<P> The end came first for Virginia . Because the blockade was unbroken, Norfolk was of little strategic use to the Confederacy, and preliminary plans were laid to move the ship up the James River to the vicinity of Richmond . Before adequate preparations could be made, the Confederate Army under Major General Benjamin Huger abandoned the city on May 9, without consulting anyone from the Navy . Virginia's draft was too great to permit her to pass up the river, which had a depth of only 18 ft (5.5 m), and then only under favorable circumstances . She was trapped and could only be captured or sunk by the Union Navy . Rather than allow either, Tatnall decided to destroy his own ship . He had her towed down to Craney Island in Portsmouth, where the gang were taken ashore, and then she was set afire . She burned through the rest of the day and most of the following night; shortly before dawn, the flames reached her magazine, and she blew up . </P> <P> Monitor likewise did not survive the year . She was ordered to Beaufort, North Carolina, on Christmas Day, to take part in the blockade there . While she was being towed down the coast (under command of her fourth captain, Commander John P. Bankhead), the wind increased and with it the waves; with no high sides, the Monitor took on water . Soon the water in the hold gained on the pumps, and then put out the fires in her engines . The order was given to abandon ship; most men were rescued by USS Rhode Island, but 16 went down with her when she sank in the early hours of December 31, 1862 . </P> <P> The victory claims that were made by each side in the immediate aftermath of the Battle of Hampton Roads, based as both were on misinterpretations of the opponent's behavior, have been dismissed by present - day historians . They agree that the result of the Monitor--Merrimack encounter was not a victory for either side . As the combat between ironclads was the primary significance of the battle, the general verdict is that the overall result was a draw . All would acknowledge that the Southern fleet inflicted far more damage than it received, which would ordinarily imply that they had gained a tactical victory . Compared to other Civil War battles, the loss of men and ships for the Union Navy would be considered a clear defeat . On the other hand, the blockade was not seriously threatened, so the entire battle can be regarded as an assault that ultimately failed . </P> <P> However, initially after the Battle of Hampton Roads, both the Confederates and the Unions used media to claim victory for their own sides . The headline a Boston newspaper the day after the battle read "The Merrimac Driven back by the Steamer!", implying a Union victory, while Confederate media focused on their original success against wooden Union ships . Despite the battle ending in a stalemate, it was seen by both sides as an opportunity to raise war - time morale, especially since the ironclad ships were an exciting naval innovation that intrigued citizens . </P>

Who won the battle between monitor and merrimac
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