Includes bibliographical references (241-243) and index.

"The battleship Bismarck, flagship of the German Fleet and one of the world's most formidable warships, was sunk by the British Home Fleet in May 1941 - just seven days out on her first operational voyage. Victory for the British was muted by the loss of the Hood, with 1,400 men, blown up by the lethal accuracy of German gunnery three days earlier. But the loss of the Bismarck was the death sentence for Admiral Reader's radical solution to the problem of British sea power." "In this meticulous new study, drawing on a wide range of sources, Graham Rhys-Jones explores the strategic background to the disaster, and the pursuit itself, to establish what went wrong and who was to blame. He puts a spotlight on the blind choreography of the search and chase at sea, on the stresses of high command, and on the desperate attempts by each side to read the other's mind. In the end, immobilised by the Ark Royal's Swordfish torpedo bombers and surrounded by a dozen British ships, the Bismarck sank, fighting to the last and taking 2,000 men down with her." "Graham Rhys-Jones examines the German response to the sinking of the Bismarck and puts the sunset years of German navalist ambition into proper historical context."--BOOK JACKET.

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