The German Battleship Tirpitz

The last battleship of the German Kriegsmarine was ceremonially launched on 1 April 1939. After the failure of the operation “Rheinübung” and sinking of the battleship Bismarck during an Atlantic rally (May 1941) Hitler banned planning such operations. A decision to send Tirpitz to Norway was made. There she could be stationed in fiords relatively safely and raid Allied shipping in Arctic waters. Her presence in that region alone caused every convoy sailing nearby to be escorted by heavy warship…