Carrier Glorius: The Life and Death of an Aircraft Carrier

by John Winton

The engrossing but tragic history of the Royal Navy’s worst loss of World War Two.

Ideal for readers of Jonathan Dimbleby, Max Hastings and Craig L. Symonds.

On 8th June 1940, the British aircraft carrier HMS Glorious and her two destroyer escorts HMS Ardent and Acasta were sighted by the German battle cruiser Scharnhorst and her sister ship Gneisenau . In a brutal gun battle that lasted over an hour all British ships were sunk and more than 1500 men lost their lives.

Why had Glorious left the main troop convoy to proceed independently? Why was she so lightly protected? Why did British Intelligence give no warning that the German battlecruisers were close by? And why were the survivors left in freezing Arctic waters for three days before being picked up?

Official documents do not answer these questions and so John Winton has drawn testimonies from men who served on Glorious in the pre-war days as well as her very few survivors to understand how this ship functioned both before and during the war, what happened on that fateful day and why is there still so much secrecy surrounding this heart-rending event.

“Winton paints the best and most complete picture of any carrier of any navy” Naval War College Review

Carrier The Life and Death of an Aircraft Carrier is an extraordinary history of this ship from her early beginnings as a battle cruiser in the First World War to her conversion into an aircraft carrier and service through the interwar years before uncovering what truly went on in her battle with the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau .

Genres: Nonfiction, History

254 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1986

About the author

A former officer in the Royal Navy, John Pratt was the author of a variety of fiction and non-fiction works published under the pen name John Winton. Pratt also served for 14 years as an obituarist for The Daily Telegraph.

Reviews

[Boyd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fleet Air Arm History

Although I have read a lot of military history, this is my first research into the sinking of HMS Glorious. It is first a very interesting history of the ship Glorious. It also has a lot of very interesting facts and anecdotes regarding the Fleet Air Arm during the period before the start of the WWII.

The final destruction of the Aircraft Carrier, by battleships, is compellingly detailed.

The book details the search for the reason, or reasons leading to the ship being lost, perhaps unnecessarily.

It seems their was no Combat Air Patrol flying the whole time as cover during the return trip to Scotland. With no flights there is not air assets to act as long range recon for enemy battleships. It appears the ship was not on alert to launch aircraft at a short notice if necessary to defend. It seems there was friction between the Captain and some of his senior officers. Both sides are provided, but in my reading the book comes down harder on the Captain’s character and conduct.

There is also some discussion on if the ship should be traveling on its own, away from the main bulk of the fleet with so few surface escorts.

All-in-all, the author seems fair in providing some possibilities and insights into to these factors and they are provided tactfully. (Hindsight is 20/20 after all.)

There is a good section on the survivors horrible ordeal during the aftermath of the sinking.

The parliamentary debate regarding the loss is outlined. There are listed compelling questions by MP Stokes, then a critic of the government.

It is a good book as it spurs me to research further into the matter. I have to highly recommend this book.

[G Wheeler · Rating 3 out of 5]

An exceedingly detailed account of the life and death of the aircraft carrier HMS GLORIOUS which offers a glimpse into one of the great British naval tragedies of the Second World War.
Built during the First War as a light cruiser and later converted to an aircraft carrier GLORIOUS, it becomes clear in this story, was not to enjoy the success her name implied. Some (like me) might find portions of this book very dry as the author focuses on the economic and political situation between the wars, including the internecine squabbles between the admiralty and the air corps, and the top-heavy, old-boy bureaucracy throughout naval command that ultimately contributes to a leadership crisis aboard GLORIOUS.
When the British Navy becomes deeply involved in a futile attempt to halt the German takeover of Norway the pace of the story picks up and doesn’t abate until the tragic ending. The final naval encounter is related blow by blow and one cannot help but feel for the crew and the overwhelming loss of life. Winton offers a measured response to whom was to blame and doesn’t really address whether the sinking of the GLORIOUS might have been avoided altogether. A rather glaring omission, as I would have thought that was the heart of the story.
I wasn’t overcharged for this $.99 kindle edition (a recent reprint of the 1986 book), but was surprised by the complete lack of any photographs (apart from a teaser on the cover), nor any schematic of the Carrier’s layout. Overall a fairly droll account of the life and tragic end of the GLORIOUS that will appeal mostly to naval history buffs

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

British aircraft carrier HMS Glorious was commissioned in WWI and spent the interwar years in the Mediterranean before being sent to support the Norway campaign. On 8th June 1940, the British aircraft carrier HMS Glorious and her two destroyer escorts HMS Ardent and Acasta were sighted by the German battle cruiser Scharnhorst and her sister ship Gneisenau . In a brutal gun battle that lasted over an hour all British ships were sunk and more than 1500 men lost their lives.

Why I started this book: Browsing thru Libby on my phone, I thought that this was a book about the history of aircraft carriers in general, calling that history glorious. It's not. There was an British carrier named Glorious. And this is a book about that one carrier. At sometime I'm going to learn my lesson about reading the blurb of books.

Why I finished it: Interesting book, and I think I would have liked it more if I had gone in with the right expectations. Dragged a little in the middle but very detailed once the fighting and sinking picked up. Had to laugh about the secret moments of the ship in the Mediterranean only to pull into ports and have their wives waiting.

[gpt999 · Rating 2 out of 5]

While the battle if Britain may have been their finest hour, this may have been their worst? You have to applaud the author's fact finding on a such politically charged event. I am sure the old boys club in in the RN must have been ducking for cover over this disaster. Hard to believe that any war ship during war would be so unprepared- especially a carrier. No CAP aloft, no sighters on the highest observation points? That surely looks like dereliction of duty of its captain? 3 ships sunk, 1500 souls lost. Terrible tactical and strategic naval command. It surely illustrated how out of date the RN was in strategic carrier utilization darting ww2.

[Adrian Trenerry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book. It may be too detailed or not have enough “action” for some.

It is interesting that the book was written before the compelling conspiracy theories about the reasons behind some of the decisions were widely known and easily found online.

I’m not sure if it is best to read the book before the conspiracy theories, I was half way through when I came across them.

[Terry Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

At times this book is gripping and holds one's interest (e.g. during Glorius' last action or the political machinations after her sinking).
At other times it devolves into laundry lists of people, events etc told in a very dry way. Of interest to those closely involved or as an archive. But not so much to a more casual reader

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inglorious end

John Winton painted a very vivid picture of the operational history of the HMS Glorious. Whose fault was never answered. I would have loved to see more pictures of the men and the ship.

[Derek Nudd · Rating 4 out of 5]

This well-researched, well-written and scrupulously fair account of the life and death of HMS Glorious benefits and suffers from being written in the mid eighties. Winton could still track down a few survivors and their relatives but could not access key records that have since been released - specifically the Board of Enquiry material.

Refreshingly he avoids the temptation to make the ship's loss a simple character assassination of Captain D'Oyly Hughes, but presents the known facts and leaves his readers to draw their own conclusions. More than one is possible.