The Destruction of the Bismarck

This book is a great read for the amateur historian. It is an informative book while also telling a good story. It may be slightly difficult for those without an adequate knowledge of WWII.

In May, 1941, Germany unleashed a terror in the Atlantic; the battleship Bismarck. At over 50,000 tons and armed with 15 inch main guns, the Bismarck was the most powerful battleship afloat at the time. Germany's objective was to unleash the Bismarck and the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen in the Atlantic through the Denmark Strait against the vulnerable British convoys making their way across the Atlantic. These convoys were usually guarded by destroyers and corvettes, which would be no match for the heavy guns of the German ships. The transports would be slaughtered.Due to information received by Swedish spies, the British were alerted to the Germans' plans. Two British Spitfires were sent to fly over a Norwegian fijord to discover if the Bismarck was at anchor. Sure enough, the Spitfires spotted the German ships. However, the Germans were still able to proceed into the Atlantic while the British were left trying to decide how to deal with them.The British had two cruisers stationed near the Denmark Strait, and they eventually made radar contact with the German ships. The British managed to shadow the German ships and maintain radar contact while alerting other British forces to the location of the Bismarck. Two British battleships, the Hood and Prince of Wales, set course for the Bismarck. The Hood was the pride of the British fleet. She had the same size guns as the Bismarck, but much thinner armor. The British captain made several errors which, in the end, would turn out to be fatal. Instead of allowing each ship to fight independently of one another, both were forced to move in conjunction together. This allowed the Germans to "cross the T", allowing full broadsides to bear on the British, while the British ships could only fire with their forward guns. The Germans' fire support radar was also superior to the British, and soon the Bismarck had the range. In under six minutes, the Bismarck destroyed the Hood and severely damaged the Prince of Wales. Only three men survived from the Hood.The chase continued for several more days and several thousand miles of ocean, with the Germans losing the British, and the British finally finding the Germans again. Other units of the Royal Navy had been following the Bismarck, and finally were close enough to launch an air attack against her. The only planes the British had available were obsolete Swordfish torpedo bombers, but they bravely took off from the aircraft carrier Ark Royal to attack the Bismarck. The Bismarck put up an umbrella of anti-aircraft fire, but the Bismarck suffered a torpedo hit in her most vital area; her steering gear. Now only able to manuver in a circle, the Bismarck became easy prey for the other pursuing warships. The following day, the British battleships attacked, and soon the Bismarck was a flaming wreck. Torpedoes finally put an end to her, and she disappeared under the waves of the Atlantic.This book gives a very good account of the Bismarck chase. From th

I have just finished this book and it rates at least 4 star.The book covers a lot of ground including personalities, andinteresting details such as activities of secondary ships.It informed me of some of the naval strategies and historywhich added to the experience. The authors style is very readableand I finished it in short order.