# Hey, Civil War buffs, what were the 10 most important battles of the Civil War? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 9, 2001, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-civil-war-buffs-what-were-the-10-most-important-battles-of-the-civil-war/86238 "2001-10-09T02:38:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Weirddave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/919ad9/32.png) [@Weirddave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weirddave)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-civil-war-buffs-what-were-the-10-most-important-battles-of-the-civil-war/86238/21 "2001-10-10T04:12:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by RealityChuck \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > [Nitpick/personal pet peeve] > > > > The Monitor never fought the Merrimac. The Monitor fought the Virginia. PLEASE, PLEASE, try and get this right in the future. > > > > [/Nitpick/personal pet peeve] > > The fact that the South renamed the ship is irrelevant. The North won the war, so they get to name the battles. \*\* Sorry, Chuck, dead wrong. The United States burned and scuttled the _Merrimac_ as they retreated from Gosport Naval Yards in Virginia at the start of the war. This means the ship was written off, destroyed, etc… The fact that the CSA used some parts salvaged from the wreck in the construction of the _Virginia_ is completely irrelevent. The _Merrimac_ was a hulk sitting at the bottom of the river. The _Virginia_ was the ironclad warship that sailed into history at Hampton Roads. It has nothing to do with “naming the battles” and everything to do with historical accuracy. The ship that fought the _Monitor_ was the _Virginia_. ---
**Author:** ![woolly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ebca7d/32.png) [@woolly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woolly)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-civil-war-buffs-what-were-the-10-most-important-battles-of-the-civil-war/86238/22 "2001-10-10T13:16:12Z")
\*\* What were the 10 most important batttles of the Civil War \*\* Lets see, in chronological order: Marshall’s Elm Edgehill Braddock Down Lansdowne Roundway Down Siege of Gloucester Winceby Marston Moor Naseby Preston ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-civil-war-buffs-what-were-the-10-most-important-battles-of-the-civil-war/86238/23 "2001-10-10T14:13:27Z")
> [@](#): > > Sorry, Chuck, dead wrong. The United States burned and scuttled the Merrimac as they retreated from Gosport Naval Yards in Virginia at the start of the war. This means the ship was written off, destroyed, etc… The fact that the CSA used some parts salvaged from the wreck in the construction of the Virginia is completely irrelevent. The Merrimac was a hulk sitting at the bottom of the river. The Virginia was the ironclad warship that sailed into history at Hampton Roads. It has nothing to do with “naming the battles” and everything to do with historical accuracy. The ship that fought the Monitor was the Virginia. Sorry, but that has no relevance. The _battle_ was named “The Monitor and the Merrimac.” It describes the battle and as such, has been absolutely clear to millions of students of the war for over a century. Can you name anyone who doesn’t understand that “Monitor and Merrimack” refers to that battle, or confuses it with something else? Of course not. Do you insist on Sharpsburg instead of Antietam? Murfreesboro instead of Stones River? Why? Isn’t that greater “historical accuracy”? (As a matter of fact, “Monitor and Merrimac” was the name even Southerners used to describe the battle.) Ever hear of the Battle of Breed’s Hill? Isn’t that more historically accurate? You’ve fallen victim to the fallacy that the name of something IS that thing. The fact that the battle name does not (according to some) accurately describe the names of the ships involved is merely an interesting footnote. It’s the name of the _battle_, not the ships. ---
**Author:** ![LonesomePolecat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a88e57/32.png) [@LonesomePolecat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LonesomePolecat)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-civil-war-buffs-what-were-the-10-most-important-battles-of-the-civil-war/86238/24 "2001-10-10T18:40:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by woolly \* > \*\*\*\* What were the 10 most important batttles of the Civil War \*\* > > Lets see, in chronological order: > > Marshall’s Elm > Edgehill > Braddock Down > Lansdowne > Roundway Down > Siege of Gloucester > Winceby > Marston Moor > Naseby > Preston \*\* No, no, no. Not the _English_ Civil War. The _real_ Civil War. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Weirddave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/919ad9/32.png) [@Weirddave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weirddave)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-civil-war-buffs-what-were-the-10-most-important-battles-of-the-civil-war/86238/25 "2001-10-10T22:40:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by RealityChuck \* > \*\*You’ve fallen victim to the fallacy that the name of something IS that thing. The fact that the battle name does not (according to some) accurately describe the names of the ships involved is merely an interesting footnote. It’s the name of the _battle_, not the ships. \*\* Chuck, you’re right- if you’re talking about a battle, like Midway or Jutland. When speaking about the engagement between two ships, it is always correct to refer to the names of the ships involved. I suppose if you are contending that the 2 days battle in Hampton Roads is commonly refered to as “The Battle of the _Monitor_ vs the _Merrimac_” you could be technicaly right, but it would also be misleading and stupid. The _Monitor_ wasn’t even involved in the 1st day’s battle! What most people are refering to is the 1st clash between armored warships- The _U.S.S Monitor_ fighting the _C.S.S Virginia_. Just because something is commonly refered to wrongly dosen’t mean we should continue to do so. This is a site dedicated to fighting ignorance, and accuracy is important. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-civil-war-buffs-what-were-the-10-most-important-battles-of-the-civil-war/86238.md?page=1)