Hunting Tirpitz: Naval Operations Against Bismarck's Sister Ship - Softcover

G H Bennett

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1841023108 ISBN 13: 9781841023106

Publisher: University of Plymouth Press, 2012

Synopsis

In late 1944, the German battleship Tirpitz was sunk by RAF Bomber Command. While it was the RAF that delivered the final coup de grace, it was the Royal Navy, from 1942 to 1944, that had contained, crippled and neutralised the German battleship in a series of actions marked by innovation, boldness and bravery. From daring commando raids on the coast of France, to the use of midget submarines in the fjords of Norway and devastating aerial attacks by the Fleet Air Arm, the Royal Navy pursued Tirpitz to her eventual destruction."

About this title

Review:

After each major naval or combined operation of the Second World War the Admiralty published a Battle Summary which provided a thorough and highly detailed description of the entire operation. The objectives of the summaries were to inform selected individuals of the successes and failures highlighted in the action so that lessons could be learnt for future operations. Access to the summaries was, therefore, restricted at the time and distributed only to selected individuals. Though the Battle Summaries have been available to the general public through the National Archives for some years, the production of Hunting Tirpitz marks the first time that any of these documents have been published in their entirety. In Hunting Tirpitz, the compilers have collected together three Battle Summaries, Nos. 12, 29 and 27. These represent the attack on Saint-Nazaire on 28 March 1942, Operation Source, the attack on Tirpitz by Midget Submarines, and Operation Tungsten, which was the naval aircraft attack on Tirpitz, respectively. It is difficult to explain in the course of a short review just how well presented the Battle Summaries were by the Admiralty. Each one is divided into similar sections. For example, Battle Summary No.29, Operation Source, has the following sections or chapters: An introduction explaining the reasons behind the decision to mount an operation; The preparations for the attack; The plan of operation; Preliminary movements; Passage to Norway. There then follows an account of the attack upon Tirpitz, including the narrative of one of the X-craft and the movements of the operational submarines. The summary ends with the conclusions which were drawn on the operation along with copious footnotes. The summary is completed with appendices, listing the officers and ratings involved, an analysis of the German security measures in place around Kaa Fjord in September 1943, and a consideration of the damage inflicted upon Tirpitz by the X-craft. One of the main features of this, as with all of the Battle Summaries, are the charts. Precision in navigation was, and is, a matter of the utmost importance to the Royal Navy and the many charts included in each summary are very detailed and very precise. The appendices of Battle Summary No.27 include full details of all the bombing attacks and the air crew reports. It even includes information on the covering flights made by aircraft not directly involved in the attacks as well as listing all the German air bases whose aircraft could have potentially affected the operation and the types and number of aircraft at each one. In addition to the three Battle Summaries, the editors of Hunting Tirpitz have included extracts from the Naval Staff History relating to the attacks upon the German battleship. These give accounts of the various attacks carried out by the UK against Tirpitz and analysis of their effectiveness. The penultimate chapter of this book is a short compilation of newly-translated personal accounts from members of Tirpitz s crew who survived the sinking of the battleship on 12 November 1944. This, of course, was an RAF operation but it provides added colour and a different perspective to the other accounts. The last chapter is a collection of a few black and white photographs of Tirpitz, her crew and of the memorial stone to the dead crewmen of Tirpitz at the Wilhemshaven Ehrenfriedhof Cemetery. All of this, put together in one volume, makes Hunting Tirpitz a very valuable publication; indeed it is difficult to praise this book too highly or find fault with it. It is with eager anticipation that I await the next in the series from the University of Plymouth Press. --John Grehan - The History Herald

About the Author:

Foreword by Admiral Sir Mark Stanhope, First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff. As the First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff, Mark Stanhope is the Royal Navy s professional head and Chairman of the Navy Board. He is responsible to the Secretary of State for the fighting effectiveness, efficiency and morale of the Naval Service, and as a member of the Defence Council supports the Secretary of State in the management and direction of the Armed Forces through prerogative and statutory powers. As a member of the Chiefs of Staff Committee and Armed Forces Committee, he advises CDS on maritime aspects of all operations and the underlying strategy and policy. He is also the Top Level Budget holder for the Naval Sector and advises the Permanent Under Secretary on resource allocation and budgetary planning in the light of defence policy and naval priorities. Joining the Royal Navy in 1970, Mark Stanhope s career has included command of submarines and surface ships as well as broad experience in Whitehall and the NATO Alliance. During the Cold War he commanded the conventional submarine HMS Orpheus (1981 1983) and the nuclear powered submarine HMS Splendid (1986 1989). His final sea command was the aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious. In between sea appointments he has worked in the Ministry of Defence for the Naval Staff and as a personal staff officer to the Chief of Defence staff (1994 1996), followed by a short secondment to the Cabinet Office. His initial NATO assignment was in the Regional Headquarters of Allied Forces North, in Holland. Following this he served as the Deputy Commander-in-Chief Fleet before returning to NATO, this time in Norfolk, Virginia, as the Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Transformation. His most recent appointment as Commander-in-Chief Fleet combined both his operational and alliance experience exercising full command over all deployable Fleet units, including the Royal Marines, while also holding the post of Allied Maritime Component Commander at Northwood. Awarded the OBE in 1990, he was knighted in 2004 and further honoured in 2010 with a GCB and is a recipient of the US Legion of Merit (Officer).

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Plymouth Press
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 1841023108
• ISBN 13: 9781841023106
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 304