BATTLE OF THE ATLANTIC Part 3: HUNT FOR THE BISMARCK

Bismarck vs Hood original WWII recordings footage (00:02:23)


The Bismarck was the largest battleship ever built. She was the pride of Hitler who envisaged her as the symbol of the resurgence of the Reich and the eminent rise of Germany to that of a dominant world super power. Named after the iconic German national hero, Otto von Bismarck, she was designed to characterize the epitome of German military might, and elegance in design. The vessel was launched on February 14, 1939 amid great fanfare, and christened by none other the grand-daughter of Otto von Bismarck.



In September of 1940, after having been commissioned, the Bismarck embarked on a series of sea trials at Kiel, located at the northern tip of Germany. For the next few months, she was given a intensive series of tests to assess her stability, maneouverability and speed. Strangely, during this period a flaw was discovered in the ship's design (which may or may not have a contributing factor in her ultimate demise). It was noted that while attempting to steer the ship through altering propeller revolutions, the ship could be held on course with only the greatest of difficulty. The turning ability remained minimal, even when the outboard screws were functioning at full power in opposite directions. By November her main battery guns were test-fired and results confirmed the stability of her gun platform. Finally on December 9th the Bismarck had reached the final stage of completion, alterations and all.



The Bismarck served only eight brief months and under the command of Capt. Ernst Lindemann, she took part in only one mission - Operation Rheinubung,  The objective was to send the Bismarck, accompanied by the heavy cruiser, Prinz Eugen, on a raiding mission to the Atlantic to search and destroy Allied merchant vessels which were criss-crossing the ocean laden with valuable materiel and supplies for Great Britain. There was every anticipation on the part of German Command that the mission would be successful. In fact, Operation Berlin had just completed its mission in March 1941, where German vessels Scharnhorst and Gneisenau made highly successful sorties in the Atlantic.

OPERATION RHEINUBUNG

The mission was to begin the evening of May 19, and according to plan, the Bismarck and Prinz Eugen set out with an escort of eighteen supply ships, while four U-boats were dispatched along the convoy routes to search out allied merchant vessels. By the time the Bismarck departed on her first mission, the number of crew had swelled to 2, 221, officers and enlisted men in all.

At 02:00 hours the Bismarck departed the port of Gotenhafen (which is now Gdynia, in Poland) and steered a course for the Danish straits. At 11:25 hours she rendezvoused with Prinz Eugen which had departed the previous night off Cape Arkona. Joining them were three destroyers, Hans Lody, Friedrich Eckoldt, and Z23, as well as a fleet of minesweepers. The Luftwaffe provided air cover for the extent of the mission.



By noon the next day, Lindemann announced the mission to the crew via the ship's loudspeakers but nobody had noticed that a fleet of a dozen Swedish aircraft were flying nearby on a reconnaissance mission and had spotted their position and heading. A scant hour later, the Swedish cruiser HMS Gotland spotted the convoy and proceeded to shadow them for the next two hours in the Kattegat. Gotland dispatched a report to naval HQ,"Two large ships, three destroyers, five escort vessels, and 10–12 aircraft passed Marstrand, course 205°/20'."German command did not consider the presence of Gotland to be a security risk, but were nevertheless perturbed that their secret operation had been discovered.

The Swedish report eventually made its way through the chain of command to Captain Henry Denham, the British naval attaché to Sweden, who then relayed the information to the British Admiralty. Code breakers at Bletchley Park were able to intercept decrypted German messages, and were startled to discover that the Bismarck and Prinz Eugen were poised to launch an Atlantic raid against allied ships. Meanwhile German Command had no idea that the British had found out their plan, and aerial reconaissance confirmed that one British aircraft carrier, three battleships, and four cruisers were still at anchor at Scapa Flow.





The Hunt for the Bismarck-part01 (00:10:01)


May 20: The Bismarck along with the rest of the fleet reached the Norwegian coast; while the destroyers and raiders veered north, the minesweepers were detached.

May 21: (morning) German radio officers on Prinz Eugen detected an allied signal ordering British reconnaissance aircraft to search for two battleships and three destroyers headed north along the Norwegian coastline.

Prinz Eugen heavy cruiser

May 21 (07:00)The Germans detected four aircraft, but could not identify them as they quickly departed.

May 21 (12:00) The German flotilla reached Bergen and laid anchor at Grimstadfjord. Ship crews proceeded to paint over the camouflage with standard grey typified of German warships. While two Bf109 fighters were circling overhead providing air cover, a Spitfire flown by Flying Officer Michael Suckling managed to pass directly over the scene and from a height of 8,000 meters (26,000 ft), Suckling took several photos of the Bismarck and her escorts.

British Admiral John Tovey received the vital information and ordered the British battle cruiser HMS Hood, the HMS Prince of Wales, and six destroyers to reinforce them on a patrol of the Denmark Strait. The remainder of the British fleet in Scapa Flow was given high alert. Though eighteen British bombers had been dispatched, they could not find the position of the German warships as weather had worsened considerably over the fjords.

HMS Hood

When the Bismarck was finally ready to leave port, she had failed to replenish her fuel stores while at anchor, and was short of 200 t of a full load. She had already consumed 1,000 t on the voyage from Gotenhafen.

BATTLE OF THE DENMARK STRAIT

May 21 (19:30 hours) Bismarck, Prinz Eugen, and three escort destroyers left Bergen. By midnight they were in open sea veering towards the Arctic Ocean. At this time, Admiral Raeder disclosed the plans to Hitler, who was initially opposed to it but then reneged.

May 22 (04:14) The three escort destroyers were detached, while the remainder headed to Trondheim, Norway.

May 22 (12:00) In an attempt to break into the open Atlantic, Admiral Lutjens gave the order to two of his ships to turn toward the Denmark Strait.

May 23 (04:00) Lutjens ordered the Bismarck and Prinz Eugen to accelerate speeds up to 27 kn (50 km/h or 31 mph) to make a dash through the strait. They made it through and immediately activated the FuMO radar equipment. Prinz Eugen trailed behind the Bismarck by 700 meters (770 yards). Fog reduced visibility to about 3,000 to 4,000 meters (3,300 to 4,400 yards).

May 23 (10:00) The German vessels had to reduce speed to 24 kn (44 km/h or 28 mph) due to ice conditions. But in two hours, they had reached Iceland. In the attempt to avoid ice floes, they had to proceed in zigzag maneuvers.

May 23 (19:22) German radar operators, using hydrophones were able to detect the vicinity of the HMS Suffolk approximately 12,500 meter (13,700 yards) distance. They were able to intercept radio signals from Suffolk and discovered that the British had indeed reported their location. Lutjens gave Prinz Eugen permission to fire on Suffolk, but the German captain could not launch an attack owing to the poor visibility. The Suffolk continued to shadow the German vessels, albeit at a safer distance.

HMS Suffolk

May 23 (20:30) The British HMS Norfolk joined Suffolk, but had made the mistake of approaching the German vessels too closely. Upon Lutjens orders' the Bismarck immediately fired five salvos, three of which straddled the Norfolk and deluged its decks with shell splinters. Using a smoke screen, the cruiser was able to escape into a fog thus ending the deadly encounter. In the heat of battle, the impact of Bismarks' 38 cm guns disabled her radar equipment and so Prinz Eugen was ordered to assume control of this function to scout for targets.

HMS Norfolk

May 23 (22:00) Admiral Lutjens, aware that two heavy British cruisers were stalking the Bismarck, ordered Captain Lindemann to turn the battleship 180-degrees, thereby surprising the two shadowers. British cruisers remained on patrol through the night, charting the location and bearing of the German vessels.

May 24 (05:07) Although there was a clear sky, the weather was harsh. German hydrophone operators on Prinz Eugen picked up the signal of two unidentified vessels that were approaching them at a range of 20 nmi (37 km or 23 miles) They issued a report to German Command, "Noise of two fast-moving turbine ships at 280° relative bearing!".

May 24 (05:45) German crew surveying the ocean with binoculars spotted smoke on the horizon. They were the British battle cruiser HMS Hood and battleship Prince of Wales. Lutjens sounded the alarm calling ships' crews to battle stations.




May 24 (05:52) The range quickly fell to 26,000 meters (28,000 yards). HMS Hood opened fire followed a minute later by Prince of Wales. In the confusion, while Prince of Wales was engaging fire on the Bismarck, the captain of Hood fired on Prinz Eugen, all the while thinking it was the Bismarck.Sources indicate that the first gunnery officer aboard Bismarck, Adalbert Schneider, requested repeatedly for permission to return fire but Lutjens hesitated.

May 24 1941 Bismarck firing during the Battle of the Denmark Strait

May 24 (05:55) For whatever reason Lutjens refused cannot be ascertained, but he finally gave permission after Lindemann's direct intervention. In exasperation he blurted "I will not let my ship be shot out from under my ass."The British ships used only their forward guns, since they were approaching the Germans head on. But the Bismarck and Prinz Eugen were able to launch full fire broadside, exerting maximum force and range. A few minutes after opening fire, Holland, British Vice Admiral, had ordered a 20° turn to port thereby permitting his ships to fire with their rear gun turrets. Meanwhile, both German vessels were firing on Hood and just a minute later Prinz Eugen launched a devastating hit with a high-explosive 20.3 cm (8.0 inch) shell. The resulting explosion detonated the Unrotated Projectile (UP) ammunition and erupted into a large fire, but which was quickly extinguished by the crew. UP ammo was developed by the British as a short-range rocket-firing anti-aircraft weapon.

Schneider fired three four-gun salvos and, closing in on the Hood, ordered the Bismarck to commence rapid-fire salvos from its 38 cm guns; in addition to its secondary 15 cm guns to engage Prince of Wales in battle. Holland then orders a second 20° turn to port to position his ships on a parallel course with the Bismarck and Prinz Eugen.

Lutjens gives the order for Prinz Eugen to shift fire to Prince of Wales, thereby keeping both British vessels under attack. Within moments, Prinz Eugen was able to score two hits on the British battleship, resulting in a small fire. Lutjens then issues the command for Prinz Eugen to fall behind Bismark allowing her to monitor the position of Norfolk and Suffolk, whose position at the time was to the east at about 10 to 12 nmi (19 to 22 km; or 12 to 14 miles)

 Fatal explosion of HMS Hood as seen from Prinz Eugen at 0600-0601

May 24 (06:00) Just as HMS Hood was completing the second turn to port, Bismarck's fifth salvo struck. Two of the shells missed, hitting the water close to the ship, but at least one of the 38 cm shells struck the Hood and easily pierced her thin deck armour. The impact was so great that the shell reached the Hood's rear ammunition magazine and detonated 112 t (110 long tons; 123 short tons) or cordite propellant. The explosive was of such massive proportions that it literally broke the back of the ship between the main mast and the rear funnel. The forward section continued to move forward briefly before water came rushing in. It caused the bow to rise steeply into the air while the stern also rose upward as the water rushed through the ripped-open compartments. Schneider was heard over the ships' loudspeakers, "He is sinking! After just eight minutes of fire exchange, the Hood had disappeared beneath the waves with all but 3 men from a crew of 1,419.

BISMARCK VS PRINCE OF WALES

With the Hood gone, Bismarck turned its guns on the Prince Wales. The Bismarck was able to strike her with its first salvo, while the British battleship did not score a hit on the Bismarck until its sixth salvo. One of the German salvos hit the bridge of the Prince of Wales but did not explode. Rather it exited the other side but killing everyone in the command centre, all except the ships commander, Captain John Leach and another crew.

The Prince of Wales was deluged with shells from the two German vessels, and suffered serious damage, resulting in the malfunctioning of ships guns. Despite problems with the main battery the Prince of Wales was able to score three hits on the Bismarck during the battle.

 Bismarck firing at HMS Prince of Wales on 24 May 1941 as seen from Prinz Eugen.

The first shell struck the Bismarck in the forecastle. Although it was above the waterline, it was just low enough to allow the water to come rushing into the hull.

The second shell struck her below the armoured belt, on the torpedo bulkhead and exploded on contact, but damage was minimal.

The third shell penetrated through one of the boats carried aboard, and then through the float plane catapult, without explosion.

At 06:13 Captain Leach ordered a retreat, the Prince of Wales having sustained serious damage. Of the ships' ten 14 inch guns (360mm)only two were still able to fire. She made a 160° turn and created a smoke screen to cover her escape. As the range widened, the Germans ceased fire. Though Lindemann was bent on chasing the Prince of Wales and wanted to destroy her, Lutjens denied pursuit. He was under operational orders to avoid engaging with British vessels which were not protecting a convoy.

During the battle, Bismarck had fired 93 armour-piercing shells, but was kit by only 3 shells in return. The hit to the forecastle caused about 1,000 to 2,000 tons of water flooding the ship. Consequently the fuel oil that was stored in the bow was thus contaminated, and because of Lutjens refusal to reduce ship speed, the ships crew could not repair the damage. The lack of action on their part precipitated greater damages as even more water was flooding the ship. The second hit was not as serious, though it did cause some flooding, and splinters damaged a steam line in the turbo-generator room. However, the two hits combined to cause a 9 degree list to port and a 3-degree trim by the bow.

THE CHASE

After the battle Lütjens issued this report: "Battlecruiser, probably Hood, sunk. Another battleship, King George V or Renown turned away damaged. Two heavy cruisers maintain contact."

At 08:01 he transmitted his damage report to German Command, and of his intention to detach Prinz Eugen to embark on a hunting expedition for commerce vessels, but that he would head for St. Nazaire for repairs.

10:00 hours Lutjens gave the order to Prinz Eugen to fall behind the Bismarck and assess the severity of damages, and oil leakage from the bow hit. The confirmation was sobering - "broad streams of oil on both sides of [Bismarck's] wake"

11:00 hours A British Short Sunderland flying boat spotted the oil slick and reported it to Suffolk and Norfolk, which had since been joined by the damaged Prince of Wales. However, the Prince of Wales was ordered by Rear Admiral Frederic Wake-Walker, the commander of the two cruisers, to remain behind his ships.

All British warships were ordered by Naval Command to join in the pursuit of the Bismarck and Prinz Eugen.

On the morning of May 24th, Tovey's Home Fleet was speeding towards the German raiders but was still more than 350 nmi away. (650 km or 400 miles)

British Command ordered a hunt of massive proportions - they dispatched the Manchester, Birmingham, and Arethusa - light cruisers, to patrol the Denmark Strait in case Lutjens retraced his route. Also joining the hunt was the battleship Rodney, in addition to two battleships, the Revenge and Ramillies, which were in Halifax on an escort mission for Convoy HX 127. Altogether there were six battleships and battle cruisers, two aircraft carriers, thirteen cruisers, and twenty-one destroyers - all working together with one mission - to hunt down the Bismarck.





The Hunt for the Bismarck-part02 (00:09:58)

16:40 hours Amid the worsening weather, Lutjens attempted to detach Prinz Eugen but to no avail - the squall was not sufficiently heavy to act as a cover for her withdrawal. In the meantime the British cruisers maintained radar contact.

17:00 hours  The Prince of Wales was finally battle ready as the crew had restored nine of the ships ten main guns to working order. She was fit enough to be placed ahead of formation to attack the Bismarck at the first opportunity.

18:14  Prinz Eugen was successfully detached. At the same time the Bismarck turned to face the British vessels, forcing Suffolk to retreat at high speed. The Prince of Wales launched twelve salvos at Bismarck who in return responded with nine of her own, none of which succeeded in scoring a hit. This exchange of fire served only to allow Prinz Eugen to slip away unnoticed. As Bismarck resumed her original course, three of the British vessels took up position on her port side.

Even though Bismarck had been forced to reduce her speed as a result of the damage she sustained, she was still capable of reaching 27 to 28 kn (50 to 51 km/h or 31 to 32 mph) - the same maximum speed of the British battleship King George V. At this speed, she would be able to reach St. Nazaire unless the British could stop her.

On May 25 just before 16:00 hours, Tovey dispatched the aircraft carrier Victorious and four light cruisers to launch torpedo bombers planes.

May 24, 1941 HMS Victorius Swordfish on the flight deck of HMS Victorious. Strike group ready for
battle against Bismarck, in just a few hours. All nine Swordfish of 825th Squadron are clearly visible as well as, in the extreme rear, two Fulmars from 800Z Flight. (Source: www.freerepublic.com)




22:00 hours Victorious launched the strike consisting of six Fairey Fulmar fighters and nine Fairey Swordfish torpedo bombers. As the aviators approached, due to their inexperience and confusion, almost targeted the Norfolk. The Bismarck having been alerted of their approach used ships batteries to fire maximum depression - creating giant splashes of water shooting upwards in the paths of the incoming torpedo bombers and managed to evade eight of the nine torpedoes launched at her. The ninth torpedo struck amidships on the main armoured belt, causing some minor damage.The impact shock threw one crew member into a wall killing him instantly. Five others suffered injuries. None of the aircraft were hit during the battle.

The damage to the electrical equipment, though initially minor, began to worsen as the ship began to maintain high speeds and implement erratic maneuvers in an effort to evade more torpedo attacks. It resulted in the loosening of collision mats which failed to stem the incoming water, and flooding increased substantially. Port side number 2 boiler room had to be abandoned. Two boilers had been lost, exacerbated by the decreasing fuel levels and increasing bow trim. Speed had to be reduced to 16 kn (30 km/h or 18 mph). Divers were immediately sent to make repairs to the collision mats, thereby increasing the ships speed to 20 kn (37 km/h or 23 mph). The ships command felt sure that the Bismarck could make its way back to France, even at this speed.

With the departure of the Swordfish torpedo bombers, the Bismarck and Prince of Wales resumed in a brief artillery exchange but neither succeeded in scoring any hits. Damage control teams immediately went to work on the Bismarck; sea water had flooded number 2 port side boiler and was on the verge of entering the number 4 turbo-generator feed water system. If it did, the results would have been traumatic - saltwater would have destroyed the turbine blades and reduce ship speed to an alarming degree.

May 25 (morning)The crew of the Bismarck survived the danger. But now the ship had to slow down to 12 kn (22 km/h or 14 mph) in order to permit divers to pump fuel from the forward compartments to the rear tanks.

The chase ensued as British ships zig-zaged in an attempt to avoid German U-boats that might be lurking in the area. In effect, the ships had to alternate every ten minutes, steaming to port, and then to starboard, just to keep the ships on the same base course. But unexpectedly, at the last few minutes during which British vessels turned to port, the Bismarck slipped away and was out of range of Suffolk's radar.




The Hunt for the Bismarck-part03 (00:10:01)



May 25 (03:00) Lutjens ordered the Bismarck to increase to maximum speed, now only 28 kn (52 km/h or 32 mph). He then ordered her to circle away to the west, and then to the north, to ensure that she would be out of radar range. It worked. The Bismarck broke radar contact and circled back behind her pursuers. The captain of the Suffolk believed that Bismarck had broken off to the west, and headed in that direction hoping to find her. The situation was reported to British Command after half an hour, who ordered the search to resume at daylight, with all three ships conducting a visual search.

The hunt became frantic. Victorious and her escorting cruisers were sent west, Admiral Wake-Walker's ships headed south and west, and Tovey's ships continued towards the mid-Atlantic. To make matters worse, the British ships were getting dangerously low on fuel.

Lutjens was completely unaware that he had evaded Wake-Walker, and hastily sent long radio messages to German Group West in Paris. British intelligence was able to intercept them and discover the Bismarcks co-ordinates. But they were incorrectly plotted, and resulted in sending Tovey on a fruitless chase for seven straight hours. By the time the mistake was discovered, it was too late. The Bismarck had slipped away again. But one thing was certain, the German ships were headed for Brest. The plan now was for Tovey to converge on the area which Bismarck was expected to pass. A squadron of PBY Catalinas was dispatched from Northern Island to join the hunt.

May 26 (10:30) Patrolling the skies were PBY Catalinas and the Ark Royal's Swordfish. The first to spot the Bismarck was a Catalina, piloted by Ensign Leonard B. Smith, of the US Navy. He logged the coordinates, placing the sighting at 690 miles northwest of Brest (1,280 km or 790 miles). At the current speed, she could have reached her destination in less than a day, and was too far ahead of British vessels to be in any danger.

HMS Ark Royal and Swordfish

The only option available now to the Royal Navy was Ark Royal with Force H, under the command of Admiral James Somerville. The only heavy ships available, apart from Force H, were the King George V and Rodney, however, they were too far away. Several torpedo bombers were able to spot the Battleship some 60 nmi distance from the Ark Royal (110 km or 69 miles). Somerville ordered an attack as soon as the Swordfish returned and rearmed themselves. Unknown to the Ark Royal, the Sheffield cruiser was detached and began following the Bismarck. It set off an unexpected set of events - the Swordfish, armed with torpedoes and equipped with new magnetic detonators, attacked the Sheffield by accident. The magnetic detonators had malfunctioned, but luckily the Sheffield survived unscathed.

May 26 (19:10) The Swordfish having returned to the Ark Royal, prepared for the second attack. Fifteen aircraft were launched, each loaded with torpedoes equipped with contact detonators.

May 26 (20:47) As the torpedo bombers descended upon the Bismarck, she fired her main battery at Sheffield, straddling the cruiser with her second salvo.Shrapnel rained down on the Sheffield, killing three men and wounding numerous others. The Sheffield quickly retreated under cover of a smoke screen. As the Swordfish were closing in to attack, the Bismarck turned sharply aiming her anti-aircraft batteries at the incoming bombers.While the Bismarck was able to evade most of the torpedoes, two were able to strike her; the first hit amidships on the port side, just below the armour belt. Though there was structural damage and minor flooding, the explosion was contained by the underwater protection system and belt armour. The second torpedo hit the Bismarck in her stern on the port side, near the port rudder shaft causing serious damage to the port rudder assembly. The rudder was locked in a 12° turn to port, caused my major shock damage. After repeated attempts by the crew to regain control of the steering, they managed to repair the starboard rudder, however the port rudder was still badly jammed.

May 26 (21:15) Lutjens reported that the ship was unmanoeuvrable.

SINKING OF THE BISMARCK

With her port rudder jammed, Bismarck was now steaming in a large circle and unable to escape from Tovey's ships. Though fuel shortages had removed several British ships from the hunt, King George V, and Rodney were still in the running and were joined by heavy cruisers, the Dorsetshire and the Norfolk,

May 26 (21:40) Lutjens dispatches what will be his last message. "Ship unmanoeuvrable. We will fight to the last shell. Long live the Fuhrer." As darkness descended, the Bismarck briefly fired on the Sheffield but to no avail. The Sheffield quickly retreated and could not be seen through the poor visibility. Five British destroyers were standing by, with the mission of keeping track of Bismarck throughout the night.

May 26 (22:38) Upon spotting the Bismark,  British vessels engaged her in battle. After firing three salvos, she straddled the Polish destroyer ORP Piorun. The destroyer continued to close the range until a near miss at around 12,000 meters (39,000 ft) forced her to turn back. Throughout the night and into the morning, Vian's destroyers persistently harassed the Bismarck, illuminating her with star shells and firing dozens of torpedoes, none of which hit.

It was the Piorun who first spotted the Bismarck, and proceeded to shadow her. The Polish Destroyer launched numerous torpedo attacks on the Bismarck during the night before she was met her fate. At one point, the Piorun charged at the Bismarck without any assistance from allied ships, and for the next half hour exchanged gun fire. Neither side scored a hit. Before commencing firing, the Captain of the ORP Piorun transmitted a message. It said only, "I AM A POLE" and the attack commenced on the German destroyer. By 05:00 Vian had ordered Piorun back to base - she very low on fuel and had used up all her torpedoes, but she defied orders and remained on duty for an hour before returning to the British base.

WW2 Polish Destroyer ORP PIORUN

 

ORP Piorun returns to Plymouth after fight German battleship Bismarck

May 27 (between 05:00 and 06:00) The third shell launched by Prince of Wales hit the Bismarck and damaged the steam line on the aircraft catapult, making it inoperative. The crew on the Bismarck had attempted to launch one of the Arado 196 float planes to carry away the ship's war diary, footage of the engagement with Hood and other important documents, but unable to launch, they simply pushed it overboard.

May 27 (daybreak) King George V led the attack, Rodney followed off her port quarter. Tovey's objective was to steam towards the Bismarck head-on until about 8 nmi away (15 km or 9.2 miles) at which point he would veer south to put his ships on a parallel position to his target.




The Hunt for the Bismarck-part04 (00:09:54)


May 27 (08:43) Lookouts on the King George V spotted the Bismarck 23,000 meters away (25,000 yards).

May 27 (08:47) Rodney opens fire from two forward turrets, a total of six 16 inch (410 mm) guns blazing. Almost simultaneously, King George V also fires turning its 14" (360 mm) guns on her.

May 27 (08:50) Bismarck returns fire with her forward guns; and with her second salvo straddled Rodney. As range decreased, her secondary batteries joined in. The Norfolk and Dorsetshire converged on her firing with their 8" (200 mm) guns.

May 27 (09:02) The Bismarck is hit by a 16 " shell from Rodney, killing hundreds of men and severely damaging the two forward turrets, as well as Lindemann and Lutjens.

May 27 (09:27) The Bismarck managed to fire one last salvo, even though the forward main battery had become disabled. The main gunnery control station was quickly destroyed. Lieutenant von Müllenheim took over firing control for the rear turrets and managed to fire three salvos before a shell destroyed the gun director, disabling his equipment.

May 27 (09:31) Mullenheim gave the order for guns to fire independently, but all four main battery turrets had been neutralised.

May 27 (10:00) Tovey's two battleships fired over 700 main battery shells, many of them at very close range. Bismarck was reduced to a wreck, engulfed in flames from stem to stern. She was listing 20° to port and was low in the water at the stern. Rodney closed in, and from a distance of 2,700 meters (3,000 yards) fired guns at point-blank range, continuing a barrage of fire upon the battered hulk of the Bismarck. The onslaught continued unabated. Tovey had to continue firing until the Germans struck their ensigns (a sign of surrender), or abandoned ship. The Bismarck fired a shell hitting the starboard side of the Rodney, disabling its torpedo tube, nevertheless the Rodney was able to fire two torpedoes using the port-side tube. Ludovic Kennedy, a renowned Scottish journalist and author remarked that, "if true, [is] the only instance in history of one battleship torpedoing another."

The Final Battle, 27 May 1941. Surrounded by shell splashes, Bismarck burns on the horizon.

Then all hell broke loose on the Bismarck - First Officer Hans Oels ran frantically throughout the ship, ordering the men to abandon ship - instructing the engine room crews to open the ship's watertight doors and proceed to scuttle the ship. But as soon as he reached the deck another massive hit took his life and those of a hundred more.

10:20 Tovey ordered Dorsetshire to close in and fire torpedoes. She launched a pair of torpedoes into Bismarcks' starboard side. One hit the mark. Then Dorsetshire moved around to her port side and fired another torpedo and scored a hit.

10:35 Her port list worsened considerably and the Bismarck capsized and slowly sank by the stern.

10:40 The Bismarck disappeared beneath the waves, while hundreds of her crew were in the water. The Dorsetshire and destroyer Maori veered in, lowering the rope, they helped full survivors aboard.

11:40 Upon the order of the Dorsetshire's captain, the rescue effort was abandoned. Lookouts had spotted U-boats in the area. By the time the Dorsetshire and Maori left the area they had rescued only 110 of the men. A U-boat later approached the area, and found only three survivors, while a German trawler found another two. One of the German crew rescued by the British died of his wounds the next day. Of a crew of 2,200 men, only 114 survived.

NEXT

(please click on the following link for Part 4)

Part 4

BATTLESHIPS - BLUEPRINTS AND SPECIFICATIONS

BATTLE OF THE ATLANTIC Part 1: TERROR ON THE HIGH SEAS

While battles raged throughout Europe on land and in the air, the greatest military campaign of World War Two was being fought on the high seas. It was the Battle of the Atlantic - the longest series of battles which lasted for the entire six years of the war - from September 1st, 1939 to May 8, 1945.  Thousands of allied ships made perilous journeys sailing through treacherous routes across the Atlantic and back again. Ships criss-crossed the vast expanse of seas - from the North Sea, the Irish Sea to the Labrador Sea, the Gulf of the St. Lawrence, Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, Outer Banks and the Arctic Ocean. Vessels from the United States, Canada, Norway, Poland, Belgium, Greece, Brazil, the Netherlands, just to name few, took part in massive allied convoys. By the end of the war there had been more than one hundred battles asea and as many as one thousand encounters with enemy vessels. The losses of ships and men was disastrous.

Just three days after the start of the war, Britain and France declared war on Nazi Germany and launched an immediate blockade.  But it was too late. Ships of the Kriegsmarine had already mobilized during the previous month and were asea ready to launch attacks against the British and French fleets.

Naval Message from Commander in Chief of British Home Fleet

 

SS Athenia begins to go down

The very first casualty of WW2 was the British SS Athenia. She departed Liverpool on September 2nd, 1939 at 13:00 hours carrying 1,103 passengers and 315 crew.  The next day she was spotted 61 miles (97 km) northwest of Inishtrahull, Ireland by the German submarine U-30 and tracked for several hours.  At precisely 19:40 hours Oberleutnant Fritz-Julius Lemp, the commander of U-30 ordered an attack.

Fritz-Julius Lemp

Two torpedoes were launched - the first struck the Athenia while the second misfired. By the next morning at 10:40 hours, the Athenia had sunk. Of the people aboard 98 passengers and 19 crew perished.  The news of the attack provoked worldwide public outrage. The Athenia was an unarmed passenger ship. The German attack upon her was in violation of the Hague Convention and London Naval Treaty which forbade the sinking of any vessel, unless she carried contraband or was conducting military operations.  German propaganda went into full swing in an effort to evade responsibility and accused Churchill for having ordered the heinous attack as an elaborate plot to demonize Germany, as well as an attempt to pressure the United States to enter the war. (NB. It was not until 1946, that German Admiral Donitz finally confessed that their U-30 was indeed responsible.)

Churchill depended upon American assistance and desperately needed the US to join the war. It would be two years before the US entered the war, in response to the infamous attack on Pearl Harbor by the Japanese air force. On the morning of December 7, 1941, the 353 Japanese fighter planes launched a surprise attack on the US naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, damaging eight US battleships and sinking four others. Also attacked and destroyed were three cruisers, three destroyers, an anti-aircraft training ship, one minelayer, and 188 US aircraft: 2,402 Americans were killed - 1,282 wounded.

In the meantime, Britain had no choice but to face the Nazi threat alone. During the month of September 1939 German U-boats sunk a total of 50 ships (200,728 tons) and damaged 2 ships (16,916 tons). Most were British vessels such as steam merchants, steam trawlers, steam tugs, and motor tankers. About a dozen vessels were of other nationalities including Danish, Finnish, Belgian, Norwegian, Swedish, and French.

On September 14, 1939 the HMS Ark Royal, an aircraft carrier, miraculously escaped an attack by a German U-39. Three torpedoes had been launched but detonated prematurely. Within the span of a few moments the U-39 was sunk by escort British destroyers. (But on November 13, 1941 she was hit by a torpedo from U-81 and sank the next day.  She had survived many "near misses" and was until then considered a "Lucky Ship". )

HMS Ark Royal

On September 17, 1939 the HMS Courageous was patrolling the coast of Ireland when she was torpedoed by a U-29 and sank in twenty minutes. Five hundred and nineteen men, and the captain lost their lives. She was a carrier which served during World War I, and was present when the German Fleet surrendered. She was recommissioned during WW2 and reverted to her original role of patrolling the North Sea.

The numerous losses of the first month and those that were to follow virtually destroyed British morale. But the most shocking event was the cold-blooded and daring attack by a German U-boat on Scapa Flow, a vital British base located at Orkney Islands, in Scotland. On October 14, 1939 at 01:16 hours, the commander of the U-47, Gunther Prien, successfully infiltrated the naval base and launched two torpedoes on the HMS Royal Oak, a British battleship that had served during WW1, and which was laying at anchor. At first the U-47 fired only one torpedo and turned to make a quick get-away. But upon noticing there was no immediate threat from British warships, the U Boat returned and launched a second torpedo which ripped a 9 meter (30 ft) gash in the Royal Oak. She capsized with 833 men aboard.

U-47 departing Kiel for Scapa Flow

The Kriegsmarine planned the attack in retaliation for the humiliation that Germany suffered in its surrender after WW1. The attack was also meant to demonstrate just how easily U-Boats could breach British security.  The length of Scapa Flow measures approximately 312 square kilometres (120 sq mi), with a shallow bottom roughly 60 metres (200 ft) in depth, but most areas no deeper than 30 metres (or 98 feet).

Route taken by U-47 into Scapa Flow to attack and out again

It was an impressive feat on the part of Prien to navigate this waterway so skillfully amid tight British security, to launch the attack and then silently retreat. It set British authorities into a panic.  German Command conferred Prien with high praise for his success and he decorated a war hero.  This was just the beginning of a long and deadly battle.

Incidentally, Scapa Flow is one of the great natural harbours of the world equipped with enough space to contain several navies. More than 1000 years ago, Viking ships used to anchor there. But it is known for being the chief British naval base during WW1 and WW2. (The base was closed in 1956.)




: WW2 in Colour 1941 U-Boat Campaign against the US (00:10:00)


For the next three months, the German battleship Admiral Graf Spee and her sister ship the Deutschland prowled the North Atlantic working in tandem to track and destroy British vessels.  Together they sunk nine merchant ships totalling over 50,000 tons.  British and French navies combined forces to track down the enemy ship.  An allied fleet of 3 battle cruisers, 3 aircraft carriers and 15 cruisers were immediately set asea and eventually spotted the Admiral Graf Spee near the mouth of the River Plate.  Battle ensued but the enemy escaped towards shelter in Montevideo harbor, where in December 1939,  it was scuttled by the crew.

Kriegsmarine vessel Admiral Graf Spee

SAILING CONVOYS

Allied ships and merchant ships were virtual sitting ducks asea while German submarines prowled beneath the waves laying in wait for the opportunity to torpedo the vessels and sink their valuable cargo.  Despite the numerical superiority of the British Royal Navy they continuously suffered disastrous losses; a total of 175 warships, 3,500 merchant vessels, and 30,264 merchant sailors were lost by the British, as compared to the loss of 783 German U-boats and 30,000 German sailors.

Any semblance of hope that the British had in gaining a military advantage over Germany had vanished when France, her biggest ally was conquered by German forces in June 1940.  The Battle of Britain which ensued had fortunately ended with a decisive British victory.  But throughout it England stood alone.  Despite British numerical superiority on the seas, she still relied on the scant number of French ships which joined the Free French forces and a few Canadian built corvettes to make up the shortfall.  British naval forces were strained beyond the breaking point in a desperate attempt to meet with all contingencies.

British ships that had already been allocated to positions in the Atlantic had to be re-assigned elsewhere to meet the immediate threats:  Italy had just declared war and was bent on raiding British and French colonies in the Mediterranean; British forces were deployed in the Norwegian Campaign and the Low Countries, and hundreds of British vessels were dispatched to Dunkirk in the largest naval rescue mission in history - to evacuate allied soldiers from the beaches and harbours.  Churchill called it "a colossal military disaster" and that "the whole root and core and brain of the British Army" was stranded in Dunkirk on the brink of annihilation.




British Dunkirk Evacuation Footage- Operation Dynamo 1940 (00:03:57)


In a desperate attempt to minimize Allied losses, British Command implemented a convoy system which at first was voluntary, but quickly became mandatory for all ships. Each convoy consisted of up to 70 unarmed merchant ships carrying goods to Britain - war materiel and supplies that were vital for the continuation of the war effort. Flanking each convoy were one or more escort destroyers, whose mere visible presence was sufficient to deter enemy attack. It so happened that when the German warships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau encountered an eastbound British convoy of 41 ships (HX-106), they spotted the escort, an old battleship HMS Ramillies and immediately fled the scene. No doubt they considered it better to avoid a battle than risk damaging their 15" guns.

Initially the Kriegsmarine were caught by surprise by the sight of escorted convoys but it did not deter them from continuing their terror tactics at sea.  Enemy attacks continued unabated and British losses continued to rise. British Command realized that the convoy defenses were not as secure as originally expected. However as the war progressed the Allies began to gain the advantage.
 

Aerial view of Convoy escorted by Allied Battleship April 1941

SURFACE RAIDERS

On November 5, 1940, in one of the most dramatic and powerful attacks of the Kriegsmarine, the Admiral Scheer fired upon Convoy HX-84 and in the process very quickly sunk five allied ships and damaged several others. The remainder of the convoy was able to escape only because of the sacrifice of the escorting Armed Merchant Cruiser HMS Jervis Bay, and the failing light. British Command temporarily suspended all convoys and dispatched the Home Fleet to hunt down the Scheer. They couldn't pin her down. The Scheer virtually disappeared in the South Atlantic area, then reappeared in the Indian Ocean a month later.

The German Cruiser, Admiral Hipper launched an attack on Convoy WS 5A, on Christmas Day 1940.  however were driven off by escorting cruisers. Two months later, on February 12 1941, Hipper encountered Convoy SLS 64 and sank seven of its nineteen ships.

Operation Berlin was launched in January 1941 when the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, two infamous and impenetrable battlecruishers that could outgun any Allied ship, was put out to sea in hunt and destroy missions.  With so many German battleships in the Atlantic the British Navy had to scramble to provide battleship escorts to its allied convoys.  It was a prudent move and was directly responsible for saving convoys on two occasions.  The following month, the HMS Ramillies deterred an attack on Convoy HX 106.  In March, the HMS Malaya was able to protect Convoy SL 67.

In the most infamous raid on Allied Convoys, the Germans launched Operation Rheinubung.  A new and powerful German battleship, the Bismarck and cruiser Prinz Eugen were set out to sea to attack convoys but were intercepted by a British fleet off the coast of Iceland.  In the Battle of the Denmark Strait, the British battlecruiser HMS Hood was torpedoed and sunk. The Bismarck was damaged and headed towards France but was bombed by PBY Catalinas, from the carrier Ark Royal. Three days later the Bismarck was sunk by Home Fleet.  It marked the end of the warship raids.

THE POLISH CONNECTION

The Polish Navy was an integral part of the Allied forces in the Battle of the Atlantic. Though they possessed far fewer ships than Britain or the US they nonetheless made enormous contributions in the allied war effort.  Polish ships took part in the Battle of Narvik, shelling shore batteries, and engaging Nazi raiders. They also participated in the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force, shelling the coast around Dunkirk. The Polish ship Blyskawica boldly entered the Dunkirk canal amid heavy enemy bombing and gun fire.

ORP Blyskawica  Polish distroyer- WW2

Crew cleaning  4-inch anti-aircraft gun-ORP Błyskawica 12 September 1940

Piorun (Thunderbolt), Blyskawica (Lightning), Orkan (Windstorm),  Burza (Thunderstorm), and Garland, were the Polish destroyers which protected the English Channel. They also escorted convoys in the North Atlantic and the Mediterranean, took part in naval operations at Tobruk, Dieppe, Lefoten, Murmansk, Malta, and Normandy, carried valuable cargo to Murmansk and Africa, participated in massive allied landings in North Africa, Salerno, and the D-Day Invasion of Normandy.

The ORP GROM (Thunder) was sunk on May 4, 1940 during the Norwegian Campaign by a German He111. There were 154 survivors,59 KIA, 30 WIA. But before being hit GROM was able to bomb German troops around the Narvik area, and delivered equipment to the HMS Enterprise.

 
The ORP Piorun (Thunderbolt) became famous and celebrated for its role in the hunt for the Bismark. (story in Part 3).  She was originally commissioned for the Royal Navy and christened HMS Nerissa, but after the ORP GROM had been sunk, she was transferred to the Polish Navy as a replacement vessel.

ORP Piorun

 

Admiral of the Fleet Sir Dudley Pound

Sir Dudley Pound, the British First Sea Lord decorated several Polish sailors in 1942 for their valor. He made the following statement.

"Last night I asked my Chief of Staff to give me a list of all Polish warships fighting alongside the Royal Navy. I was shocked to learn how few they are because in all dispatches of naval operations and major engagements I almost always find a name of a Polish ship that distinguished itself."  

Among the materiel resources available to the Polish Navy were 8 Submarines, 7 Destroyers, 6 Minesweepers, 3 Escort Destroyers, 2 Gun Boats, 2 Light Cruisers, 1 Torpedo Boat, and 1 Minelayer.  As a matter of fact the command of several British ships were temporarily given to the Poles, including the famous submarine ORP Sokol (formerly HMS Urchin). The Urchin was supposed to have been commissioned to the Royal Navy, but because of the the lack of trained personnel was given to the Polish. The ORP Sokol teamed up with her sister sub the ORP Dzik and earned a reputation for being the "Terrible Twins".   Sokol patrolled the Bay of Biscay off the port of Brest, escorted numerous convoys in the Mediterranean, and took part in naval runs on the port of Taranto and Naples.


In October 1941 ORP Sokol scored her first victory, damaging the Italian cruiser Citta di Palermo. A few days later she was able to sink the 2,469 ton transport ship Balila.  In November she succeeded in breaking through the anti-submarine nets, entered the port of Navarino and damaged the Italian destroyer Aviere but was attacked by Italian torpedo boats and destroyers.  They all missed the target.  Sokol was able to escape and in the process was able to launch another three salvos and succeeded in sinking another Italian vessel - a transport steamer of 5,600 ton.

In April 1942, Sokol was heavily damaged by a German air raid and had no recourse but to return to the shipyards at Blyth for repairs.  Within weeks she was back in the Mediterranean harassing enemy ships up and down the coast of Italy, and North Africa. Throughout the war, ORP Sokol sank or damaged about 19 enemy ships totalling 55,000 tons.  All the crew and officers were decorated with Poland's highest medal, the Virtuti Militari.  The records of their bravery are stored in the National Record Office located in Kew, England.

ORP Sokol

In 1939 Polish ships were fewer than 1,000, but by the end of the war had increased to well over 4,000 vessels. Of the total number of men and ships, 404 Polish sailors were KIA, and 5 Polish warships sunk, the largest casualties having occured with the sinking of the ORP Orkan.  Four Polish midshipmen were among the casualties of HMS Hood when the Nazis torpedoed and sunk her.

Though little mention is made of the Polish Navy today, their role during WW2 was nothing short of astonishing. Of the numerous missions for the Royal Navy, Polish ships sailed a total of 1,213,000 nautical miles, escorted 787 convoys, carried out 1,162 combat patrols, sank 2 U-boats and 11 probably damaged, sank 39 Nazi transports and 20 aircraft.  

ORP Sokol Flag

WAR OF ATTRITION

The Battle of the Atlantic was a tonnage war. Throughout the war the allies struggled desperately to maintain a steady flow of vital supplies from North America to Britain; supplies, without which Britain would have surely lost the war.  Convoys of up to 70 unarmed merchant ships, under the protection of British, Canadian, Polish, and later American, air and naval forces, brought food, war materiel and supplies to Britain. There were over 200 convoy routes charted. Over a million tons of goods were required by Britain each week just to survive and to continue the war effort and most particularly to supply weapons and equipment necessary in preparation for the massive D-Day invasion. The United States provided ship and air force escorts in September 1941 based on the Lend-Lease program which came into effect earlier that year. Through this program the US will have shipped over $31 billion of supplies to Britain.

With the rise of Hitler to power, Germany embarked on a massive remilitarization, coded "Plan Z". It not only disregarded all the restrictions imposed on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles in 1919 but superceded its limits to an alarming degree. The German navy had been forced to limit its materiel assets;  no more than 15,000 men, 6 battleships of a maximum displacement of 10,000 tons each; 6 cruisers with maximum displacement of 6,000 tons each; 12 destroyers with a maximum displacement of 800 tons each; and 12 torpedo boats with a maximum displacement of 200 tons each.  Submarines were expressly prohibited.

Hitler earmarked 1938 as the year in which the Kriegsmarine would have achieved its monumental objective of assembling a fleet of 800 ships in addition to 10 battleships and battlecruisers, 4 aircraft carriers, 5 heavy cruisers, 44 light cruisers, 158 destroyers and torpedo boats, various smaller vessels, and 249 submarines.  Quite an ambitious undertaking, but one which had to be shelved virtually on the eve of World War II.  In its stead, Germany reallocated all its available resources towards the construction of U-boats, which together with existing capital ships, armed merchant cruisers and aircraft were more than sufficient to make up for any weaknesses of the Kriegsmarine.

At the very beginning of the war, the Kriegsmarine had only 57 Type II U-boats in her fleet, primarily relegated to the tasks of mine-laying.  The temporary shortfall was quickly remedied and soon massive hordes of German U-boats were prowling the North Atlantic and leaving a trail of destruction in every wake.  Its most effective strategy has often been referred to as the "Wolf Pack",  a technique suggested by Karl Donitz, Commander of German U-boats.  In a memo to Grand Admiral Eric Raeder, he recommended that "effective submarine warfare could bring Britain to her knees."  It almost did.

Prime Minister Winston Churchill

"Without ships, we cannot live." Churchill uttered these words as a dire warning that unless Britain win the Battle of the Atlantic, the consequences would be catastrophic. Fortunately, the tide began to turn in 1943. While the U boat menace persisted throughout the rest of the war, the Kriegsmarine no longer wielded the same degree of threat. A variety of factors contributed to the change of Allied fortunes including an increase in resources and technological developments. First and foremost was their ability to intercept and decipher German Enigma messages, thanks to the efforts of the Polish Underground who cracked the Enigma code before the war even started. The Germans did not suspect a thing!

NEXT

(please click on the following link for Part 2)

PART 2 
 THE WOLF PACK

REMEMBRANCE: BATTLE OF NARVIK

Decoration of the Polish Highland Brigade 1940 (0:56 sec)




WW II : RARE COLOR FILM : BATTLE FOR NORWAY : PART 1 OF 3 (07:53m)




WW II : RARE COLOR FILM : BATTLE FOR NORWAY : PART 2 OF 3 (08:08m)




WW II : RARE COLOR FILM : BATTLE FOR NORWAY : PART 3 OF 3 (08:02m)

April 8th 1940 marked the start of the Battle of Narvik.  At 11:12 hours, the Polish submarine ORP Orzel surfaced after having shadowed the Rio di Janeiro for some time.  Polish Command ordered the German ship to stop and be searched. When the Germans refused to obey the order, the Poles sprayed the ship with machine gun fire. The Germans abandoned ship and fifteen minutes later the Orzel fired torpedoes sinking the German vessel. Debris confirmed Polish suspicions - that the ship was a military troopship en route to invade Norway.

The next day a fleet of 10 German destroyers were headed towards Narvik. The Norwegian destroyer Eidsvold refused to surrender and was torpedoed and sunk by German warships. The vessel was blown into 2 pieces. The forward part of the ship sank in seconds. Of 175 Norwegian sailors, only 8 survived. The German warships tracked down the Norge and fired three salvoes. The first two missed because the cold weather rendered the optical sights less effective.  The third salvo struck and the Norge sank. One hundred and one sailors perished. The battle was over in less than 20 minutes.

The first naval battle on April 10th between Great Britain and Germany resulted in a British victory:  2 German Destroyers were sunk, as well as one ammunition supply ship, 6 cargo ships, and 4 German destroyers damaged. On April 13th, the second naval battle ensued, again in England's favor:  8 German ships were sunk or scuttled, 1 U-boat sunk and over 1,000 Germans were killed. The remaining 2,600 Germans survived and joined their infantry for the subsequent land battle.

The Burza, Blyskawica, and Grom were Polish Destroyers under Commander Porucznik S. Hryniewiecki, which had left Harwich via Scapa Flow and headed towards Norway escorting troop ships. On May 3rd the Burza landed French alpine troops at Graatangend Fjord, while Grom and Blyskawica shelled German positions.The next day Grom was sunk during a heavy air attack by the Luftwaffe.


Initially the land battle, begun on April 9th, was fought between the Norwegians and Germans but Allied troops would soon enter the fray, eventually reaching over 24,000 men and greatly outnumbering German troops.  On April 14th and for the next several weeks the British continued to deploy more troops. Three battalions of the British Expeditionary Force were soon joined by 3 battalions of Alpine troops, and 2 battalions of 13th Foreign Legion Demi-Brigade. Four Polish battalions arrived on May 9 and were reformed in June under the name of the Polish Independent Highland Brigade under the command of Zygmunt Bohusz Szyszko. However despite the Allied reinforcements, German troops were able to conduct surprise attacks on more than one occasion though their advantage was often eroded by difficulty in bringing in supplies.

The land battle was plagued by many difficulties; first and foremost was the lack of an Allied Commander. Each contingent was led by it's own commander, and theirs was seldom a consensus of agreement. While the Norwegians made their way easily through the mountainous terrain, the French, British and Polish troops lagged behind due to poor equipment and lack of training. It wasn't until mid May that the Allies took initiative and won some victories.

On May 12 an Allied amphibious attack was directed towards Bjerkvik which was taken by the French Foreign Legionnaires, supported by five light French tanks which then advanced northward where German troops where withdrawing. The Polish Independent Rifle Brigade planned to advance to Bjerkvik as well but were hindered by rough terrain. The French and Norwegian troops planned to trap the Germans but it never materialized as both units were beset with cooperation problems.  This quibbling providing the Germans with an easy means of escape.

On May 14, 1940 the MV Chrobry was attacked and sunk. Eleven members of the crew and an undetermined number of Polish troops drowned. The Burza and Blyskawica were dispatched to the south towards France. ORP Burza saw action on May 21st off the coast of Calais, shelling German positions as she provided cover during Allied troop withdrawals.  She was attacked by Ju-87s and badly damaged but was able to return to Dover, and then Plymouth for repairs. 

The Allies planned another attack but were delayed for having to wait for air support to be fully operational. At 23:40 on May 28, 1940 the British began a naval bombardment from the north while two French and one Norwegian battalions were advancing on Narvik from the west and north, and the Polish battalions from the south.  At 07:00 hours the German Commander gave the order to evacuate the area.

The resulting "victory" for the Allies however was only tentative.  As fate would have it, the Allies received orders from London to evacuate on May 24th.  Allied Command urgently need to deploy troops to France to provide support for the evacuation at Dunkirk. Allied destroyers transported the troops the waiting vessels 112 km offshore. The Polish vessels, MS Sobieski and MS Batory  took part in the  operation. The Independent Polish Rifle Brigade was evacuated on the night June 4 to 5 and two days later the Norwegian commanders, their government and the remaining Allied troops. The Norwegian forces embittered and dismayed, surrendered to the Germans on June 10th, 1940.

Polish troops

French Foreign Legion Battalion

Norwegian troops

British troops back in UK June 1940

souce: Wikipedia


Link:
Polish Greatness.com