Sinking the Bismarck
In May 1941 Nazi Germany's most powerful warship and pride of the Kriegsmarine the Bismarck slipped out of harbour and made its way to hunt Allied merchant shipping in the Atlantic. Operation Rheinubung would be its first and last mission. Alerted to her presence and desperate to protect its Atlantic trade routes, the admiralty of the Royal Navy sent her best battleships, including the mighty HMS Hood to intercept the German sortie and sink Bismarck. This fateful encounter would lead to the obliteration of HMS Hood just minutes after engaging the Bismarck when a shell detonated one of her magazines. The rapid destruction of HMS Hood, which had been the pride of the Royal Navy, and mauling of the accompanying HMS Prince of Wales sealed Bismarck's fate. The Royal Navy launched an all-out effort to sink the mighty battleship at almost any cost. In this episode of the podcast, Dan with the help of archive interviews from veterans of the battle tells the story of this titanic clash of arms in the Atlantic.
If you would like more content on the story of the Bismarck then watch History Hit's dramatic new documentary Hunt the Bismarck.
Dan Snow's History Hit
Historian Dan Snow investigates the 'how' and 'why' of history's defining moments.
From the Colosseum of Ancient Rome and the battlefields of Waterloo to the tomb of Tutankhamun, Dan journeys across the globe to share the greatest stories from the past that help us understand the present.
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- Latest episode: 2025-05-04
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