The Ship

The Battleship Bismarck is one of the most well known warships in the history of the world. The warship itself had a short but violent life ending in a climactic battle in the North Atlantic.

The warship itself has become a creature of almost mythic proportions. Exaggerations of its capabilities were spread by both Nazi Germany and the British Empire. The Germans put considerable effort into talking up the capabilities of its most famous warship. Meanwhile, the British exaggerated Bismarck’s power to make their victory over it more substantial.

Exaggerations aside, the Bismarck itself was still a powerful weapon. Its robust design easily outclassed the bulk of the battleships of the European powers.

Let’s take a look at the Bismarck’s specifications:

Displacement: 41,000 tons

Length: 250 meter length overall

Beam: 36 meters

Draft: 9.3 meters

Crew: 2000 (aprox)

Armament

Main battery: Eight 38 centimeter (15 inch) on four turrets

Secondary: Twelve 15 centimeter (6 inch) on six turrets

Sixteen 105 millimeter (4 inch) anti-aircraft guns

Sixteen 37 millimeter (1.5 inch) anti-aircraft guns

Armor

Armor belt: 32 centimeters thick

Speed: 30 knots (34.5 mph)

So what does all this tell us? It tells us quite a bit if when you juxtapose it against its contemporaries and take into account the political and naval situation in the Atlantic during World War II.

The Bismarck was a large battleship. With its length of 250 meters, it was 23 meters longer than the King George V class battleship of the Royal Navy. As for Bismarck’s displacement, at 41,000 tons it displaced 3,000 tons more than the aforementioned King George V class. The Bismarck’s 36 meter beam is also a virtue of the ship, giving it greater stability in rough seas and combat situations.

Despite its large size, the Bismarck was not a lumbering giant, at least by battleship standards. Its 30 knot cruising speed would classify the Bismarck as a fast battleship. This is 2 knots faster than the King George V class.

The Bismarck packed a punch too. Its 38 cm guns fired 800 kg (1800 lbs) explosive shells at a range of 35 km (22 miles). These shells had the capability to damage even the most heavily armored targets.

What does this tell us now? The Bismarck is a bigger, faster, and stronger than its British counterparts. While I would consider the Japanese Yamato class and the American Iowa class to be superior battleships, Bismarck was king of European naval combat.

But there is more to this, as there always is. Germany’s naval strategy during WWII was not one of direct confrontation. Despite the significant military buildup of Germany during the 1930s, Germany still had a weak navy in comparison to its enemies. Germany was hampered by the Treaty of Versailles until both negotiating for more lenient restrictions and completely violating military restriction treaties. However, building a large warship fleet takes time and capitol.

The Allied war effort in Europe was highly dependent on shipments from Canadian sources. Most notable of all, Britain needed the oil from Canada. If Britain lost its oil shipments, its war effort would grind to a halt. Germany had an interest in cutting of this shipping lane.

This is where the design of the Bismarck appears to be a little bit unusual. While the Bismarck could hold its own against any contemporary battleship, heavy ship to ship combat was at odds with Germany’s naval paradigm. The Bismarck, although built for combat, was more likely to be used for convoy raiding.

The Bismarck was only the lead ship in what was to become the powerful German navy of Adolf Hitler’s desire. Hitler had the intention to build an entire fleet of super-battleships for his inevitable naval war against Britain and the United States of America. However, only two ships of the class were completed, the Bismarck and the Tirpitz.