Steely Dan Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 May 27: General Interest 1941 : Bismarck sunk by Royal Navy On May 27, 1941, the British navy sinks the German battleship Bismarck in the North Atlantic near France. The German death toll was more than 2,000. On February 14, 1939, the 823-foot Bismarck was launched at Hamburg. Nazi leader Adolf Hitler hoped that the state-of-the-art battleship would herald the rebirth of the German surface battle fleet. However, after the outbreak of war, Britain closely guarded ocean routes from Germany to the Atlantic Ocean, and only U-boats moved freely through the war zone. In May 1941, the order was given for the Bismarck to break out into the Atlantic. Once in the safety of the open ocean, the battleship would be almost impossible to track down, all the while wreaking havoc on Allied convoys to Britain. Learning of its movement, Britain sent almost the entire British Home Fleet in pursuit. On May 24, the British battle cruiser Hood and battleship Prince of Wales intercepted it near Iceland. In a ferocious battle, the Hood exploded and sank, and all but three of the 1,421 crewmen were killed. The Bismarck escaped, but because it was leaking fuel it fled for occupied France. On May 26, it was sighted and crippled by British aircraft, and on May 27 three British warships descended on the Bismarck and finished it off. One of the coolest stories from WWII Here's more on this interesting subject. Following an abortive air strike that afternoon in which fourteen Swordfish mistakenly attacked (but missed) Sheffield, a second strike of fifteen Swordfish took off from Ark Royal at 1910 that evening. Over the next hour or so, in conditions of low clouds, strong winds, and fading daylight, the aircraft released thirteen torpedoes in a series of attacks against the German battleship. While the poor weather made these attacks difficult, it also threw off the aim of the German antiaircraft gunners, and no planes were lost. Two torpedoes struck Bismarck, one with little effect, but the other wrecked her steering gear and jammed the rudder. This lucky blow sealed her fate. Slowed to a crawl by the damage, Bismarck could no longer escape her converging pursuers. After midnight on the 27th, one Polish and four British destroyers closed the range and made multiple torpedo attacks on Bismarck. A few hours after dawn, the British heavy warships steamed into view, and battleships King George V and Rodney engaged Bismarck at a range of 16,000 yards. German gunnery was inaccurate, probably owing to crew exhaustion, and after an hour and a half Bismarck was reduced to a blazing shambles. Torpedoed twice more, and eventually scuttled by her surviving crew, the German battleship sank some 300 nautical miles west of Ushant, France. Only 110 of her crew of 2,222 survived the sinking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyT Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 Coincidentally, today we sink one of our own WWII ships! http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationw...0,6188284.story Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steely Dan Posted May 27, 2009 Author Share Posted May 27, 2009 Coincidentally, today we sink one of our own WWII ships! http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationw...0,6188284.story This is taped from fox news off the TV. Poor quality. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 Call me cheesy, but this is what first comes to mind for me... For you Cincy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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