Editing CSS Virginia II (section)

==Construction==
Money to help with the construction of this ironclad was largely contributed by the Richmond chapter of the "Ladies Aid and Defense Society" (called the "National Defense Association"), which adopted the ironclad in early April 1862 for the defense of Richmond. The chairman was Maria Gaitskell Clopton. It is estimated that the society contributed more than $30,000 towards ''Virginia II''{{'}}s construction.<ref>Coski, ''Capital Navy'', 82–85</ref>

By November 1862, [[John Mercer Brooke]] was able to report that she was "pretty well advanced, frames up, clamps in, etc...She will be a strong and fine vessel."<ref name="coski2" />

However, after this promising start, significant delays plagued the new ironclad. It was not until more than a year after she was laid down that ''Virginia II'' was finally launched without incident on June 29, 1863. "She glided into the water 'like a thing of life' amid the prolonged cheers of the spectators."<ref>Coski, ''Capital Navy'', 86</ref> However, she suffered from further [[fitting-out]] delays and was not fully commissioned until May 18, 1864, almost a year later; she was made the flagship of the [[James River Squadron]] (replacing {{ship|CSS|Richmond}} in this role).<ref>Coski, ''Capital Navy'', 153,156</ref>