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Mound City. Carondelet. Cincinnati. Price. Bragg. Sumter.
mortar no. 16. Van Dorn. little Rebel.
the battle of Fort Pillow, May 10, 1862 (looking north). after a sketch by rear-admiral Walke. |
two of our ram squadron, the
Queen of the West (
Colonel Charles Ellet) leading, and the
Monarch (
Lieutenant-Colonel A. W. Ellet, younger brother of the leader). These vessels fearlessly dashed ahead of our gun-boats, ran for the enemy's fleet, and at the first plunge succeeded in sinking one vessel and disabling another.
The astonished Confederates received them gallantly and effectively.
The
Queen of the West and
Monarch were followed in line of battle by the gun-boats, under the lead of
Flag-Officer Davis, and all of them opened fire, which was continued from the time we got within good range until the end of the battle-two or three tugs keeping all the while a safe distance astern.
The
Queen of the West was a quarter of a mile in advance of the
Monarch, and after having rammed one of the enemy's fleet, she was badly rammed by the
Beauregard, which then, in company with the
General Price, made a dash at the
Monarch as she approached them.
The
Beauregard, however, missed the
Monarch and struck the
General Price instead on her port side, cutting her down to the water-line, tearing off her wheel instantly, and placing her
hors de combat. The
Monarch then rammed the
Beauregard, which had been several times raked fore and aft by the shot and shell of our iron-clads, and she quickly sank in the river opposite
Memphis.
The
General Lovell, after having been badly rammed by the
Queen of the West, was struck by our shot and shell, and, at about the same time and place as the
Beauregard, sank to the bottom so suddenly as to take a considerable number of her officers and crew down with her, the others being saved by small boats and our tugs.
The
Price,
Little Rebel (with a shot-hole
