 The use of iron instead of wood as the primary material of ships ' hulls began in the 1830s ; the first " warship " with an iron hull was the gunboat Nemesis , built by Laird for the East India Company in 1839 . There followed , also from Laird , the first full @-@ blown warships with metal hulls , the 1842 steam frigates Guadelupe and Montezuma for the Mexican navy . But a thin iron skin , while not being susceptible to fire or lethal splintering like wood , was not the same thing as providing iron armor calculated to stop enemy gunfire . 
 The use of iron instead of wood as the primary material of ships <a href='null_genetive' title='1'><mark>'</mark></a>hulls began in the 1830s ; the first " warship " with an iron hull was the gunboat Nemesis , built by Laird for the East India Company in 1839 . <a href='dey_it' title='2'><mark>There</mark></a> followed , also from Laird , the first full @-@ blown warships with metal hulls , the 1842 steam frigates Guadelupe and Montezuma for the Mexican navy . But a thin iron skin , while <a href='negative_concord' title='3'><mark>not</mark></a><a href='negative_concord' title='4'><mark>being</mark></a> susceptible to fire or lethal splintering like wood , <a href='negative_concord' title='5'><mark>was</mark></a> <a href='negative_concord' title='6'><mark>not</mark></a>the same thing as providing iron armor calculated to stop enemy gunfire . 
The use of iron instead of wood as the primary material of ships  hulls began in the 1830s ; da first " warship " w an iron hull was the gunboat Nemesis , built by Laird fir tdaEast India Company in 1839 . It followed , also from Laird , the first full @-@ blown warships with metal hulls , thda842 steam frigates Guadelupe and Montezuma fir the Mexican navy . But a thin iron skin , while ain't susceptible to fire or lethal splintering like wood , ain't the same thing as providing iron armor calculated to stop enemy gunfire .