Hunt for The Bismarck

[Tanz]

Well please excuse this re-post..but now with this Naval Battles section up..I think that this is better here..plus I combined all the parts onto one page. Sorry for not doing it when originally posted :Smile_sad:

 

 

[Tanz]

 

[Tanz]

[62ndAirborne]

To me it is a nice documentary, But it is a little off putting that the HMS Hood got shot from one shell of the Bismarck and sank.But then she got swarmed by HMS's and got sank herself.

[Crag_r]

62ndAirborne, on 19 September 2012 - 12:40 AM, said:

To me it is a nice documentary, But it is a little off putting that the HMS Hood got shot from one shell of the Bismarck and sank.But then she got swarmed by HMS's and got sank herself.

If the Royal Navy had kept their battleships at range they also might have been able to "1 shot" the Bismark, it was just pure luck (un luckiness)  that the Hood sank in 1 shot.

[ScarredJosh]

Luck and design flaws. The royal navy knew the Hood had a glaring weakness, and the Hood was scheduled for a refit. They planned on using her for main line heavy action, but she wasnt designed for that originally. She was more designed for a "shoot and scoot" mindset, which is ironically what the Bismarck was designed for.

[The_shock220]

The bismarck wasnt shot down, the captain of the bismarck ordered to blow the ship up from the inside and so he did, the bismarck got hit and was unable to manouvre so it only drove around in circles shooting around, so the captain sank the ship so it wouldnt fall into enemy hands

[ThePfeil]

Well, after the pounding by the british naval forces, the Bismarck was merely a wreck, yet still afloat. (Robert.D.Ballard, who found the wreck and examined the damage she took, stated that she might have stayed afloat for another day after the british vessels ceased fire. Ludovic Kennedy, another historian backed this theory.) So, in order to prevent the ship being investigated or even captured by the british, the surviving germans decided to open the sea valves in the engine rooms and scuttle her.

[nasinater]

Great show...the first navy related book I read  years, years back was 'Sinking of the Bismarck' by William L. Shirer and ever since then I've been hooked

[KingCamper]

yeh - i screwed up my posts above in another section.

[Tanz]

harneyempire, on 02 October 2012 - 07:45 AM, said:

yeh - i screwed up my posts above in another section.

No worries man :Smile_great: I've done it myself a few times with this one :Smile_veryhappy:
Live and learn

[Carrier_Enterprise]

The_shock220, on 22 September 2012 - 10:56 AM, said:

The bismarck wasnt shot down, the captain of the bismarck ordered to blow the ship up from the inside and so he did, the bismarck got hit and was unable to manouvre so it only drove around in circles shooting around, so the captain sank the ship so it wouldnt fall into enemy hands

The British had no intention of capturing the Bismark, since it sank the Hood, they were dead set on putting it at the bottom of the sea.

And the debate continues among experts on weather or not torpedoes sank the Bismarck or the scuttling charges.

[Eyeless_Camper]

I've been looking at internet here and i found a intresting piece of paper  :Smile_great:

It is a report saying (ill say the bits i understand) aerial reconnaissance report

 

3 German destroyers type Leberecht Maass + 1 Cruiser + 1 larger ship (Bissmarck?) 10-12 Aircraft circling above the ships, heading north.

 

It was the day Bismarck left german port heading out on operation Rheinübung

That, in time got transmitted to AircraftCruiser HMS Gotland where the plane was stationed, that got transmitted to the Naval base-> Admiral in command on the west coast-> Marine Intelligence Division

That in turn made it to the British ambassador in Stockholm by a leak from Helmuth Ternberg, that in turn triggered why RAF sent a scout plane that triggered the chase  :Smile_honoring:

 

[Tanz]

Thats Awesome Eyeless! Thanks for posting that :Smile_honoring:

[IlonginusI]

This was always a great episode  :Smile_great:

[sasmanT7]

I dont think there is anything concerning Hood and Bismarck that i havent seen yet. Has anyone seen the documentary made by Ludvic Kennedy? I think it was made in the 1970s or early 80s.

I only ever saw it once and it was fantastic. Would love to see it again.

[brian333]

The amazing series, 'Victory at Sea', which I watched with my Grandfather as a kid, had a 'Hunt for the Bismarck' episode. Victory at Sea was an introduction for me into the concepts of naval warfare, and lead to some great times as I listened to my grandfather tell his sea stories. His version of 'The Destroyer That Fought Like A Battleship,' as well as his stories of his life aboard the two DE's he served on would have made for a great Movie of the Week with a little artistic license. My grandmother was convinced he had already imposed too much artistic license.

 

The Wikipedia page:

http://en.wikipedia..../Victory_at_Sea

 

I was not aware this series had become public domain. I saw it on PBS in the '70's.

[NASAAN101]

I cried like a baby watching this!!! Here is the full one tho: https://www.youtube....fRJvsQ&index=77 ..

Nikki

[Courier90]

The_shock220, on 22 September 2012 - 10:56 AM, said:

The bismarck wasnt shot down, the captain of the bismarck ordered to blow the ship up from the inside and so he did, the bismarck got hit and was unable to manouvre so it only drove around in circles shooting around, so the captain sank the ship so it wouldnt fall into enemy hands

ThePfeil, on 25 September 2012 - 03:54 PM, said:

Well, after the pounding by the british naval forces, the Bismarck was merely a wreck, yet still afloat. (Robert.D.Ballard, who found the wreck and examined the damage she took, stated that she might have stayed afloat for another day after the british vessels ceased fire. Ludovic Kennedy, another historian backed this theory.) So, in order to prevent the ship being investigated or even captured by the british, the surviving germans decided to open the sea valves in the engine rooms and scuttle her.

Sorry if i am wrong and you guys are right but I am unsure. I do believe that the Bismarck was sank by by a joint force of British warships. Are you sure that you are not talking about the Admiral Graf Spee?

Edit: I did find this article for those who wish to look at it. Very interesting and making me rethink my previous statement
http://www.fpp.co.uk...k/scuttled.html

[Windhover118]

There is debate over who sunk the Bismark. The British like to claim that torpedoes from their destroyers finished her off but the survivors from the crew of Bismark claim to scuttle her. The only thing that we know for certain is that the Royal Navy had pounded Bismark into a smoldering hulk and she would have sunk eventually.

[Crag_r]

The_shock220, on 22 September 2012 - 10:56 AM, said:

The bismarck wasnt shot down, the captain of the bismarck ordered to blow the ship up from the inside and so he did, the bismarck got hit and was unable to manouvre so it only drove around in circles shooting around, so the captain sank the ship so it wouldnt fall into enemy hands

Unlikely the captains orders that did it, both Lindemann and Lütjens as well as hundreds of men were instantly killed when a 16" shell from Rodney struck the forward superstructure at 9:02. Before the hit Bismarck was still fighting, and it went down at 10:40, almost an hour and a half later. If the Bismarck was scuttled(Which it likely was) it was off individual initiative, not a organised effort by least of all the captain  Mind you there was little point for the Germans to worry about it as the British had little intention of capturing the ship, No quarter was to be given after the loss of the Hood.

[zcr19]

I can think of one point to scuttle her besides fear of her being captured, with no ship left to shoot at it would give those who were left a better chance of getting rescued.

[Div1st_Knight]

What a nice document film. I think Royal naval is lucky but also their good work.

[Twiggy99]

It was scuttled by the crew, not sunk by the British.  Had an uncle who served onboard and was one of only around 120 to survive.

[ppsa]

Agreed with Twiggy99!