Hunt the Bismarck : the pursuit of Germany's most famous battleship /Angus Konstam.

"In the spring of 1941, the Bismarck was one of the most powerful warships in the world, and the single greatest threat to both the Royal navy and the vital Atlantic convoys that the navy sought to protect. Having entered service in the summer of 1940, she was well armed, with eight 15in. guns as well as a powerful array of lighter weapons, and her armoured protection had earned her the reputation of being unsinkable. For nine m onths she remained in port as a latent threat to Britain's vital maritime lifeline whilst Germany's U-boats caused devastation in the Atlantic, sinking hundreds of thousands of tons of Allied shipping. However, although the Battle of the Atlantic was going favourably for the Germans, they lacked sufficient U-boats to have a truly decisive effect on the war. More resources were required, and those at hand included the mighty Bismarck. Consequently, throughout the early months of 1941, both the Axis and the Allied naval powers began to prepare themselves for the inevitable sortie of the Bismarck into the Atlantic. Finally, in May, she slipped her anchors in Gotenhafen Bay, set to break out into the Atlantic Ocean and devastate Atlantic convoys - but the Allies were ready for her. In the Bismarck's way was the Royal Navy's Home Fleet based in Scapa Flow, reinforced by screening forces covering the routes from the North Sea into the North Atlantic. The greatest naval conflict in the Battle of the Atlantic was about to begin. Drawing on a wealth of first-hand accounts and extensive research, this fast-paced narrative from renowned naval historian Angus Konstam tells the story of Bismarck's epic and final voyage."--Provided by the publisher.