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The Mighty Hood
The Mighty Hood was one of the most magnificent warships ever built.
Launched in 1918, she spent the interwar years cruising the oceans of the world, the largest vessel afloat and a proud symbol of the Royal Navy.
‘The greatest and most graceful ship of her time, perhaps of any time, she was the last of the Leviathans — those mighty ships, whose movement upon the high seas had determined policy since the last quarter of the 19th century. A generation of British seamen had been trained in her. To millions of people she had represented British sea power and imperial might. With her passed not only a ship, but a whole era swept away on the winds of the world.’
Bradford tells the fascinating story of two ships coming out — the new Prince of Wales, and the old, world-famous Hood, whose history remained in the memories of all those who sailed on her.
Their silhouettes visible now against the lines of the sea and the islands: the long sweep of their foredecks, the banked ramparts of their guns, and the hunched shoulders of bridges and control towers.
We shall never see their like again, but no one who has ever watched them go by will forget the shudder that they raised along the spine. The big ships were somehow as moving as the pipes heard a long way off in the hills. There was always a kind of mist about them, a mist of sentiment and of power. Unlike aircraft, rockets, or nuclear bombs, they were a visible symbol of power allied with beauty — a rare combination.
The thrilling history of a ship who battled the infamous Bismarck, inspired alliances and revenge in a time of great uncertainty and went out with a bang when her one fatal flaw was exploited...
Ernle Bradford (1922-1986) was an historian who wrote books on naval battles and historical figures. Among his subjects were Lord Nelson, the Mary Rose, Christopher Columbus, Julius Caesar and Hannibal. He also documented his own voyages on the Mediterranean Sea.
Launched in 1918, she spent the interwar years cruising the oceans of the world, the largest vessel afloat and a proud symbol of the Royal Navy.
‘The greatest and most graceful ship of her time, perhaps of any time, she was the last of the Leviathans — those mighty ships, whose movement upon the high seas had determined policy since the last quarter of the 19th century. A generation of British seamen had been trained in her. To millions of people she had represented British sea power and imperial might. With her passed not only a ship, but a whole era swept away on the winds of the world.’
Bradford tells the fascinating story of two ships coming out — the new Prince of Wales, and the old, world-famous Hood, whose history remained in the memories of all those who sailed on her.
Their silhouettes visible now against the lines of the sea and the islands: the long sweep of their foredecks, the banked ramparts of their guns, and the hunched shoulders of bridges and control towers.
We shall never see their like again, but no one who has ever watched them go by will forget the shudder that they raised along the spine. The big ships were somehow as moving as the pipes heard a long way off in the hills. There was always a kind of mist about them, a mist of sentiment and of power. Unlike aircraft, rockets, or nuclear bombs, they were a visible symbol of power allied with beauty — a rare combination.
The thrilling history of a ship who battled the infamous Bismarck, inspired alliances and revenge in a time of great uncertainty and went out with a bang when her one fatal flaw was exploited...
Ernle Bradford (1922-1986) was an historian who wrote books on naval battles and historical figures. Among his subjects were Lord Nelson, the Mary Rose, Christopher Columbus, Julius Caesar and Hannibal. He also documented his own voyages on the Mediterranean Sea.
244 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1959
About the author
Ernle Bradford
114 books84 followersErnle Dusgate Selby Bradford was a noted British historian specializing in the Mediterranean world and naval topics. Bradford was an enthusiastic sailor himself and spent almost thirty years sailing the Mediterranean, where many of his books are set. He served in the Royal Navy during World War II, finishing as the first Lieutenant of a destroyer. He did occasional broadcast work for the BBC, was a magazine editor, and wrote many books.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
May 23, 2018
I really enjoyed this book. Bradford tells a great story - enough detail to help the lay reader form a picture. He is able to create a sense of how the sailors are experiencing the journeys as well as making clear the strategy behind the manoeuvres and the long term implications of technological decisions.
The author clearly has a view about expenditure on upgrading the technology on naval vessels between the World Wars. Refitting is not a simple matter. Built at huge expense to withstand any side-on attack to her hull and to deliver state-of-the-art gun attack in World War I, the careful balance of weight and speed could not be sustained when heavier ammunition and extra gun power was added in 1939. Nor did the upgrade successfully secure the decks as naval warfare changed from side-on to long distance projectile attack.
The trouble with being the mightiest ship on the sea is that competitors will soon build a mightier using all that had been learnt from encounters with you. Against the Bismarck, the 1000+ crew of the Hood stood little chance. What had been state-of-the/art radar failed in the mist, fog and dark of the North Atlantic.
It was an almost inevitable tragedy.
My interest comes partly from my father’s WWII experience in the Royal Navy. While he spent time on convoys in the North Sea, in 1940-1 he was in the Mediterranean. He later served on the Antelope which accompanied the Hood into the North Sea.
My other interest comes from Johnny Horton’s ballad of the Bismarck - the refrain ‘We’ve got to sink the Bismarck to the bottom of the sea’ played continuously through my head as I read.
This is a thoughtful book. It raises, but does not attempt to resolve, the question of pointlessness. The race for better weapons and defender technology is open-ended. The race creates victims who have no control or defended. Winners are only short-term.
The author clearly has a view about expenditure on upgrading the technology on naval vessels between the World Wars. Refitting is not a simple matter. Built at huge expense to withstand any side-on attack to her hull and to deliver state-of-the-art gun attack in World War I, the careful balance of weight and speed could not be sustained when heavier ammunition and extra gun power was added in 1939. Nor did the upgrade successfully secure the decks as naval warfare changed from side-on to long distance projectile attack.
The trouble with being the mightiest ship on the sea is that competitors will soon build a mightier using all that had been learnt from encounters with you. Against the Bismarck, the 1000+ crew of the Hood stood little chance. What had been state-of-the/art radar failed in the mist, fog and dark of the North Atlantic.
It was an almost inevitable tragedy.
My interest comes partly from my father’s WWII experience in the Royal Navy. While he spent time on convoys in the North Sea, in 1940-1 he was in the Mediterranean. He later served on the Antelope which accompanied the Hood into the North Sea.
My other interest comes from Johnny Horton’s ballad of the Bismarck - the refrain ‘We’ve got to sink the Bismarck to the bottom of the sea’ played continuously through my head as I read.
This is a thoughtful book. It raises, but does not attempt to resolve, the question of pointlessness. The race for better weapons and defender technology is open-ended. The race creates victims who have no control or defended. Winners are only short-term.
July 10, 2022
A short story of a battleship in ww2. The book flows just like reading a novel and kept me wanting to find out more about ships in the war
February 20, 2023
I ran into this book, while skimming books in my library app. I've always been fascinated by the Bismarck episode, so a book on the Hood was interesting to me. And this is a good book. It gives really a really vivid sense of what it was like to be on the Hood when it was first constructed and in its last years during World War II. The eyewitness account are interesting and the book is well-written.
But two concerns.
First, I was partly interested in this book because I was interested in the full history of the ship. And I got a lot of what I was interested in, but there is a curious gap in the early 1930s, which I found disappointing and distracting. In particular, I was interested in how the Hood's crew experienced the Invergordon mutiny in 1931, but there really is nothing here. That is, admittedly, a depressing subject, but it is part of the history and I wish some discussion was done on that.
Second, the overall tone is pretty patriotic. Harder questions could be asked, but really Bradford goes rather easy on the British Navy. That's a liability in this kind of writing, but just noting it here.
This book is still a good book to read and I think those interested in World War II naval history would find it an entertaining and interesting book to follow up on.
But two concerns.
First, I was partly interested in this book because I was interested in the full history of the ship. And I got a lot of what I was interested in, but there is a curious gap in the early 1930s, which I found disappointing and distracting. In particular, I was interested in how the Hood's crew experienced the Invergordon mutiny in 1931, but there really is nothing here. That is, admittedly, a depressing subject, but it is part of the history and I wish some discussion was done on that.
Second, the overall tone is pretty patriotic. Harder questions could be asked, but really Bradford goes rather easy on the British Navy. That's a liability in this kind of writing, but just noting it here.
This book is still a good book to read and I think those interested in World War II naval history would find it an entertaining and interesting book to follow up on.
January 19, 2019
Build at the end of the first world war the Hood said every thing about the the British empire, we ruled the waves and enjoy the Empire that Great Britain had claimed. This time between the two wars saw a pride in our armed forces.
The senior service toured the empire showing why Britain was Great and most of the empire enjoyed the razzmatazz as the Hood held open days, parties and in general had a good break with lots of entertainment organised for the crews, but while the country
basked in all the adulation that was heaped upon our Royal Navy there were very few who saw what was happening in Germany and Italy.
Winston Churchill saw the conflict that was heading our way and lobbied for the country to rearm. and the rest as they say is history.
The senior service toured the empire showing why Britain was Great and most of the empire enjoyed the razzmatazz as the Hood held open days, parties and in general had a good break with lots of entertainment organised for the crews, but while the country
basked in all the adulation that was heaped upon our Royal Navy there were very few who saw what was happening in Germany and Italy.
Winston Churchill saw the conflict that was heading our way and lobbied for the country to rearm. and the rest as they say is history.
January 27, 2019
End of a great ship
The politicians of today should read and digest.
An interesting book, the descriptions of life on board a warship are spot on, and give an insight into the life of a sailor in the Royal Navy
The politicians of today should read and digest.
An interesting book, the descriptions of life on board a warship are spot on, and give an insight into the life of a sailor in the Royal Navy
March 22, 2020
Superb account of the life and death of this magnificent ship.
September 18, 2016
Fairly well balanced about Hood.
Well written carries off the balancing act of technical details and human interest. It lost one star because I resented his vitriolic attacks on the Labour Party of the UK and the Labor Party of Australia.
Also any ship expert should know that 'the' is not used before the name of a ship just as it isn't before our names.
Well written carries off the balancing act of technical details and human interest. It lost one star because I resented his vitriolic attacks on the Labour Party of the UK and the Labor Party of Australia.
Also any ship expert should know that 'the' is not used before the name of a ship just as it isn't before our names.
July 27, 2015
A good book - a bit dated now but still quite exciting as the chase to find and defeat the Bismarck is retold.Quite moving too to think that so many men died.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews