I have a picture of the Hood that my dad took when she was in harbour in Iceland and about two hours before she left to confront the Bismarck !!! He was on troopship of Canadian soldiers who were part of the Icelandic invasion force...

Re-designed to prevent catastrophic explosions, eh?

clearly Holland forgot to equip his ship with the juliet charlie signal!

Thanks for this mate, my great grandad was among the crew on the HMS Hood the day it was sunk. If this ship didn't get sunk though my grandad would never have been an orphan and left his City, and in turn i would never have been born.

Ironically, the ship that sank her had the exact same problem of horrible deck armour....

HMS Hood; failing to survive detonation jokes since 1941.

I've gotta say the line drawing of the modernized Hood looks really good

The late Jon Pertwee served on the Hood during the war and had just transferred off when she was sent after Bismarck

Even as a full blood German (my Grandfather served in the Kreigsmarine on the Schleswig-Holstein, Admiral Scheer and minesweepers at the end) I can say without doubt the Hood was the most beautiful ship ever built. Damn sexy and graceful

Twenty five years after Jutland, and there's STILL something wrong with our bloody ships today.

In 1921, the Hood was the most badass ship in 'da hood ⚓⚓

WE WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER THE HOOD R.I.P.

Interestingly while chasing Strasbourg,, both Hood and Strasbourg, had similar machinery issues. With Strasbourg essentially losing a turbine. In fact had Hood continued the chase , it would have gotten the french ship since'- quoting from memory- Hood was still able to make almost 25 knots while Strasbourg was not able to exceed 23

You probably know this already but you were "mentioned in dispatches" (that is, recommended) over on MH(not)V with the expanded WWII ship classes video. Congrats!

I have spent over forty years playing naval simulations from "Action Stations" to the NWS mod of "Fighting Steel". I have yet to replicate the destruction of the HMS Hood. This implies that her loss was nearly a random event, or as some American combat pilots call it, "the Golden BB", a hit that does unpredictable damage. A point to remember is that the RN's tactical doctrine after 1930 defined "effective battle range" as around 15,000-16,000 yds. The protection of the "King George V" class was designed around this doctrine, giving up gunpower to meet the protection requirement. This doctrine also explains why the tower bridge with lower (height above WL) fire control stations was acceptable. Consider that the effective sight horizon at 100 feet is ~24,000 yds. If 15,000-16,000 yds was the optimal engagement range, then fire control directors did not need to be higher than 70" or so. It is ironic that one of the longest range hits on an enemy ship was made by a modified "Queen Elizabeth" with a tower bridge. This is in contrast to both Japanese and US naval tactical doctrine that sought to engage at 30,000 yds (even 35,000 yds with the Japanese) with aerial spotting, requiring the seizure of air supremacy. The RN recognized this, and it hoped torpedo attacks by aircraft and destroyers would so slow the enemy battle line that the British could charge through the "danger zone" to reach their optimal engagement range. Naval simulations with the IJN destroying or damaging the British carriers, conducting night over the horizon torpedo attacks, eventually lead to the British battle line facing an enemy that refused to close until they were no longer able to resist the coup de grace. But the British designed their "fast" battleships with North Sea and Med engagements, despite Japan being the most likely enemy from 1921 to 1938. But the RN wasn't the only navy with confusion and contradiction in strategic planning, tactical doctrine and ship design.

I don't expect a reply but I found this incredibly useful. My great grandad was a stoker on board the mighty Hood during World War II, by the last name of Hardy. All I know from my grandad is that a change of crew or having been re-assigned to another vessel when in port, no less than a few days and no more than a week before the Hood was scrambled to intercept the Bismarck is what set my great grandads fate aside from the brave men who encountered the Bismarck that day. Unfortunately he passed away well in excess of 15 years before I was born (2000YoB), and as such the stories of his Naval career were lost with him. My Grandad said he never really used to talk about the war, so its a mystery to my whole family. We have his medals still, of which I'm tracking down what ones they are and what they were awarded for. Thank you for providing myself and family with some insight into the mighty Hood's wartime activity, sharing the fact he may well have taken part at Mers el Kebir.

RIP crew of the HMS Hood. One of the most beautiful ships ever.

Thank you for sharing, I don't believe we can underestimate the shock the United Kingdom felt at the ships loss at that time.

Love your videos, always awesome when my notifications tell me you have uploaded something. Hearing Mr Ted Briggs talk about the sinking always chilled me to the bone. As did the thought that only 3 men survived the sinking. My brain has a hard time understanding how more men didn't get off before she went down. Mainly those in top side stations. I can imagine a wall of fire swept through the lower decks, blowing open water tight doors and flash cooking everything.

"Showing your citadel, that's a paddling" ~German commander

Didn’t know they recovered her Bell...May she Ever Rule the Waves.

Today marks 79 years since the Hood's loss. God bless those sailors. Just three survivors. Wow.

Honestly, if you don’t go into never-finished ships, Hood may well be the most notable of the “she deserved a more glorious career and fate” category...

For anyone confused about or wanting more detail on the different theories, I strongly recommend William Jurens' 1987 article, which is available for free at the end of a Google search. It is also worth pointing out that the most likely impact really was incredibly unfortunate: in the big refit that changed the secondary armament, the secondary magazine was extended aft. The very end of this extension was not fully covered by the extra armour over the magazines. It is most likely that Bismarck managed to put a shell in this spot, which at the relative angles required hitting a 1x3m patch of Hood. Outside of this patch, the shell would have been bounced by armour or ended up off the ship.

This is a certified Hood classic.

And that's why you always use the juliet charlie signal in WOWS just to be on the safe side.

So, Hood was fighting with one arm tied to her back, slowly deteriorating, and not properly maintained despite being the pride of the royal navy. Now that I think of it, Hood existed only because she was the only member of her class to reach sufficient progress in construction which saved her from scrapping. So, she basically had almost no right in serving the royal navy, if you know what I mean, which is honestly quite sad.

Thank you! I very much enjoy your videos. I have been a history "Buff" since the first book I remember reading was about The Monitor and the Merrimac and the great Engineer & Inventor:John Ericsson. My mother gave it to1 me for my eight birthday in 1955. I am a twice retired US Army Metrology technician with my last duty station in uniform and as civilian was The US Army's armored vehicle rebuild center at the Anniston Army Depot. One of my duties before my final retirement in 2013 was the certification of the turret ring and target board used for the final assembly alignment of the 120mm main gun and the 7.62mm coax MG on the M1A1 Abrams MBT. At 4.72 inches the gun is near to size of the secondaries on most Battleships. I have read/listened to R. Massie's books: "Dreadnought..." and "Castles of Steal" also Tull's: "Battle of Surigao Strait" along with going over many a "Jane's Fighting Ships" in many Post Libraries" over the years I keep a copy of Mr. Millers: "Illustrated Directory of War Ships..." to hand. I have toured BB60 USS Alabama and my Uncle Robert Swiggum served as a gunners mate on BB64 The USS Wisconsin in one of , as you have noted, plethora of 20 or 40mm Bofors cannons, He told me it was one of the fantail mounts. Well enough of my blather, as I am also a Civil War "Buff", I would like to request of you one of your excellent Video's about The Patuxent Class of twin turret Monitors, I believe they served in South American navies until the late 1800's. Thank you again. Yours Truly; Francis C. Howland Jr. Msg USA Ret. Oxford on the Choccolocco, Alabama

Had she been modernized I imagine her fight with Bismarck may have ended very differently.

I get my nerd-love-info-big-WWII-ship fix from this site. Please keep it up!

Renown collided with Hood, the communication process in Hood concluded, Renowns coming inboard!! The controversy is well worth an episode from Drach.

Grim Reaper: It’s time to go Hood: Was I a good Battlecruiser? Grim Reaper:No, I heard you were the best

Robo Voices are for memes. Glad you are now using your real voice.

We rememberall who served in HMS Hood on the anniversary of her loss. RIP

I absolutely have to give an honourable mention here to the late Ted Briggs. The only of the three survivors who was actually willing to talk about the sinking and was the lust survivor of Hood’s sinking. I personally met him a little over a decade ago and was very good man. A little fun fact, the memorial plate with the names of the crew on it that was placed there during the first attempt at the Bell’s retrieval was in fact placed by Briggs.

Hood attacked Dunkerque -> sank by detonation Barham attacked Richelieu -> sank by detonation WoWS anti team kill system by fun & engaging OP plz nerf

I value your evaluation of the causes of the loss of the Hood. Thanks!! Ship [class] Suggestion: HMS Apollo [protected cruiser]?!

It is interesting that people often concede Hood's characteristics were such she fit the description of a fast battleship. But because there were more powerful guns in service by WW II, that made her a battlecruiser by then? Japan's Nagato class were from Hood's era also. Because their armor was not as proof against 1940's guns as it was against guns in the 1920's when they were built, does that make them a different kind of ship circa 1941? They remained battleships because that is what they were built to be. Side note: Given that Hood was officially a battlecruiser, but that post Jutland the Royal Navy revised the battlecruiser role to encompass the ability to stand in the battle line and be able to withstand heavy gunfire, it could be argued that post Jutland the term "battlecruiser" referred to essentially the same type of ship as what was meant by "fast battleship". The issue was clouded by the fact that Hood was the only post Jutland "battlecruiser" built to these revised criteria, and remained in service alongside older battlecruisers of the the pre-Jutland variety. In any case, being an earlier model fast battleship does not mean that the ship changes type as technology progresses. Just that the ship required modernization to meet modern standards, such as was done to several of the Queen Elizabeth's. Or the American Tennessee/West Virginia ships.

In other words, the Germans had hella good RNG that day, much to the HMS Hood’s detriment. Such a beautiful vessel, the likes the world has never seen since. After my HMS Nelson build I’ve got a lovely 1:700 Tamiya kit of Hood that needs to be built. Can’t wait.

Love the videos keep up the amazing work. 3 videos in 1 day?

Looking forward to seeing the upcoming Derfflinger-class video soon!

Most beautiful ship ever built

I cried for weeks after she was sunk. :(

hood visited australia melbourne port phillip bay

Awesome stuff man! Subbed!

A lovely ship.

Really good- what a beautiful ship and a sad end

To any World of Warships player who purchased the Hood, you all know her propensity to attract those rare golden bbs that result in you suddenly have your entire health pool drained or exploding.

GOD DAMNIT, BISMARCK!

To the boy sailors and and men of Hood who never returned. #wewillrememberthem

We will always remember the HMAS Sydney.

Very cool video, I always wondered where on the Hood my uncle was. There is very little info I have.

@Drachinifel A couple of ships that would be nice to see would be the 1889 Greek ironclad Hydra and the 1907 Japanese armored cruiser/battle cruiser Ibuki.

Thanks for posting it right after

If the turn had been made just 30 seconds sooner the result would have been totally different.

A friend of mine's father served on HMS Hood in the late 1930s. Shortly before the war began his girlfriend (fiancé?) ran off with another man to Australia. Shortly thereafter she had regrets and contacted him. He deserted and went to Australia to bring her back to England. He was court martialed and so was not in service when the Hood sank. As the war progressed, because of the need for experienced sailors, he was allowed to re-enter the service. He served for the rest of the war into the 1950s and retired as a chief petty officer. He married the woman who ran off, and my friend was born in 1941. She told me that at night she would say goodnight to daddy, directing her words to a picture of the ship on which he was deployed. If she told me what ship that was, I do not remember, except I think it was another battleship.

I was once asked what was so special about the Bismark. I said it may not look like much but it really blows them out of the water once you get under the Hood.

Well when Hoods bow was in the air it's very front turret fire's a final defiant salvo before slipping into the dark water.

Here are my suggestions for future videos HMS Neptune (1909) HMS Campania HMS Jervis Bay SMS Graf Von Goetzon USS Texas (1892) USS Oregon (BB-3) USS Allen (DD-66) Battle of Rio de Oro (SMS Kaiser Wilhelm Der Grosse VS. HMS Highflyer) Battle of Trindade (HMS Carmania VS SMS Cap Trafalgar) Admiral class pre-dreadnought battleship Tennessee class armored cruiser Tsukuba class "battlecruiser" Satsuma class "semi-dreadnought" battleship

A nice presentation! Years ago I read Ludovic Kennedy's book "Pursuit" about the action against the Bismarck. A good read. Admiral Tovey ALMOST ordered Admiral Holland to take up station astern of Prince of Wales, thinking the Bismarck might open on the lead ship. Kennedy said, "...he was to wish profoundly that he had". I believe (as you mentioned) Admiral Holland was trying to race in and close the gap to protect Hood's weak deck armor from plunging, long range shot. Terribly tragic day. A Drydock question might be: Was the "stable vertical" gyro device the key to making Hood's light deck armor obsolete?Thanks

Had Admiral Holland placed Prince of Wales as the leading ship, matters might have gone otherwise. Speculation as to the cause has a fascination, and seemingly without resolution. The Hood enigma ...

It's official. Hood is Drachinifel's best girl.

Thanks for this 👍

Fletcher class destroyers, I dad served on several but never really talked about the war or his sea service, I'd like to learn more.

BOOOOOM: That's it for this video!

Largest warship when built (and thanks to naval treaties close to largest, if not, when sunk) but most powerful... I'd say the 9 16" on Nelson class, the 8 16.1" on Nagato class, and the 8 16" on Colorado class were more powerful.

For the Q&A: What if the roles of the Scharnhorst, Bismarck and H classes of Battleships were swapped with the Graf Zeppelin, with the former three being designed as Carrier's from the start, and the latter designed as a Battleship?

WE WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER THE BISMARCK R.I.P.

You asked for ideas, I have a few: HMAS Sydney (i) and SMS Emden, HMAS Sydney (II) and the Kormoran, The Japanese attack on Sydney Harbour, the actions of AE-2 and the 107 year old mystery of AE-1 (only recently found).

Dang the last time I was so early the British still had an Empire.

Seems like a shell plunged down trough the deck because of the ship rolling to bear the rear turrets on the Bismarck, setting off the 4.5inches ammo which were stored directly beside the 15 inches frontal turrets magazine. Proof is the wreck, that shows the frontal part of the ship was shredded upwards because of a big explosion, occured between under the front turret and under the command bridge( where the 4.5 magazines were located) So this was indeed the unluckiest shot for the poor brit sailors.

I would like to echo several others by saying how much better these videos are without the roboVoice. I've binge watched a ton of your videos, and your own voice is the way to go. Anyway I would like to suggest a video on IJN Chikuma. I'm just starting to build a model of this ship. I really like the weirdness of the layout. Also, what is that music you're starting your videos with? It sounds super familiar.;

nice. i actually just fineshed a model of it and am planning to make a video on it once i paint it.

The modernization scheme looks good but just my twocents is to keep the tripod mast on top of the bridge and the conning tower. Its just one of those things thats so unique to Hood

I just decided to give in and watch the text to speech one last night >:[ (good vid though)

Given that Hood was very well-armoured for her time, should she be called the first real fast battleship?

Do you think that an armor distribution, on the line of the all-or-nothing scheme, would have made less possible the explosión? On the other hand, i not quite sure if am right on this thought ( correct me if not) but i would bet that if the 3 losses at jutland had not ocurred, the battlecruiser, as Fisher wanted, in all likehood would have replace the battleships all over the world, or at least in the royal navy as the expected money-saving, fast response vessel that he wanted for the protección of the empire

@ 2:43- Aaaand ironically they went and built another capital ship destined to be destroyed in a 'catastrophic explosion' -_-

2:50 What an absolute looker!

Now that’s a critical hit if I’ve ever seen one.

I've always wondered: would the WW1 Kriegsmarine (1914) win in a fight against the WW2 Kriegsmarine (1939)? No U-Boats, but everything else is allowed. Ships commissioned afterwards are commissioned on schedule for the sake of this thought experiment.

I have a request you do a video on USS Samuel B. Roberts DE 413 and or a battle between Bismarck vs Post 1942 planned large repair/refit HMS Hood

Hi, my Dad served in the RN from 1927 -1949. Could you cover H.M.S. Afridi . He served on this Destroyer from when she was commissioned & operated in the Med. until she returned to N/E England. This was to prepare for the evacuation of the troops in Norway 1940, his last day was helping to oversee resupply. Then, he left to join another ship & despite many sailors feeling uneasy they set sail & she met her demise.

Everything I read about the Lexingtons, and their, what, 3rd or 4th design, says they were inspired by the Hood. Yet, before the Lexingtons were laid down, the Admiralty decided it didn't want any more ships like the Hood, scrapped the other three Admirals on the ways, after spending some 1.6M Pounds on them, and went back to the drawing board. The USN pressed on with the thin skinned Lexingtons regardless. Another case where the Washington Treaty probably saved the USN from making another mistake. The flaw in the thinking behind the battle cruiser is there are some situations where running is not an option. The US forces off Samar Island in 44, known as "Taffy 3" were wildly outmatched, but running was not an option. They had to stand and fight.

Love that battle ship RIP

You really need to do a bibliographic video someday, to review some of your best source materials.

Suggestion: German E-Boat S-130, or it's class, from WW2. :)

It was well know that deck armor was the weak point of battleships. The large number of 12 inch mortars employed by the US and Britain in coastal defense batteries proves it as does the explosion of Hood and Arizona when penetrated by 15" and 16" armor piercing rounds respectively.

Yeah Boi!!!!!!!! mAh Favorite from the Royals!!!!!!!!

That is actually the Bismarck firing at 08:10

And the best tea facilities ever put on to sea

Good evening, I was wondering what condition the Hood’s 15” cannons were in? We’re they at the end of their lives and maybe needed replacements, did they have linings that were off in dia.”, or were they half life? I ask this because they were tracking the ships in probable positions before actually for firing? Were the gun crews having a bad morning because it took them a rather longer time to range the enemy. It took PoWales was quite accurate in comparison. Hood had problems in hitting Prince Eugene and then when they changed ships, I don’t remember if she even got close to Bismarck? She did have allot of fire missions prior to being sacrificed in the Bismarck affair? Forever in His service

You forgot the Invergordon Mutiny.

gj drac =)

I'm American so I'm partial to the Iowa's and Dakota class but I have to admit....the hood sure was a handsome ship.

What diffrences where there between the hood and the rest of the planned admiral class.

Have you ever done a a specific refit for the Hood, like one that the Renown received.

The Hood is a curious case of a "battlecruiser" which is longer and heavier than all battleships ever fielded by RN. Also, only two RN ships (of the gun era, before missiles) were more heavily armed. How exactly was this beast a "battlecruiser"? Because it could achieve 32kn??

The hms hood was my favorite warship. Now it's a the bottom of the denmark strait.

Freaking Hood, Dude!!!