Robert Ballard's "Bismarck": Germany's Greatest Battleship Surrenders Her Secrets

by Robert D. Ballard

'Titanic Team finds Bismarck!' ran the headlines on 14 June 1989, announcing Robert Ballard's discovery of Hitler's greatest battleship. This book recreates the story of the war's greatest sea chase, which resulted in the Royal Navy sinking the Bismarck.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Maritime, World War II, Nautical, Military History, War

240 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

Robert Duane Ballard (born June 30, 1942 in Wichita, Kansas) is a former commander in the United States Navy and an oceanographer who is most noted for his work in underwater archaeology. He is most famous for the discoveries of the wrecks of the RMS Titanic in 1985, the battleship Bismarck in 1989, and the wreck of the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown in 1998. Most recently he discovered the wreck of John F. Kennedy's PT-109 in 2003 and visited the Solomon Islander natives who saved its crew. Ballard is also great-grandson of American Old West lawman Bat Masterson.

from wikipedia.org

see also
http://literati.net/Ballard/
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/fie...
http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/pa...

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my earliest memories is of living in Texas (I must have been in 2nd grade or so)and forcing my babysitter to listen to my monologue regarding the Bismarck.

[Recoco · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s crazy to think how this one ship could’ve changed the entire course of the war. This book was written by the exact same person who found the Titanic, Robert D Ballard. Although I was more interested in the history behind the Bismarck rather then the search for it, I enjoyed the whole book thoroughly.

The Bismarck was laid down at the Blohm & Voss shipyard on 1 July 1936. After successful sea trials, the Bismarck and the Prinz Eugene were assigned Operation Rheinubung, a top secret mission aiming to sink as much allied shipping in the Atlantic. Although the mission was top secret, the British eventually found out and literally sent two whole fleets after the two ships. After some ferocious fighting between the Nazi ships and the two British ships the HMS Hood and the HMS Prince of Wales, the Bismarck managed to blow the Hood sky and attempted to break through the the Denmark straight into the Atlantic.

The action kept me on the edge of my seat. Everything was very suspenseful and very real. The Bismarck was eventually sank and found by Ballard and his crew, after covering almost
100 square miles of ocean floor. Once they find it, they found out that the ship had been carried away by a landslide almost 20 miles away where it was originally sunk. Amazingly, it was in good shape.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is interested in naval warfare or World War Two.

[Mike White · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Frank was in pretty bad shape, but was typically downplaying the seriousness of his injury. ‘I’ll be back on the job tomorrow,’ he told me stoically. I wasn’t so sure. Then I talked to Captain Latter, who assured me Frank was in no mortal danger. He would be in pain for a few days but then he should be fine. I decided against a time-consuming detour. Jack Maurer accepted my decision gracefully, but I knew he thought I was wrong.”
In 1988-1989 Ballard and his crew sought and found the wreck of the battleship Bismarck. In 1985 they found and photographed the Titanic. The book tells the story of the Bismarck, its sinking and the search for its resting place. It’s profusely illustrated with photographs and paintings of the wreck.
Most TV shows about underwater exploration are largely taken up with complaints about how difficult it is, the weather, and the fragility of the equipment used. There’s a certain amount of this in the book—nothing underwater goes smoothly—but the many illustrations and the text make up for this. A good read for those interested in the subject.

[Rachael Hewison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I could not put this book down. It was so fascinating and the descriptions of the chase had me on the edge of my seat. It's a brilliantly put together book and gives you enough facts that you feel like you're learning a lot, without overwhelming you with too much detail. The eyewitness accounts were superb and you could really imagine what it was like for them.

I had one slight annoyance with the structure- Chapter 2 discusses the building of the Bismarck then chapter 3 fast forwards to the modern age. Chapter 4-7 then all focus back on the Bismarck during WW2 so chapter 3 just felt a bit disjointed and would have been better placed either as chapter 2 or 7. There were also many personal references to Ballard's son and their relationship which I thought was odd but it does become clear in the Epilogue.

I just loved this book.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating account of the discovery of the Bismarck, along with the events of her fateful maiden voyage. However, the actual exploration of the ship feels almost a footnote.
I'll have to add accounts of subsequent expeditions to learn more

[John Somers · Rating 4 out of 5]

16/20.

[Ph. D. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting account of the battle that sank the Bismarck. Way too much on the search for the sunken ship.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice technical descriptions (as usual with Ballard). Very nice photographs and graphics illustrating the quest. A bit like his descriptions of the initial Titanic discovery, but then, I guess you've been in one submersible, you've been in them all...

[Jeff Rosendahl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great illustrations! And I really liked how Ballard described the action in the single voyage of the Bismarck, where she sunk the Hood and subsequently got sunk herself. I was less interested in the narrative that described how Ballard found the ship.

[Ethan]

Anyone who wants to know about what happened to Germany's mightiest battleship, her crew, and the fateful first voyage needs to read this book.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has allmost all the facts and details of the Bismarck.If you want to know what happend to the Bismarck then read this Book.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy to read with great illustrations, photographs and maps!