The Bismarck’s terrifying effectiveness led the Royal Navy to make the battleship’s destruction their main goal in the early phase of the war.
Long before the rise of Adolf Hitler’s blood-soaked Nazi Party to power, the Germans had long fantasized about building a world-class navy to rival that of the mighty British Empire. Already the largest nation in continental Europe and a potent land power, a succession of German leaders dreamed of the day when their advanced industrial nation would outclass every other power on the High Seas.
And while the European Theater of the Second World War was defined by the land and air battles of Europe, the earliest phase of that conflict involved a naval war between Hitler’s Kriegsmarine and the British Royal Navy.
The Bismarck Led “Operation Rheinübung”
Notably, the German battleship Bismarck—named for famed German chancellor and military strategist Otto von Bismarck—was the greatest warship ever built by Germany in the Second World War. Iit may very well have been the most advanced and powerful warship built by Germany ever. Sadly for Germany, her operational career lasted a meager nine days. But in those nine days, Bismarck’s wartime experience helped shape the fate of the conflict.
Operation Rheinübung, launched in May 1941, was Hitler’s attempt to drastically disrupt Allied shipping in the North Atlantic. The concept was to deploy the Kriegsmarine’s most powerful assets, such as the Bismarck, to attack merchant convoys that had been supplying the embattled British—thereby straining the Royal Navy’s already stretched resources and weakening the United Kingdom’s overall war effort against Nazi Germany. A secondary aspect of Operation Rheinübung was that Berlin hoped to force a response from the British that would have involved drawing out its important capital ships into engagements where they could have been sunk or destroyed.
The most striking event in Rheinübung’s operational history was the sinking of the mighty British flagship, the HMS Hood, within the first five minutes of an engagement with the Bismarck. The loss of the Hood in an instant was a massive blow to the Royal Navy’s morale. To make matters worse, only three seamen out of the ship’s crew of 1,418 survived the sinking.
Britain Vows Revenge on the Bismarck
But the loss of the Hood at the hands of the mighty Bismarck did more than damage British morale. It forced the British admiralty to prioritize the evisceration of the German Kriegsmarine—and in particular to make sinking the Bismarck their main goal in the early phase of the war against Nazi Germany on the High Seas. And that, the British Royal Navy did.
In response to the Bismarck’s sinking of the HMS Hood, Prime Minister Winston Churchill ordered the Royal Navy to “Sink the Bismarck!” In short order, a massive force of battleships, cruisers, destroyers, and aircraft carriers were mobilized with the specific mission of hunting down and killing the fearsome German battleship.
Understanding the Bismarck
The Bismarck was the lead ship of her class, constructed by Blohm & Voss in Hamburg, Germany.The magnificent ship was launched on February 14, 1939. She displaced 41,700 tons under standard conditions and over 50,000 tons when fully loaded.
Bismarck was among the largest battleships of her era, rivaling even the massive King George V-class battleships of the British Royal Navy. Indeed, Bismarck reflected both the outsized ambitions of Berlin’s leaders and the grandiose designs that Germany had for overthrowing the world order at the time.
Equipped with eight 15-inch (380mm) SK C/34 guns mounted in four twin turrets, capable of hurling 1,800-pound shells over 20 miles with frighteningly lethal accuracy, Bismarck was less of a battleship and more of a force of nature in steel form. Her secondary battery of twelve 5.9-inch (150mm) guns targeted smaller vessels, while an extensive anti-aircraft suite—including 16 4.1-inch (105mm) guns and numerous 37mm and 20mm cannons—defended the great grey beast against airborne assaults. This was necessary because the Kriegsmarine lacked an aircraft carrier force, and the battleship needed to be able to defend itself without aid from the skies.
Bismarck’s protection was truly formidable, too. She possessed a 12.6-inch (320mm) main belt, a 4.7-inch (120mm) upper belt, and deck armor ranging from 3.1-to-4.7-inches (80-120mm) thick. Turrets and command areas were additionally protected with heavy armor, designed to withstand punishing naval engagements with the dominant Royal Navy.
Three Blohm & Voss steam turbines generated 150,000 shaft horsepower allowed the great warship to reach speeds of 30 knots (35 miles) per hour, roughly the same speed as a modern American aircraft carrier—and faster than most battleships of her age. Moreover, Bismarck’s range of 9,810 miles (or 8,525 nautical miles) allowed for this battleship to operate far beyond Germany’s horizon, meaning its intended mission of disrupting Allied supply chains across the Atlantic was an attainable—though difficult—goal. Plus, the Bismarck featured advanced fire-control systems and radar for its day, including the FuMO23, which enhanced the battleship’s targeting precision.
However, the complexity, size, and scope of the Bismarck was a significant drain on the Third Reich’s finances. Though the ship was intended to be the first of a class of similar battleships, she was ultimately the only of her kind in the Kriegsmarine. Even if the fortunes of war had been better for Berlin, she would have likely only ever been singular because of the immense cost involved with the ship.
Bismarck’s Final Stand
On May 26, 1941, British Swordfish torpedo bombers deployed from the aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal scored a critical hit against the Bismarck. This torpedo attack jammed the Bismarck’s rudder, effectively stranding her in place. Just one day later, she found herself surrounded by the likes of Royal Navy warships, HMS Rodney, HMS King George V, and their support ships.
The Bismarck endured a brutal bombardment. She absorbed hundreds of shells and a seemingly endless cavalcade of torpedo hits. Yet her crew fought to the bitter end. With her guns silenced and hull breached, it has been speculated that the Bismarck’s own crew scuttled the great ship to prevent her capture by the British, their archenemies on the High Seas.
By the time the iconic battleship fell below the sloshing waves of the Atlantic, 2,091 of her 2,200-crew died. Today, those sailors are sealed in a watery tomb, 15,700 feet below the surface.
Incredibly, as researchers discovered in 1989, the Bismarck’s superstructure remained largely intact despite the pummeling she received from the British on that fateful day in May 1941. That alone is a clear reminder of how serious the Germans were about building the best warships in the world—warships that they believed would ultimately help to topple the mighty British Empire at sea.
About the Author: Brandon J. Weichert
Brandon J. Weichert, a Senior National Security Editor at The National Interest as well as a contributor at Popular Mechanics, who consults regularly with various government institutions and private organizations on geopolitical issues. Weichert’s writings have appeared in multiple publications, including the Washington Times, National Review, The American Spectator, MSN, the Asia Times, and countless others. His books include Winning Space: How America Remains a Superpower, Biohacked: China’s Race to Control Life, and The Shadow War: Iran’s Quest for Supremacy. His newest book, A Disaster of Our Own Making: How the West Lost Ukraine is available for purchase wherever books are sold. He can be followed via Twitter @WeTheBrandon.
Image: Wikimedia Commons.
