Luxury Fleet


Book Description

Originally published in 1980 ‘Luxury’ Fleet (the phrase was Winston Churchill’s) was the first history of the Imperial German navy from 1888 to 1918. After tracing the historical background to German naval ambitions, the first two sections of the book analyse Admiral Tirpitz’s programme of building a battle fleet strong enough to engage the Royal Navy in the North Sea. The author shows the fleet in its European setting and describes the warships and the attitudes of the officer corps and seamen. The final section of the book discusses the tactical deployment of the German fleet during the First World War, both in home waters and overseas; and it weighs the balance between those who supported fleet actions in preference to those who favoured cruiser and submarine warfare.




The German Navy in World War Two


Book Description




Luxury Fleet


Book Description

Originally published in 1980 'Luxury' Fleet (the phrase was Winston Churchill's) was the first history of the Imperial German navy from 1888 to 1918. After tracing the historical background to German naval ambitions, the first two sections of the book analyse Admiral Tirpitz's programme of building a battle fleet strong enough to engage the Royal Navy in the North Sea. The author shows the fleet in its European setting and describes the warships and the attitudes of the officer corps and seamen. The final section of the book discusses the tactical deployment of the German fleet during the First World War, both in home waters and overseas; and it weighs the balance between those who supported fleet actions in preference to those who favoured cruiser and submarine warfare.




Germany's High Sea Fleet in the World War


Book Description

Anglo-German naval rivalry before 1914 had been expected to culminate in a cataclysmic fleet action in the North Sea once war was declared, a battle upon which the outcome of the war would depend: yet the two fleets met only once, at Jutland in 1916, and the battle was far from conclusive. ??In his own account of the war in the North Sea, first published in 1920, Admiral Scheer, the German commander at Jutland, gives his own explanation for the failure of either fleet to achieve the decisive victory expected of it, particularly the failure of his own operation plans that resulted in the battle of Jutland. ??This book is an invaluable account of one of the most important theatres of the First World War, written by one of its most senior commanders.




Kriegsmarine


Book Description

Covering all classes of vessel, and all theatres of war, from the sorties into the Atlantic by the capital ships Bismarck, Tirpitz, Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, to the actions of the E-boats in the English Channel and the Mediterranean.




The German Fleet


Book Description

"The German Fleet" by way of Archibald Hurd is a landmark have a look at that gives an intensive exam of the German Navy prior to World War I. Hurd's book, posted in 1913, is a comprehensive account of the evolution, competencies, and strategic significance of Germany's naval forces earlier than to World War I. Hurd uses his revel in as a naval correspondent for most important newspapers to offer an in depth description of Germany's naval expansion, together with battleships, cruisers, submarines, and naval bases. Hurd delves into Germany's maritime targets by way of engaging in sizable observe and presenting informed complaint. He also explores how Germany's navy modernization impacts British naval supremacy and European geopolitics. "The German Fleet" is a fundamental have a look at in naval records, providing crucial insights into the naval dynamics of the pre-World War I duration. Hurd's professional analysis and wide insurance make it an invaluable useful resource for students, historians, and lovers inquisitive about the naval armaments race and its impact on international affairs at this vital juncture.




The Last Days of the High Seas Fleet


Book Description

Analyzes the fleet mutiny in the last months of the War that precipitated a social revolution in Germany and the eventual collapse of the will to fight. The Armistice terms imposed the humiliation of virtual surrender on the High Seas Fleet, and the conditions under which it was interned are described in detail. Meanwhile the victorious Allies wrangled over the fate of the ships, an issue that threatened the whole peace process.




Bismarck


Book Description

Bismarck, the pride of the German navy, displaced more than 50,000 tonnes fully loaded and when commissioned she was the largest warship to date. The Bismarck took part in only one operation that ended with her sinking after just nine days. Three days earlier, she was engaged in a classic naval battle where she sunk Britain's largest warship, the mighty HMS Hood. Follow the fascinating story in Bismarck: Pride of the German Navy, the biggest ever written on the ship. Through photos, illustrations, maps and words, all aspects are described. The book also contains technical specifications, camouflage schemes, wreck photos as well as lists of officers, the fallen crew members and survivors. This is a definitive work, the result of nearly thirty years of study, with 540 illustrations, of which 150 are in colour.




The Grand Scuttle


Book Description

At Scapa Flow, Orkney, on 21 June 1919, the world's second most powerful navy deliberately sank itself. Four hundred thousand tons of shipping went to the bottom of Scapa Flow on that fateful day in the greatest act of self-immolation ever committed. However, few people are aware that rear-Admiral Ludwig von reuter was the only man in history to sink his own navy because of a misleading report in a British newspaper, that the Royal Navy guessed his intention but could do nothing to thwart it, and that the sinking caused the last casualties and last prisoners of the First World War. Fewer still know that the fragments of the Kaiser's great fleet are now on the moon. This is the story of the Grand Scuttle. Dan van der Vat has made use of previously unused German archive material, eye-witness accounts and the recollections of survivors as well as many contemporary photographs that capture the spectacle of the finest ships of the time being deliberately sunk by their own crews.




Cox's Navy


Book Description

A deep dive into the biggest salvage operation in history: the recovery of German warships—the Allies’ spoils of World War I—from Scottish waters. On Midsummer’s Day 1919 the interned German Grand Fleet was scuttled by their crews at Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands despite a Royal Navy guard force. Greatly embarrassed, the Admiralty nevertheless confidently stated that none of the ships would ever be recovered. Had it not been for the drive and ingenuity of one man there is indeed every possibility that they would still be resting on the sea bottom today. Cox’s Navy tells the incredible true story of Ernest Cox, a Wolverhampton-born scrap merchant, who despite having no previous experience, led the biggest salvage operation in history to recover the ships. The 28,000-ton Hindenberg was the largest ship ever salvaged. Not knowing the boundaries enabled Cox to apply solid common sense and brilliant improvisation, changing forever marine salvage practice during peace and war.