Friday 27 May 2016

Recollections of War: Sink the Bismarck!


"The pursuit and sinking of the Bismarck will remain one of the great sea-stories of all time, worthy to take its place with Salamis, Lepanto, the Armada, Trafalgar, Tsushima, Jutland, Midway, the Coral Sea." 
~ Sir Ludovic Kennedy


        One can read a history book or search the
 internet and learn much about the great and
 tragic story of the hunt and destruction of the
 WWII German battleship, 'Bismarck'.  News
 films such as the one below can show and tell us a lot  about what occurred back then through the eyes of the  participants.  History articles can also help us grasp the  historical significance and   importance of such events.

        But I submit that one thing a purely fact-
 telling and history-relating piece cannot properly and fully  tell us, is the personal and human side of the story.  The  personal decisions  and private struggles of the individuals who  took part in great deeds.  The emotions and feelings which these real people expressed during the event.  And I think that this is nowhere better exemplified than in the story of the Royal Navy's hunt for the German's largest battleship, 'Bismarck'.  A certain ship went here and there and a certain captain gave this and that order, write the history books, but we feel something is missing.  Then into the gap comes one of the best and greatest war films I have ever seen.

        'Sink the Bismarck!' while not as long as some films, nevertheless tells one of the most daring and heroic, victorious and heartbreaking stories from the Second World War.  And what better way to commemorate the 75th Anniversary (May 27, 1941 - May 27, 2016) of the sinking of the Bismarck than to watch this excellent film.

(Yes, I know it begins in German, but the rest of the film is in English.)      

        So why not sit down for an hour and half tonight, and relive, through real peoples eyes, the story of

'Sink the Bismarck!'

        I know what I'm doing tonight!

Written and posted by William A Moore

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