Thread: Sinking of the Battleship Bismarck and Operation Rheinübung.

The Bismarck was the first of her Battleship class, the second being her sister ship Tirpitz. It was commissioned into the Kriegsmarine in August, 1940. At that time it was the largest Battleship built by Germany and had the biggest displacement in Europe (41000 tons)(1/n)

On 18th May 1941, the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen and Bismarck left Gotenhafen for Bergen in the Norwegian coast. The Bismarck was commanded by Vice Admiral Günther Lütjens. Both the ships were on a mission to disrupt the allied shipping convoy in the Atlantic to and fro USA. (2/n)

At Bergen the Luftwaffe dispatched its Air wing to Scotland to check if the British battleships were still in their docks, seeing them where they wished, the recon patrol returned back. At the same time, however a Spitfire patrol had spotted Bismarck and reported it. (3/n)

Then the Bismarck and Prinz Eugen set sail for the Denmark strait between Iceland and Greenland. After being reported about its sighting, the Royal Navy dispatched the Battlecruiser HMS Hood and Battleship Prince of Wales. The cruisers Norfolk and Suffolk were already there. 4/n

On 23rd may, Norfolk and Suffolk sighted the two German ships, but knowing that they were outgunned, they kept to a distance, trailing them. On the morning of the 24th, Hood and Prince of Wales arrived and the action began. (5/n)

At 5:52 AM HMS Hood and Prince of Wales fired at Bismarck, at 5:55 Bismarck returned fire. Salvos were exchanged. One such shell from the Bismarck's 15 inch guns hit the HMS Hood and exploded below the deck, breaking it into two. The Hood, the pride of the royal Navy, sunk. (6/n)

In the battle though, the British cruisers and Prince of Wales and Bismarck too sustained damage, and it was decided to take her to Brest in Occupied France for repairs. The Bismarck was leaking oil, which made it easy to track. The Prinz Eugen continued on mission alone. (7/n)

Aircraft Carrier HMS Victorious, Battleship King George V and Battlecruiser HMS Repulse approach them from the east. On 6 pm the 24th, Victorious launches its swordfish torpedo bombers, the bombers though finding the Bismarck, manage only one hit with no significant damage. 8/n

Bismarck turns towards France, and the pursuers lose radar contact. But to the Southeast, the Royal Navy had already stationed Battleship Rodney and cruisers Dorsetshire and Edinburgh. Carrier Ark Royal, Battlecruiser Renown and Cruiser Sheffield are also coming from Gibraltar.

But Lütjens makes a mistake, he continues communication with the German high command, which unknown to them, the codebreakers at Bletchley Park have already broken. They are able to roughly assume its position. In a stroke of luck, a flying PBY Catalina spots the Bismarck.(10/n)

A few hours later, Ark Royal launches her swordfish torpedo bombers. But it mistakenly attacks the pursuing HMS Sheffield. But the magnetic torpedos explode prematurely. The Ark Royal air wing changes the torpedo type, knowing the faulty ones. (11/n)

15 swordfish again launch, and this time they find the Bismarck. Attacking from different directions, and under heavy AA fire, 3 torpedos hit, one jamming the Bismarck's radar, making it unable to move. This means, she can only turn, but can't move forward. (12/n)

At midnight on 26th May, Lütjens signals to headquarters, "Ship unmanoeuvrable. We shall fight to the last shell. Long live the Führer." (13/n)

At 8:43 AM on the 27th, the British prepare for the final engagement. But the Bismarck is still very much a threat, the guns that sunk HMS Hood in 6 minutes is still there. HMS Rodney and King George V fire the first salvos, and Bismarck returns full broadside on. (14/n)

At 8 miles range, King George V and Rodney move in broadside, Cruisers Norfolk and Dorsetshire also join them in the attack. The British deals blows after blows to the Bismarck, it loses hydraulic power to one of its gun turrets and another one is disabled. (15/n)

An hour passes, the british look at awe towards the Bismarck who's being pounded shell after shell, but is still flying her colours and is returning fire. But now, her superstructure begins to collapse. (16/n)

Low on fuel and under threat of German U boats, Rodney and King George V leave. It's 10:20 AM now. Bismarck has now been hit with 2800 shells, but she still stands. Dorsetshire is asked to bring her down. She manages two torpedo hits at Bismarck. The mighty ship finally sinks.

Here is a map of the course of operation Rheinübung and the end of the Bismarck. (n/n).