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Killing the Bismarck
- Destroying the Pride of Hitler's Fleet
- Narrated by: Traber Burns
- Length: 11 hrs and 30 mins
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Killing the Bismarck
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Summary
In May 1941 the German battleship Bismarck, accompanied by heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen, broke out into the Atlantic to attack Allied shipping. The Royal Navy's pursuit and subsequent destruction of the Bismarck was an epic of naval warfare. In this new account of those dramatic events at the height of the Second World War, Iain Ballantyne draws extensively on the graphic eyewitness testimony of veterans to construct a thrilling story, mainly from the point of view of the British battleships, cruisers, and destroyers involved.
He describes the tense atmosphere as cruisers play a lethal cat-and-mouse game, shadowing the Bismarck in the icy Denmark Strait. We witness the shocking destruction of the British battle cruiser HMS Hood, in which all but three of her ship's complement were killed, an event that fueled pursuing Royal Navy warships, including the battered battleship Prince of Wales, with a thirst for revenge. While Swordfish torpedo bombers try desperately to cripple the Bismarck, we sail in destroyers on their own daring torpedo attacks, battling mountainous seas. Finally the author takes us into the last showdown, as battleships Rodney and King George V, supported by cruisers Norfolk and Dorsetshire, destroy the pride of Hitler's fleet.
This vivid, superbly researched account portrays this epic saga through the eyes of so-called ordinary sailors caught up in extraordinary events. Killing the Bismarck is an outstanding book, conveying the horror and majesty of war at sea in all its cold brutality and awesome power.
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What listeners say about Killing the Bismarck
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mr. Alan R. Jenkins
- 28-01-17
Bismarck from the British side
Excellent literal documentary of the British vessels and crews involved in the famous hunt and destruction of one of the greatest battlecruiser of WWII. Superb personal accounts highlight the struggle, the anguish and fortitude of the men of the Royal Navy that were directly connected with the tragic loss of the ill-fated Hood and on to the eventual search, hunt and battles with the Bismarck that ended with loss of many men in the cruel North Atlantic Ocean. Well written, and well narrated, this is a book that looks from the opposite side of the often written Bismarck story.
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- michael bailey
- 12-11-21
Killing the Bismarck
Excellent, regardless of how much I thought I knew this volumes approach altered some perspectives I had on the engagement. The brief history of the shops following the action was sobering.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Craig
- 19-01-22
WELL RESEARCHED.
Only slight complaint, the narration was poor on pronounced words, which seems typical to American narration. Otherwise a very comprehensive book covering the history of a once proud German battle ship. A good listen.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Mark
- 18-02-22
Surprisingly interesting
This is the first real history book that I've listened to, and have found it very interesting. Admirable attempt at creating a narrative from the British side, with just enough of the German's input. Very sad to discover that the book about HMS Rodney isn't available on audible. I probably would have dropped a credit on it.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Shades of Blue Q
- 08-09-21
Decisions, Decisions, Decisions.
I really don't get. The Germans sank the Hood in the heat of battle. Then the British hunted down Bismark and murdered the Germans. Yes it was horrific but if the Bismark had got out what would Admiral Lechens a confirmed Nazi done to allied convoys.. A Great audio book that I listened to in three sittings, an excellent story very well told. Mr Traber Burns is an extremely good narrator, but his Americanism of some of the place names and some of the surnames were quite out. But this did not detract from the story at all. Well done sir. Totally recommend Iain Ballantyne for taking us right into the heat of a battle that had to be fought. This is a very thought provoking story. That is very well layed out.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Bryce
- 16-11-21
Hauntingly vivid
Excellent book, though I felt the narration didn't match the content.
It was quite staccato, additionally, as a US native narrator, many of the UK port, regional areas and ship names were mis pronounced which didn't help the flow.
I've kept my scoring high but felt the content was undersold.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- "evilpanda"
- 19-03-22
Decent
Hard to write a book about a subject that’s been ‘done to death’ already but I think this actually manages it well. I was a bit vexed that it didn’t mention the new theories about Hoods destruction and seemed to go with the now ‘debunked’ plunging fire theory. Apart from that it is good to listen to and informative. I felt I had a better understanding of the story having listened to this. The best description of the Royal Navy response to Hoods sinking was “like an old well liked regular in a pub gets knocked out by some newcomer and everyone in the pub gets up and starts arming themselves with chair legs and broken bottles.” You get a very good sense of this feeling from this book. I’m frankly tired of the Kinky Kreigsmarine Krew with their love of all things Wehrmacht talking about the wonderful Bismarck. They were Nazis and they got blown up. Good. Far more interested in the RN and esp the Polish destroyers antics.
So, yes. A decent read/listen. Have an earful.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- IanE
- 24-08-17
A different angle..
The story is well known and the telling of it from the British side is a little different and refreshing.. I wasn't keen on the narrator's style at first but it grew on me and from midway through I had been won over and started to enjoy the way he told the story. all in all a good listen.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Runningrob
- 29-08-22
Excellent attention to detail
Well written, researched and in depth account of the events both before during and afterwards. Gives good insight into the whole story.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Thiopentone
- 30-10-22
Great story
A great story marred by not the best narrator. He sounds like an electronic voice.
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1 person found this helpful