER AND MORE ARMOR THAN ANY OTHER SHIP,

AND SHE COULD MOVE FASTER THAN MOST SHIPS,

SO IF SHE CAME INTO A FIGHT,

YOU KNEW THE FIGHT WAS PRETTY MUCH OVER.

Narrator: THE TEXAS STILL HAS HER ORIGINAL ENGINES FROM 1912.

THE AMERICAN DESIGNERS CHOSE TRIPLE EXPANSION ENGINES,

WHICH HAD WORKED WELL ON OCEAN LINERS.

HIGH PRESSURE STEAM PASSES INTO THE FIRST CYLINDER,

MOVING A PISTON,

WHICH TURNS THE CRANKSHAFT LINKED TO THE PROPELLER.

THE LOWER PRESSURE EXHAUST STEAM

THEN PASSES INTO A SECOND CYLINDER

TO POWER ITS PISTON,

AND THE PROCESS IS REPEATED IN A THIRD CYLINDER.

Smith: WE JOKE SOMETIMES AND SAY

YOU CAN SEE THESE ENGINES TWO PLACES‐‐

HERE AND AT THE BOTTOM OF THE ATLANTIC ON THE TITANIC.

'CAUSE THE TITANIC HAD THESE BASIC SAME ENGINES,

SAME TYPE OF ENGINES, HAD TWO OF THESE,

AND THEN A TURBINE ENGINE FOR THE MIDDLE PROP,

AND THEY WERE STATE OF THE ART AT THE TIME, I MEAN,

THEY USED THEM ON THE TITANIC

BECAUSE THEY WERE EFFICIENT AND THEY COULD MOVE THE SHIP FAST.

IMPORTANT FOR A CRUISE LINER AS IT IS FOR A BATTLESHIP.

Narrator: THE ARRIVAL OF HMS DREADNOUGHT IN 1906

CHANGED WARSHIPS FOREVER.

Gordon: IT CAUSED A PAUSE IN SHIPBUILDING

AS EVERYONE ELSE SCRATCHED THEIR HEADS

AND SAID HOW THE HELL DO WE RESPOND TO THIS?

Narrator: FROM THAT MOMENT,

BRITAIN ENJOYED AN EDGE OVER HER RIVALS.

BUT FOR FRANCE, GERMANY AND THE UNITED STATES,

THE RESPONSE WAS STARING THEM IN THE FACE.

Gordon: YOU HAVE THIS HEADLINE‐GRABBING SHIP,

WHICH LOOKS FANTASTIC,

IT LOOKS SINISTER AND POWERFUL.

IT LOOKS LIKE THE FUTURE, AND EVERYBODY WANTS IT.

THE TROUBLE IS, BRITAIN'S LEAD IN CUTTING‐EDGE BATTLESHIPS

HAS NOW BEEN REDUCED TO ONE.

Symonds: AND SO THAT CHANGED THE STARTING LINE

IN THE NAVAL ARMS RACE

AND GAVE SECONDARY POWERS,

PARTICULARLY GERMANY AND THE UNITED STATES,

A CHANCE TO CATCH UP WITH THE BRITISH,

BECAUSE THE DREADNOUGHT

HAD RENDERED, WITH ONE FELL SWOOP, OBSOLETE

ALL THE EXISTING BATTLESHIPS IN THE WORLD.

♪

Narrator: BY THE EARLY 20th CENTURY,

GLOBAL POWER WAS SYMBOLIZED BY THE MIGHT

OF THE GREAT METAL BATTLESHIP.

AN ERA THAT HAD STARTED

WITH BRITAIN'S UNQUESTIONED SUPERIORITY

WAS NOW MORE FINELY BALANCED.

AND WITH NEW RIVALS, CAME NEW INVENTIONS...

LIKE THE TORPEDO AND THE SUBMARINE.

THE POWER OF THE DREADNOUGHT WOULD SOON BE TESTED

AND THE ART OF NAVAL WARFARE CHANGED ONCE AGAIN.