I also recall reading that someone stated that the stern turrets on Hood came around to take the Germans under fire, but for some reason, they started to train back towards the stern, and the barrels were lowered. They mentioned that it looked like some smoke was seen coming out of a barrel. Almost sounded like there was a problem in the turrets aft. Anyone else read anything about that? Mikey
Mikey, Somewhere I have the summaries of both Royal Navy inquirys into the sinking but can't find them at the moment. I remember one witness reporting some odd smoke or flame from one of the aft turrets but nothing about either X or Y turret turning back toward the stern. (I did read that in a paperback many years ago but can't recall the title.) The turrets would not have gone off target without an order from the bridge or action in the control top. The vast majority of witnesses didn't desribe then doing so and and the testimony of the two survivors from the bridge mentioned nothing about the aft turrets getting that order. By then gunnery control in the spotting top was probably knocked out as an early hit appears to have gone through the top. However, several people saw flames exiting one barrel of B turret after it had fired, raising concerns about a misfire. In Von Mullenheim-Rechberg's 'Battleship Bismarck' he describes the gunnery control staff on Bismarck reacting to something odd on Hood just before she blew up, saying "Wow, was that a misfire?" There is still debate (see the HMS Hood Association site) about whether Hood's bow was severed by implosion damage or a magazine explosion forward. Also, no on has been able to completely rule out a magazine accident aft as the cause of the main explosion. After reading a lot about the event I think the cause was most likely a hit from Bismarck. Bob
The dates have been set for our Exercise Rhine in 2009 event. Saturday, and Sunday, May 23-24. At our Xenia, Ohio battle-site. The Denmark Straits battle(s), will take place in between the sorites of the normal fleeet battles. HMS Hood will be there. I do not intend to blow up. Well. Not in the first 6 minutes of the battle anyhow. Mikey
I had a busy weekend. I was able to get the Hood sheeted, painted, and the water-line on. I also got the deck latch-down in place. My pump, drive, and cannon wiring is perhaps half finished. As is the air system, and radio. Less than a week till our Denmark Straits battle, and the Hood has not been in the water yet. I was not able to attend the big battle in Hagerstown. Did anyone else make it down? Mikey
Sunday May 24th 2009 Washington Treaty combat group re-lives the battle of the Denmark Straits. If you are reading this report on this site, then you are probably already familiar with how on May 24th 1941, Germany's brand new fast battleship, and pride of the German navy, DKM Bismarck, in company with the brand new heavy cruiser DKM Prinz Eugen, engaged in combat with the 20 year old battlecruiser, and pride of the British navy, HMS Hood, which was accompanied by the newest battleship in the British navy, the HMS Prince of Wales, which was so new that she had not even had time to fully work up to fighting trim, and still carried civilian technicians aboard. The Hood was blown up in less than 7 minutes, and the Prince of Wales then had to withdraw from the combat due to combat damage, and trouble with her ship systems, and the two German ships went down in history as the victors in one of the most famous naval gunnery battles ever faught. And now, for the rest of story. The Germans German battleship Bismarck (flagship).(Roland Gerrick commanding). 6.5 units. Speed 31 knots (29 seconds/100'). He is set up with a single pump, and 4 sidemounts (at approx. 45 degree angles). Bismarck is currently the most powerful and well balanced ship in the axis inventory. Roland has been battling the Bismarck (his favorite ship)for about 5 years. He has been battling with Treaty since we first formed the group(this is our third season), and has about 5 years with the BBS. He is aggresive, and loves his sidemounts. German heavy cruiser (pocket-battleship) Deutschland. (Josh Finnigan commanding). Standing in for the Prinz Eugen. The P.E. is currently under construction, but was not finished in time for this battle. 3.5 units. Speed 28 knots (32 seconds/100'). She is set up with a half-unit pump (.75 gpm), and guns in the bow, and stern. She is one of the pillars of the axis cruiser force in Treaty, and although a little on the slow side (as cruisers go), she has lots of staying power, and is manouverable enough to frustrate most ships that are fast enough to outrun her. Josh has over 10 years of experience running this ship in both the BBS, and Treaty. He is the guru of cruiser tactics. He loves pounding on his opponents with his bow gun, but is experienced enough to know when to show his opponent a clean set of heels, and school them on the finer points of stern gun tactics.
The British HMS Hood (battlecruiser), (flagship). Mike Deskin commanding. 6 units. Speed 29 knots (31 seconds/100'). This is the first Hood we have seen in Treaty, so we can't really state much about the ship from the point of experience. But as a 6 unit battlecruiser, with above average speed, a single rudder, and 6 feet long, we do not anticipate that she would be a world-beater, but hopefully she would be a viable ship if she is reliable, but perhaps a handful to captain. Set up with a one unit battlecruiser pump (1 gpm), and 4 sidemounts. Turrets X and Y both contain a 50 round cannon, and are angled off the starboard side. Y turret is fixed at approx. 40 degrees. X turret can be manually swung anywhere between 40-90 degrees, so that I can either have it teamed with Y turret to get a pair of duals hitting pretty much in the same place, or swing it out to 90 degrees and use it to engage opponents that I am trying to chase down. Turret A is a 75 round, 45 degree port side-firing chase gun. Turret B is a 75 rounder as well,and is generally also a port side-firing chase gun firing in tandem with A turret, but I also have the ability to manually swing it up over the bow and use it as a medium range chaser for ships that are either on 5, or just hurting and trying to disengage. Hood is so new, that most of her systems were finished only on Saturday morning, just a few hours prior to the start of this weekend's event. She had been in a kiddie pool for a balance float test just long enough to make sure where the main battery needed to be placed. Her pump, and cannons had only been run for a couple of minutes. Her commanding officer (me) has been building, and battling combat ships for about 25 years, in almost every combat format out there, except for the 72nd scale group. I got my start with the IRCWCC, and have battled with the MWC, MBG, BBS, and Treaty. I will also be battling with Battlestations. I will be the first to admit that I have never been any good at it. Perhaps that is why I keep trying new things. Haha. HMS Prince of Wales (battleship). Phil Agnos commanding. 6 units. Speed 29 knots. (31 seconds/100'). This is another new ship to Treaty battling, so we have no experience to base our thoughts on this ship's performance. But with a battleship pump, above average speed, a single rudder, and a length of 62", we think she would be a pretty well balanced ship. She is also brand new. Never been on the water. Completed only a few days prior to the event, just for this event. She is set up with a one-unit battleship pump (1.25 gpm), and only three cannons. One in each turret. I think the cannons in the forward turrets (which can be manually rotated to the sides, or over the bow) are 75 rounders, and the cannon in the stern is a large magazine (100 rounder), (so a 2 unit cannon). Her commanding officer has umpteen years of experience battling big-gun with the MBG, and is a big-gunner at heart. He is also one of the original battlers with Treaty, and a pillar within our group. He is best known for his handling of his cruisers, but also fields the occasional ship with side-mounts. Well, that is the ships, and commanders, for our first Denmark Straits battle. More to follow. Mikey
Prior to the battle starting, we decided that we would not limit the battle to just two sorties. We wanted the battle to end with a clear victory for either the Germans, or better yet the British. Mainly for bragging rights, until we get a chance to do it again. We do not count battle damage points, so we agreed that if there was no sinks in the first two sorties, then there would be a third sortie. Perhaps more. The only other way to score a win is if there are penalties for one team. Either ram points, or worse yet, for ships having to withdraw from the combat for whatever reason. The stage is now set. Mikey
Battle of the Denmark Straits. Sortie 1 After snapping off a couple of photos for the occasion, battle was declared. The Two Brits stayed pretty close together as we closed the gap, as we were running the same speed. The Germans started out together, but the Bismarck had pulled ahead of the cruiser by the time the big ships could bring their side-mounts into action. But the action had already begun, as both Deutschland, and Hood, had already opened up with medium-range bow guns at almost the same time, firing on each other. After exchanging side-mounts with Bismarck on the first pass, I came about, and tried to drive the Deutschland out of the battleship action, in hopes of sinking her first, in order to give the British a nice lead in points, but Josh would have nothing of that. He kept firing his bow gun into the POW as he closed in on her, while she was engaging the Bismarck. Then Deutschland would cut through the melee, and Hood would have to either go around Bismarck, or engage her. In either case, the Hood was not getting the early damage on the cruiser that I was hoping for. At one point, the POW ran aground, and was not able to pull herself off. Instead of calling 5 out-of-control, Phil asked me to try to push her off the rocks. I was in shock to hear that my running mate was aground in the middle of the battle. But I was even more shocked to hear the request for assistance. I almost couldn't have imagined a worse place for her to be aground. The shoreline on both sides of her was rocky, and has some moss, and lillypads, and the Hood is no tug-boat by any stretch of the imagination. I thought about leaving her hanging there decided to give it one try at least. I was able to come in along the shore from one side, and push her stern around as she went hard reverse, and she came free. I headed out to deeper water. Eventually Deutschland ran out of bow ammo, and as Hood fell in astern of her, Josh gave her the grand tour once again. On several occasions, Hood would bring the port side-mount into play for a couple of shots, by which time the Deutschland had turned out from under it, and was making her escape. By the time Hood got headed in the same direction, the pesky little German had a comfortable lead, and Hood had to settle for the occasional bow shot, which was iffy at best, but great fun. When Deutschland came off 5 minutes, Hood re-entered the battleship action. Both POW, and Bismarck were carrying around some nice damage, but with their battleship pumps, seemed to be dealing with it with little effort. Eventually, both battleships called 5 minutes, and Hood was able to chase the Bismarck around and pound on her with sidemounts when I could bring them into action. Which took some time, as Bismarck was both faster, and could out-turn her. When Bismarck came off 5, I called mine, and so ended the first sortie. All four ships were damaged to some extent, and pumping, but they were all still very much in the battle. And the Hood had not blown up yet. Something of a victory for me, at least. On to the second sortie. Mikey
Battle of the Denmark Straits. Sortie 2 In the first sortie, Hood had B turret aimed over the bow in order to obtain shots at the Deutschland, in a running-gun battle. However, I decided that bow guns were not going to sink the wiley German cruiser, so for sortie 2, I decided to swing B turret back in tandem with the sidemount in A turret. The idea was to be able to obtain more hits on the water-line, and possibly below the water-line, if and when I brought the sidemounts into play. As battle was declared, both Brits made a pass on both of the Germans, but then Hood again went after the Deutschland. But this time the Deutschland didn't make a break for it. She pretty much just led me around the two battleships, in a sort of running-gun battle, where she was able to use her stern gun to work over my bow, and on occasion get shots into the POW as well. This seemed to be working out pretty good for the Deautschland, until the POW turned her attention to the cruiser as well, and then the chase was on. Both Hood, and POW took up the chase, and the Deutschland only then, headed out into the open water. The grand tour lasted several minutes, and on occasion came back around the Bismarck, which would exchange shots with us as we continued the chase, but for the most part, we were not able to land the telling shots on the little German that would slow her down, and eventually, she went on her 5, and took it in stride. When the Deutschland came off 5, both Brits turned their attention to the Bismarck, and although we got some nice damage on her as the sortie started to wind down, he was not on 5, and was able to work us over as well. Bismarck was having some gun problems though, with mis-fires. POW ran out of ammo, then Bismarck, leaving Hood as the last to call 5. All lasted out their time, and the sortie ended with no sinks, or penalties. On to sortie 3. Mikey
Battle of the Denmark Straits. Sortie 3 I decided to leave my gun set-up the same as it was in the last sortie, so I had 4 side-mounts again, but no bow gun. My plan was to put all of my effort into obtaining a sink on the pesky cruiser, as some of the ships were running out of batteries, and most were experiencing trouble with either propulsion, or guns. All ships had a fair amount of damage, but none appeared to be in a sinking state. We needed to sink one of the German ships. I felt that our best chance at a sink was the Deutschland. Josh had tried to stay close to the Bismarck in the last sortie. If he tried it again, I would be ready. When we started putting the ships in the water, there was a problem with the wiring in the Deutschland, and so after giving him a couple extra minutes, and seeing that it was going to take more time, we started the sortie, and allowed him to come in when he could. When battle was declared, both Hood and POW closed with the Bismarck, and tried to finish him off before the Deutschland entered the battle. Bismarck stayed in close to the shore, and was taking quite a beating, but also gave out quite a bit as both of the Brits were staying close. Things were looking good for the British, until the Deutschland came out of the cove and started long-balling us with his bow mount, as she entered the melee. POW was the first to break off the attack on the Bismarck, and turn on the cruiser, and then Hood turned as well. That pesky little German cruiser had gotten on our last nerve, and simply had to be dealt with. POW tried to work her over with bow, and stern guns. Hood tried to bring her sidemounts into action. But this time, the Germans stuck together. The Bismarck was heavily damaged, and experiencing trouble with propulsion, and guns. The Deutschland was pretty shot up, but wasn't pumping that hard, but was like a mosquito that keeps buzzing around one's head. She had to go. Both Brits chased the cruiser around long enough for the Bismarck to pump out and re-join the battle. As if both Brits breaking off the assult on the hurting Bismarck, in order to deal with a not-so-hurting cruiser wasn't bad enough, the Germans were about to stick another thorn in our side. The Bismarck's starboard bow side-mount, was very intermittent, and seemed to fire perhaps every other time (at-best). But when it did eventually fire, it was generally just one bb. But every once in a great while it would spurt out a few (if not several) bbs. So while in the middle of one of Josh's local tours of the pond, we came across the Bismarck, and just like in the previous sorties, the Hood allowed the Bismarck to close so that we could exchange some side-mounts, before getting on with the job at hand. In this case, chasing Deutschland. As the Bismarck drew up along-side of Hood, I slowed slightly in order to bring my forward turrets into action with him. When I thought the range was right, I triggered off two quick shots, and then there was heard this mighty "burp" coming from the Bismarck's forward side-mount, which was aimed at Hood's port bow. There had to have been 8-10 bbs in the burst, and they hit Hood just above the water-line, right in the bow-wave. Right where it would do the most good. I am not new to the theories of spurt-guns. I got my start in the combat way back when the single-shot cannon had not been made yet. And all cannons were spurters. But even after the IRCWCC went over to single-shot guns, I tried my hand at spurt-guns on the smaller ships like cruisers, and destroyers. Although, they are generally considered to be not worth using in combat, as you don't get a lot of bang for your buck in most cases. There has been the occasional shot that changed the outcome of a battle. This was not the kind of shot that sinks ships outright. It also wasn't the kind of shot that sinks ships in the long run. It was the kind of shot that would give a skipper a chance to sink himself if he didn't show the damage enough respect. I could still battle. I could even still run some. Buth there would be no more chasing pesky cruisers around at full speed. So I turned my attentions to battling the Bismarck until we all ran out of ammo, and came off the water. And so ended the third sortie. No sinks or penalties. Mikey
So after three sorties, there had been neither a sink, or any penalties. So no clear victors, and vanquished. So we discussed another sortie. Primarily to see which team would win, and which would lose. Both Bismarck and Hood were shot up pretty good, and Deutschland and Prince of Wales had a good amount of damage also, but not to the point of hurting. I personally couldn't believe that the battle was not won or lost in the first two sorties, if not even in the first sortie. In the long run, we decided to simply put the outcome of this historic battle on hold until the next event. We had all had a grand time, and felt like we had won a great victory. So we moved on to one last fleet battle for the event, so that everyone could participate, and have fun. Mikey
I would like to thank all who had any part in making this event all that it could be. I feel honored to have not only been able to be there to witness it, but to have been invited to actually participate in it with my favorite ship. This will almost certainly be one of my fondest memories of my combat career. Thank you again. Mikey
The battle sounds like a complete sucess! Although there was no clear winner, I imagine there may be plenty of opportunities in the future to recreate the battle. Kudos to everyone who planned the battle, built the ships, and participated in something unique that will be remembered by everyone that was there and those that got to hear and see the pictures and posts here on the forums. Soooo ... Jutland anyone? heh.
All I have just loaded some new photos of the Exercise Rhine project. I have obtained the Prince of Wales from Phil. The Bismarck from Bobo. And a Prinz Eugen hull from Bob A. Status.. HMS Hood. Combat ready. But needs some re-sheeting. HMS Prince of Wales. Will get the intenals out of the Strasbourg. DKM Bismarck. Will probably get the internals out of the Jean Bart. DKM Prinz Eugen. Under construction. Will probably get the internals out of the Tourville. These four ships will make up our little fleet for the 2010 battling season. They will all four be opperational in time for the Exercise Rhine event in May 2010. If anyone else shows up with any of these ships, then ours will sit it out on the sidelines, and allow the others to participate in the event. But in the case of any of the other ships not being there. We will have all of the ships that are needed for this epic battle. They will all take part in the normal fleet battles. Mikey
Well. The good news is that I have finally figured out how to re-size the photos when posting them. The bad news is that I can't figure out how to get to the edit button on my first photo, so that I can re-size it as well. I can't get the page to scroll across far enough. I am rather tickled with myself to be honest. Haha. Mikey
Sunday May 30 2010 The four ships that took part in the famous battle of the Denmark Straits arrived at the Xenia, Ohio battle site to re-enact that historic event. It was historic for us as well. As it was the first time any of us had ever seen all four ships on the water at the same time. The ships, and captains. Germans DKM Bismarck (battleship). 6.5 units. 31 knots (29 seconds). 1.25 gpm pumping capacity. Captain Roland Garrick from Ravenna, Ohio. DKM Prinz Eugen (heavy cruiser). 3.5 units. 32 knots (28 seconds). .75 gpm pumping capacity. Captain Mikey Deskin from Pleasant Hill, Ohio. British HMS Prince of Wales (battleship). 6 units. 28 knots (32 seconds). 1.25 gpm pumping capacity. Captain Phil Agnos from Huber Heights, Ohio. HMS Hood (battlecruiser). 6 units. 29 knots (31 seconds). 1 gpm pumping capacity. Captain Buddy Friend from Newark, Ohio. I showed up late at the site with an almost ready-to-go P.E. We had hoped to have the battle on Saturday, but the cruiser was not ready in time. So we put the battle off until Sunday. So I arrived to find Roland ready with the Bismarck, and Phil ready with his POW, which was sporting his brand new timing circuit for the stern cannon. Buddy Friend (from the BBS),had dropped in to pal around, and take photos. So I put some final touches on the cruiser, and ran her around for a few minutes for some very short sea trials. her throttle was reversed, which was an easy fix. Then she was ready as well. It was probably after 11am, and the others had not showed up yet, and we were wanting to get this battle started. So we invited Buddy to participate in the battle and run one of my boats. He decided he would rather run the Hood. So we closed them up, and put them in the water. It was a really great feeling to see these four famous ships on the water getting ready to face-off. After taking a bunch of photos, we got set for the start of the battle.