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

568 Pages·2012·4.61 MB·English

by  Ballantyne

Other books in the Warships of the
Royal Navy series by Iain
Ballantyne
WARSPITE
H.M.S. LONDON

With Jonathan Eastland
H.M.S VICTORY

Also by Iain Ballantyne

STRIKE FROM THE SEA

All titles published by Pen & Sword Books

First published in Great Britain in 2008 by
PEN & SWORD MARITIME
an imprint of
Pen & Sword Books Ltd
47 Church Street, Barnsley
South Yorkshire, S70 2AS

Copyright © Iain Ballantyne, 2008
9781783035069

The right of Iain Ballantyne to be identified
as Author of this Work has been asserted by him in
accordance with the Copyright, Designs and
Patents Act 1988.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British
Library.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical
including photocopying, recording or by any information storage
and retrieval system, without permission from the Publisher in writing.

Typeset in 10/12pt Palatino by
Concept, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire
Printed and bound in England by
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Table of Contents
Other books in the Warships of the Royal Navy series by Iain Ballantyne
Title Page
Copyright Page
H.M.S. RODNEY
FOREWORD
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
AUTHOR’S INTRODUCTION
Chapter One - OF SHOOTING, SLAYING AND SINKING
Chapter Two - AN EXECUTION AT MALTA
Chapter Three - SO MANY BRAVE FELLOWS
Chapter Four - THE SHIP THAT NEVER WAS
Chapter Five - DAWN OF THE OLYMPIANS
Chapter Six - THE RED SHIP
Chapter Seven - SEND FRIED EGG TO ADMIRAL
Chapter Eight - CAPTAIN OF THE GATE
Chapter Nine - THE BOMB
Chapter Ten - HARD CHEESE FOR HEROES
Chapter Eleven - THE CHILEAN REEFER INCIDENT
Chapter Twelve - AVENGE THE HOOD
Chapter Thirteen - NO SIRENS, NO CHEERS
Chapter Fourteen - WEST AFRICAN INTERLUDE
Chapter Fifteen - KEEP THE SHIP FIGHTING
Chapter Sixteen - COUNTERFEIT TIRPITZ
Chapter Seventeen - THE GUNS OF MERS-EL-KEBIR
Chapter Eighteen - FORGING THE HAMMER
Chapter Nineteen - D-DAY SAVIOUR
Chapter Twenty - TARGET ALDERNEY
Chapter Twenty-One - KOLA RUN
Epilogue - CODA FOR A FIGHTING LIFE
Appendix 1 - RODNEY’S PEOPLE
Appendix 2 - NELSON CLASS
Appendix 3 - HMS NELSON
Appendix 4 - LIEUTENANT RICHARD EVELYN COLTART
Appendix 5 - TWO RODNEYS
Appendix 6 - CLIFFORD WOOLLEY AND A BATTLESHIP RODNEY
WEB SITE
BIBLIOGRAPHY
SOURCES
INDEX
H.M.S. RODNEY
Motto
‘Eagles do not breed doves’

Battle Honours
QUEBEC 1759
SYRIA 1840
CRIMEA 1854
NORWAY 1940
ATLANTIC 1940 – 1
BISMARCK ACTION 1941
MALTA CONVOYS 1941 – 2
NORTH AFRICA 1942 – 3
SICILY 1943
SALERNO 1943
MEDITERRANEAN 1943
NORMANDY 1944
ENGLISH CHANNEL 1944
ARCTIC 1944

This is my story
This is my song
Been in commission far too long
Roll out the Rodney, the Nelson, the Hood
This two-funnelled bastard is no bloody good
Salty sea ditty sung by sailors of smaller vessels, such as destroyers, in the early
days of the Second World War, expressing their defiant longing for the allegedly
softer, easier life to be found in a capital ship like HMS Rodney. The story
related on
the following pages proves that perception was a little wide of the mark.