HMS Rodney: Slayer of the Bismarck and D-Day Saviour

(Paperback)

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The Royal Navy battleship HMS Rodney was one of the most famous warships of the Second World War and remains a legend in the pantheon of naval history. In May 1941 Rodney turned Bismarck, the pride of Hitler's navy, into twisted metal, then participated in hard-fought Malta convoys and later supported the D-Day landings. Rodney's vital role, via formidable naval gunfire support, in breaking the morale of German troops during the battle for Normandy, is outlined here. Through the eyewitness accounts of her sailors and marines we discover what it was like to live and fight in a battleship at war. We learn of the many famous fighting admirals who served in, or commanded, Rodney, including Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham and Admiral Sir John Tovey. The stories of previous British warships to carry the name Rodney, dating back to the 1750s, are covered too, including the vessel that took on the batteries at Sevastopol during the Crimean War. In addition to a fresh perspective on Bismarck's destruction, the author seeks to present new insights into the inter-war mutiny that saw Rodney dubbed 'the Red Ship' and a bomb hit in 1940 that nearly destroyed her. There is even an account of how a group of HMS Rodney's sailors took part in a trailblazing British commando raid. It all makes for a thrilling, epic account of naval warfare. SELLING POINTS: HMS Rodney, the WW2 battleship, sunk the Bismark Tells the dramatic story of all the RN ships carrying the famous name of Rodney The latest in Pen and Sword's successful Famous Ships of the Royal Navy series Great accounts and illustrations of naval action from the Battleship era ILLUSTRATIONS:

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"...provides the reader an in depth look into the histories of each ship, their transformation over time, and a better understanding of the Royal Navy's contribution in WWII."-- "Nautical Research Journal"

Author Bio

Iain Ballantyne has written extensively about navies past and present. He has visited warships and commando units to report on their operational activities in the Middle East, Mediterranean, Adriatic, Asia-Pacific and the Arctic, including covering the fall of the Soviet Union - plus its impact in Russia, Latvia and the Czech Republic - along with the 1990/91 Gulf War. A former newspaper defence reporter and current Editor of the global naval affairs magazine WARSHIPS International Fleet Review, Iain has also contributed to television news and documentary programmes, and radio shows. He is host of the Warships Pod podcast. Among his other naval history books are Warspite, HMS Rodney and the award-winning Killing the Bismarck (all published by Pen & Sword). In 2017, Iain was presented with a prestigious Fellowship Award by the UKs Maritime Foundation for making a truly outstanding contribution to stimulating public engagement in maritime issues.