Figure 1.--The Germany Navy when war broke out in 1939 had no way of matching the Royal Navy. And much of its splendid fleet of estroyers were destroyed in the Norway campaign. What they did have was at the time the finest battleship in existence. The problem for the Germany Navy was even the 'Bismarck' could not prevail in a major fleet action because of the overwealming numerical superiority of the Royal Navy. So OKM decided to deploy 'Bismarck' at a critical point in the Battle of the Atlantic in the commrce war. 'Bismarck' could fataly disrupt the British convoy system which would irrevocably damage the British war effort if it could operate for an extended period. The decision, however, exposed the high value 'Bismarck' to Royal Navy action over low value merchnt vessels. As it worked out, 'Bismarck' did not intercept a single convoy, but found itself engaged by converging Royal Navy vessels.

The Germany Navy when war broke out in 1939 had no way of matching the Royal Navy. Only limited effort was made to build a U-boat fleet. Rather resources were given to build large, superbly engineered ships. And nothing symbolized this more than the Bismarck, the largest and finest battleship built until that time. The High Command conceived of a commerce raiding operation to support U-boat operations. Hitler had misgivings about the operation when informed. Admiral Lutjens sailed Bismarck from Gdynia with the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen (May 18). The High Command positions two supply ships and five tankers in the Atlantic to support the operation. Scouting ships were dispatched to locate targets. Bismarck sank HMS Hood, a battle cruiser, and heavily damaged the new HMS Prince of Wales. Only three men survive Hood. The fleet received the terse message "Hood sunk." The Admiralty ordered all available battle groups to converge on Bismarck which because of damge engagement made for Breast on the French coast (May 24). Bismarck manages to eluded the pursuing ships. A British Catalina flying-boat located Bismarck. Force-H coming north from Gibraltar launched Fairey Swordfish from the Ark Royal (May 26). The first wave mistakingly attack HMS Sheffield A second strike achieve two hits on Bismarck, one of which affects the steering. The next day the converging Royal Navy surface fleet destroyed Bismarck (May 27).

Background

The Germany Navy when war broke out in 1939 had no way of matching the Royal Navy. They had an even smaller force than in World War I. Despite the massive rearmament program, only limited resources were devoted to building a U-boat fleet. The Kreigsmarine like other navies at the time were fixated on big-gun surface units. Resources were thus priatorized to build large, superbly engineered ships. And nothing symbolized this more than the Bismarck, the largest and finest battleship built until that time and one of the finet battleships of all time. It was built at the Blohm & Voss shipyard in Hamburg. She was launched few months before the War began (February 1939), but was not ready for service for some time. Bismarck was massive (50,153 tons) and many modern features such as radar-controlled guns.

Operation Rheinübung (May 18-21)

The German Naval High Command (OKM) conceived of a commerce raiding operation to support the expanding U-boat operations--Operation Rheinübung (Rhine Exercize). With the failure of the Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain (July-September 1940), Hitler's only channce of knocking Britain out of the War before Barbarossa and eventual American entry into the War was the Kreigesmarine. Hitler had misgivings about the operation when informed, but the potential payoff was massive. The assisnment was given to Admiral Lütjens. Hitler along with Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, Supreme Command of the Armed Forces, and a substantial entourage, inspected Bismarck and Tirpitz at Gotenhafen/Gdynia (May 5). Gdynia was a Baltic port in occupied Poland which had beenannexed tothe Reich. (It would appear again more importantly in history as the future birthplace of Solidarity). Hitler and his entourage toured both ships. Hitler than met with Admiral Lütjens to discuss Rheinübung. Two weeks later Captain Ernest Lindemann sailed Bismarck from Gdynia with the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen (May 18). OKM aspart of Rheinübung positioned two supply ships and five tankers in the Atlantic to support the operation. Scouting ships were dispatched to locate targets. This was not a quotic effort. The U-boats were taking a heavy toll on British shipping. Only the convoy system was keeping Britain in the War with the flow of American and Commonwealth supplies and material. Bismarck would have disrupted any convoy it encountered, destroying many ships and forcing the convoy master to order the merchant vessels to disperse. Convoy escorts would have been inefectual against the heavily armored German ship. Bismarck left her anchorage at Grimstadt Fjord and headed into the North Sea (May 21). She was accompanied by Prinz Eugen, destroyers Z10, Z16, Z23, and a mind-sweeper.

First Search

RAF aircraft reported that Bismarck had departed from the Norwegian Grimstadt Fjord. The Admiralty at once commited all availble forces to find and destroy Bismarck. There was not doubt where she was headed, the vital North Atlantic convoy routes conecting Britain with America and Canada. There were different possible routes into the North Atlantic. Admiral Lütjens chose the northern route through the Denmark Straits, between Iceland and Greenland. Bismrck attempted a dash through the Straits (May 23). The British following the German invasion of Iceland had occupied Iceland (May 1940). It would become a major Allied air base in the Battle of the Atlantic, but in 1941 British air patrols were still weak. The RAF gave emphasis to Bomber Command, Coastal Commmand got the older less capable aircraft and not many of them. And the British aircraft on Iceland were not capable of night patrols. It was the cruiser Suffolk that detected Bismarck and reported the location to the Admiralty. The radio-intercept team on Prince Eugen intercepted the signals from Suffolk and learned that their position had been reported. [Bercuson and Herwig, pp. 126-27.] HMS Norfolk joined Suffolk. Lütjens could have turned on them and made an effort to do so, but firing her big gun knocked out some of the ship'sradar. Bismarck amost sunk Norfolk. Lütjens did notwant to delay the passage of the Denmark Straits by fighting the two cruisers because that would have bought time for the Royal Navy to concentrate her forces. The two cruisers shadowed Bismarck at a safe and continued reporting her location. The damaged radar forced Lutjens to station Prinz Eugen ahead of Bismarck instead of engaging the British cruisers.

Battle of the Denmark Straits (May 24)

The Battle of the Denmark Strait was a brief, but watershed point in naval warfare (May 24, 1941). It was Bismarck's first foray into the North Atlantic. Based on the reports from Norfolk and Suffolk a British squadron intercepted Bismarck and Prinz Eugen in the morning (May 24). HMS Prince of Wales was a newly commisioned British battleship which had not yet completed its sea trials. Hood was Britain's largest battle cruiser, (44,600 tons), Battle cruiser was a World War I vessel type. It had the fire power of a battleship, but lacked a battleship's armor. The concept was that the resulting speed advantage was a form of defense. Hood did not have an armored deck. Plans called for armoring the deck after World War I, but this was never done. Still it was considered one of the most powerful ships in the Royal Navy. Hood reached the fleet after World War I. It had only fired its massive guns in one engagement, the destruction of the French fleet at Mers El Kebir (July 1940). One of the surviving sailors remembered it being called "the cock of the fleet". Bismarck training exercises often were designed around an engagement with Hood. Vice Admiral Sir Lancelot Holland with Hood, Prince of Wales, and and six escorting destroyers conceived of an action in which he would cross Bismarck's "T" as it emerged from the Denmark Straits. Unfortunately when the engagement begins, it is Hood's "T" that is crossed Admiral Holland opened fire. The best of both navies traded salvos. Bismarck concentrated on Hood. Admiral Lütjens had orders to avoid combat and to restrict operations to surface raiding. After several incoming salvos from Hood, Cpt. Lindemann ordered Bismarck to open fire. Bismarck's radar directed fire proved highly effective. One account describes the engagement,"During the first six minutes of the battle, the Prine of Wales had the luxury of firing on Bismarck completely unopposed and without receiving any counter-fire from the German squdron, which was concentratng its attention on the Hood. This was about to change when at 0558 the Prince Eugen was ordered to switch targets to the rear ship, thought to be the King George V, and the Prince of Wales soon came under fire from the German cruiser." [Winklareth] Bismarck at 16,500 yards scored a direct hit on Hood's unarmored deck, penetrating to the magazine containg 112 tons of high explosives. Hood blew up an sank in 4 minutes. With a crew of 1,417 men (94 officers and 1,323 ratings and Royal Marines), all went down with her except for three survivors. The fleet received the terse message from Prince of Wales "Hood sunk." Prince of Wales attempted to continue the action alone, but it had not yet completedca shakedown cruise and its forward turnents were not yet operating correctly. After being heavily damaged, it broke off the engagement. Lütjens with orders not to engage in combat did not pursue.

Royal Navy Operation

Primeminister Churchill and the British people were horrified with news about Hood. Churchill ordered the Royal Navy to "Get the Bismarck". The Royal Navy operation dominated the world’s press. The Royal Navy operation lasted 4 days and was conducted over 1,750 sea miles. The Admiralty ordered all available battle groups to converge on Bismarck which because of damage sustained in the Denmark Straits made for Brest on the French coast (May 24). Bismarck managed to elude the converging British ships.

Brest

The fall of France radically affected the Battle of the Atlantic. The Germans now had access to French ports. This gave Admiral Doenitz's U-boats direct access to the North Atlantic convoy routes. The Royal Navy could no longer build a barrier in the North Sea as they had done in World war I. The French port of Brest jutting out into the North Atlantic thus offered refuge to Bismarck. St. Nazaire near Brest was the only French port with a dry dock big enough to accomodate her. Bismarck did not have to reach the port itself, just get near the port. The Luftwaff flying from bases around Brest could provide needed cover for Bismarck.

American Role

A British Catalina flying-boat operated by Coastal Command located Bismarck. Britain is often described after the fall of France as fighting alone. Not quite alone. Supplies ans armaments of every description flowed in from the Dominions and America. When Britain's money ran out, President Roosevelt conceived of Lend Lease to keep the supplies coming. One of the many items from America was long-range Catalina flying boats for naval patrols. The Catalina that found Bismarck had an American pilot aboard, obstensibly training the British crew. Unlike the Domionions, America as still neutral at the time.

Force H (May 26)

Force-H coming north from Gibraltar launched Fairey Swordfish from the Ark Royal (May 26). The British began World War II with aircraft carriers, but without modern carrier planes. Instead they used the Fairey Swordfish, a World War I era bi-plane. Some how they managed to disable Italian battleships at Totanto (October 1940). And they proved successful against the mighty Bismarck inspite of fearsome anti-aircraft defenses. This was in large measure because the Germans had calculated ther targetting on the basis of modern aircraft, not think the British wuld be so daft as to use slow-flying bi-planes. As a result, Bismarck did not score one hit on the attacking Swordfish, other than tear off some of the canvas surface. The first wave of Swordfish mistakingly attack HMS Sheffield. A second strike achieved two hits on Bismarck, one of which hit the steering. The Swordfish's main ability in its aerial torpedo attacks was that being so lightly made that it it could fly extremely low and slow to the point that it was very hard for the Bismarck's AA guns to track the oncoming planes. It is often seen as luck that a hit was made in the vulnerable steering room just as the Bismarck was turning. Luck was certainly a factor, but it was OKM that put a very high-value target into a North Atalantic awash with Royal Navy vessels.

Maintaining Contact (May 26)

The cruiser HMS Sheffield which had first encountered Bismarck in the Denmark Straits, attempted to maintain contact as darkness fell (evening May 26). When Bismarck fired on her, she moved away and lost contact in the low visibility. A destoyer group commanded by Captain Philip Vian group was ordered to maintain contact during the night. They harassed Bismarck with star shells and torpedoes, but did not hit it. Among the five destroyers was the Polish destroyer Piorun which ws particularly aggresive. It only turned away after being straddled by Bismarck's main batteries.

Final Battle (May 27)

The Royal Navy had mobilized a massive force to take on Bismarck, but many ships had to turn back because they began running low on fuel. For the final engagement, Admiral John Tovey had two battleships (HMS King George V and HMS Rodney) and two heavy cruisers (HMS Dorsetshire and HMS Norfolk). We are not entirely sure why the final battle went so badly and the engagement in the Denmark Straits went so well for the Germans. In the Demark Straits Prince of Wales was not battle ready and HMS Hood did not have an armored deck. And the shadowing cruisers did not join the battle. In the final engagement there were also two battleships, plus two cruisers. The fact that Bismarck could not manuever must have been the difference. As far as we know, Bismarck did not do any damage to any of the four British ships. Four ships attacking after being harassed by destroyers during the night distracted the Germans. And a early hit from Rodney did much damage. Although Tovey's four ships were only a small part of the Royal Navy force converging, it proved to be more than enough. The four ships pumeled Bismarck into a burning hulk. Tovey's two battleships had fired over 700 main battery shells in a little more than an hour and the two cruisers had also delivered further salvos. Rodney closed to essentially point blank range. Naval engagements were to be fought over miles of open sea. A battleship firing at point blanl range was unherad of. No ship in the entire war endured such destruction and still remined aflot. Finally Tovey ordered HMS Dorsetshire to finish the great ship with its torpedoes. Naval experts disagree as to whether the torpedoes sunk Bismarck or she was scuttled by her crew. The Germans lost 2,097 officers, men and cadets, including both Admiral Lutjens and Captain Lindemann. Dorsetshire and the destroyer HMS Maori from the Mediterranean fleet picked up 115 survivors. The life saving opertion had to be cut short when U-boats were reported in the area. Bismarck sank about 600 miles off the Brittany coast just a few hours sailing short of Luftwaffe cover that would have saved her.

Assessment

Bismarck was one of the finest war ships deployed in World War II. It is almost absurd that the ship was stopped by a flmsy, canvas-covered Fairey Swordfish. German naval planners like Royal Navy planners did nor believe that the submarine would play an important role in a future war. Thus the Germans devoted a substantial part of their limited resources to building Bismarck. Hitler who was obsessed with giantism was delighted with the ship. But if these resources had been devoted to building more U-boats for Admiral Dönitz, the outcome of the War could have been very different. The engagement also showed the growing American involvement in the War. It was an American-built Catalina witn n American pilot that found Bismarck. This ws essentially the begonning of America's undeclared naval war in the North Atlantic.

Sources

Bercuson, David J. and Holger H. Herwig. The Destruction of the Bismarck (The Overlook Press: 2003).

Winklareth, Robert J. The Battle of the Denmark Strait: A Critical Analysis of the 'Bismarck's' Singular Triumph (2012), 336p.

Created: 12:21 AM 7/6/2007
Last updated: 5:25 PM 10/1/2014