The dramatically exciting story of the last days of the German Navy and Its greatest battleship THE tmtf AND THE BATTLE FOR THE NORTH ATLANTIC David Wood COMPLITI AND UNAIRIDOID November 12, 1944 TIRP1TZ LAST DAY OF THE The Lancaster* came out of the sun and started bombing from 14,000 feet; the bombs went away and there was a time of waiting before they started to hit. Then there was a yellow flash on the battle- ship's forecastle. A bomb hit theshore, two more hit the ship, one by the bridge and one abaft the funnel, then smoke covered her, but they could see other bombs burst inside her nets and through the smoke she could be seen burning. There was another flash and a column of smoke five hundred feet high. A magazine had gone • , . ". should be of great interest and en- * . lightenment to everyone interested in the history of the decisive battle for the life lines across the Atlantic in World War 11/' —Richmond News-Leader "A thoroughly engrossing book, the story of the Tirpitz should have almost universal appeal/1 —Pasadena Star News "Woodward's volume is splendidly done gives a sharp picture of . . . the Battle for the North Atlantic . . . the episodes are told with masterly skill and color . . ." —Nashville Tennessean "The book is far more than the story of a single ship. It is a study of the building of the Third Reich's surface navy and of its operations from 1942 to the end. It deserves to be read not only as good narrative but as a se- rious document on the function of navies in modern war." —Fletcher Pratt, New York Times Book Review TIRPITZ THE AND THE BATTLE FOR THE NORTH ATLANTIC DAVID WOODWARi m BERKLEY PUBLISHING CORP. 101 Fifth Avenue • New York 3, N. Y. © Copyright 1953, by David Woodward Published by arrangement with W. W. Norton & Company, Inc. Front cover photograph courtesy of Wide World Photos PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA CONTENTS v PREFACE 5 . . ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS . :\J ... 9 .-. . . GERMAN NAVY 1. the 11 2. REBUILDING byVIOLATION of TREATY 25 .... 3. HITLER'S "ZONE of DESTINY" 37 4. FIRST BLOOD 64 5. the DESTRUCTION of CONVOY PQ 17 . 73 6. the BATTLEof NEWYEAR'SEVE . . . 86 7. DONITZ TAKES OVER . , . . . . . 103 8. ATTACK by X-CRAFT 116 9. the LAST GREAT SURFACEBATTLE . . 123 10. ATTACKbyCARRIERAIRCRAFT . . . 140 11. the TIRPITZ'S LAST DAY . . . . . . 151 12. the END of a FLEET ... .... 170 .......... BIBLIOGRAPHY 179 INDEX 180 ILLUSTRATIONS The beginning. Tirpitz launched. 33 In action. Tirpitzfiringher afterbattery. 33 Tirpitz off the Norwegian coast 79 Tirpitz behind her nets. 91 A British midget submarine. 113 H.M.S. Victorious. 113 Scharnhorst. 133 H.M.S. Duke of York. 133 — RAF Tirpitz reconnaissance photo. 153 — Directhit on Tirpitz heavybombs, 160 The end. Tirpitz keel up. 167 30VST SOW \( / I I LEGEND Approximate.Extremeicelimbts-April Mean iceUmit-April >IIM« w»v«rn» XftV«*K J\6rthSecL