The Destruction of the Bismarck [Paperback]

David J. Bercuson (Author), Holger H. Herwig (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 15, 2003

In The Destruction of the Bismarck, noted historians Holger Herwig and David Bercuson make use of recently opened archives and the most up-to-date research to tell the dramatic story of one of the most extraordinary turning points of the Second World War--the pursuit and sinking of the German battleship Bismarck. Finally, here is the full story, from the key strategic decisions of the national leaders, to the gripping hour-by-hour account of the battle. This is history of the best sort, vivid and authoritative--the definitive account of one of the most dramatic and momentous events of the Second World War.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Made famous by a postwar Hollywood movie and Johnny Horton's song, the destruction of the feared German WWII warship involved the Royal Navy as well as clandestine American air and sea support. Canadian authors Bercuson, who has penned more than 30 books, and Herwig, who edits a book series titled Naval Policy and War, have teamed up to present a new look at the short-lived cruise of the German battleship in May 1941. Many previous books provide painstaking blow-by-blow accounts of the action; the authors here examine recently opened diplomatic flies from England and America that provide some fresh new data concerning the supposedly neutral American involvement in the hunt for the Bismarck. American planes spotted the German ship after she sank the Hood, and, although some of the evidence is circumstantial, the authors make a compelling claim that American Coast Guard vessels also assisted the overworked Royal Navy. Included in this book are concise, analytical biographies of the major officers from both sides, brief histories of the major naval vessels involved and cutting analysis of the crucial command decisions that sealed the Bismarck's fate. Students of WWII naval warfare will find this compelling reading, as will those interested in FDR's policy toward the belligerents. 21 illustrations and 3 maps not seen by PW.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

The lack of a long naval tradition, Hitler's weak naval strategic outlook, Swedish espionage, FDR's close cooperation with Churchill even before Lend-Lease, and the official entry of America into World War II all combined to make the first cruise of the German battleship Bismarck a disaster. This hour-by-hour narrative by historians Bercuson (The Oxford Dictionary of Canadian Military History) and Herwig (coauthor, with Bercuson, of Deadly Seas) will keep readers on the edge of their seats. The authors have done good research and avoid the hyperbole often associated with descriptions of the Bismarck's sinking in 1941. Brief biographies of British and German naval leaders help us understand their philosophies of naval warfare. The Bismarck's brief encounter with the Royal Navy cemented Hitler's distaste for a surface war and helped eliminate the German surface fleet as a major player in World War II. A definite purchase for libraries seeking to update their naval collections, this volume also serves to update the two previous standard works on the Bismarck: William Shirer's Sinking of the Bismarck (o.p.) and C.S. Forester's The Last Nine Days of the Bismarck (1959). Richard Nowicki, formerly with Emerson Vocational High Sch. Buffalo, NY
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 388 pages
• Publisher: Overlook TP (January 15, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585673978
• ISBN-13: 978-1585673971
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,839,196 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Better than an adventure story, but..., April 3, 2002

By 

Dr. Philip J. Kinsler (Lyme, NH USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Destruction of the Bismarck (Hardcover)

This is a fast and interesting read for those with little other knowledge of the subject. The authors are at their strongest when they describe actions, commander's choices, and the results of engagements. When they stray from this into wider socio-political arenas, they seem to have less knowledge and to get certain facts just wrong.

For example, they describe Churchill as essentially completely controlling the British War Cabinet after the fall of France. This is simply incorrect--according to Jenkins recent Churchill biography it took 9 contentious council meetings until Britain decided to fight on alone, and it was by no means certain Churchill would win the day over Halifax.

The authors make nasty 'asides' that reflect some ignorance--like "Why weren't the new British battleships like the Duke of York and Prince of Wales the equal of the Bismarck?" Well, the British built to comply with the Washington naval treaty of 1922 limiting battleship tonnage to 35,000 tons... Hitler, obviously, did not.

These factual errors grated on me, otherwise the book is certainly better done than the typical sinking of the Bismarck as an adolescent adventure story.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars new light on a modern naval classic, December 8, 2001

By 

John Anderson (Bar Harbor, ME USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Destruction of the Bismarck (Hardcover)

Anyone keen on the naval history of the 20th century will probably have read masses of stuff on the Bismarck chase, and may well share my initial reaction when I saw this book on the "new" shelf at the library:"What on earth is there left to be said?" Well, perhaps not a lot. I think the authors make a bit of a mountain out of a mole-hill in their discussion of possible U.S. roles in the chase -sometimes when folks deny something it is because it didn't happen, not because they are covering up for "national security". At the same time the book does a nice job discussing the possible motivations of the key players -particularly in the German Admiralty- and does a better job than most in pointing out both the effect of the failure of the Graf Spee on the Bismarck's mission and also the effect of the failure of the Bismarck on German naval strategy from that point on. The authors also give us a better sense of the damage sustained by the Bismarck in her encounter with the Hood and Prince of Wales -a factor that tends to be lost in the shock of the destruction of Hood but is in actuality key to the ultimate failure of the whole Rhine Exercise. Overall, a pleasant evening's read.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars The Destruction of the BISMARCK, June 20, 2003

By 

Orville H. Larson (Minneapolis, MN, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Destruction of the Bismarck (Paperback)

This book is disappointing. It has factual errors and tries to interjecta "subplot," as it were, of considerable American involvement in the BISMARCK operation. An American officer was flying a patrol plane that spotted BISMARCK, and the American Coast Guard cutter MODOC encounteredBISMARCK and pursuing British ships.Some "American involvement," huh?Let me sum up: If you know nothing at all about the BISMARCK operation, there's only two books you need to read: Battleship BISMARCK: A Survivor's Story by Mullenheim-Rechberg, and Pursuit: The Chase and Sinking of the Battleship BISMARCK by Ludovic Kennedy.