LogFAQs > #947948439

I've always enjoyed looking at maps of military engagements and orders of battle, so I think my favorite book I read for school was The Sinking of the Bismarck by William L Shirer.



The Bismarck was a new breed of fast battleship, displacing 50,000 tons with a top speed of 30 knots, a 12.6 inch armor belt, eight 15 inch guns, and equipped with radar. On her first operation at sea, the Bismarck, along with the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen, engaged the British battlecruiser HMS Hood and the battleship HMS Prince of Wales. The British opened fire at 0552, and at about 0600 the Bismarck's fifth salvo hit the Hood from 18,000 yards away, setting off an explosion in the magazine which blew off the stern. The Hood went under in just three minutes, taking all but three of the 1418 man crew with her. The Prince of Wales, a slower ship with 14 inch guns and suffering serious damage, was able to withdraw but one of her shells managed to damage the Bismarck's fuel tanks, contaminating her fuel supplies and forcing her to steer for Brest in occupied France.

The destruction of the Hood caused the British to throw every resource they had available into hunting down and destroying the Bismarck. Less than a day away from the protection of the German U-boat fleet and the Luftwaffe, the British were finally able to find the Bismarck, slow her down, and engage her.

---

Minutus cantorum, minutus balorum,
Minutus carborata descendum pantorum.