HMS Rodney - Guide 146
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 4 ต.ค. 2019
- This months Patreon request is for HMS Rodney, the second of the Nelson class battleships.
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Next on the list:
-HMCS Ontario
-Lion class BC
-USS Wasp
-HMS Blake
-HMS Romala/Ramola
-SMS Emden
-Väinämöinen and Ilmarinen
-Destroyer Velos
-U.S.S. John R. Craig
-C class
-HMS Caroline
-HMS Hermes
-Iron Duke
-Kronprinz Erzerzorg Rudolph.
-HMS Eagle
-Ise class
-18 inch monitor
-De Zeven Provinciën
-USS Langley
-Kongo class
-Grom class
-St Louis class
-All-big-gun designs
-USS Oregon
-Gascogne
-Alsace
-Lyon and Normandie classes
-Leander class
-HMS Ajax
-Project 1047
-Battle class
-Daring class
-USS Indianapolis
-Atago/Takao
-Midway class
-Graf Zeppelin
-Bathurst class
-RHS Queen Olga
-HMS Belfast
-Aurora
-Imperator Nikolai I
-USS Helena
-USS Tennesse
-HMNZS New Zealand
-HMS Queen Mary
-USS Marblehead
-New York class
-L-20e
-Abdiel class
-Panserskib (Armoured ship) Rolf Krake
-HMS Victoria
-HMS Charybdis
-Eidsvold class
-IJN “Special” DD's
-SMS Emden
-Ships of Battle of Campeche
-USS England (DE-635)
-Tashkent
-1934A Class
-HMS Plym (K271)
-Siegfried class
Music - / ncmepicmusic
Pinned post for Q&A :)
Repeating my request for a look at the Soviet Project 21 design as laid out in the Crown Colony episode's Q&A post.
Drachinifel you should do a video on the I-400 class submarine carrier
I know it's a ways off, but have you given any thought to an April fool's video?
Would the battlecruiser Projekt 1047 be a good evidence that the Scharnhorst was not a battlecruiser, because Project 1047 was a Scharnhorst designed as a battlecruiser ?
A video on armored cruisers development would be interesting and how Jackie Fisher butchered the idea into the battle cruiser.
" ...with a few unfortunate German armored fighting vehicles learning in all three landings that a 16 inch High Explosive shell was remarkably bad for things like; their health, their continued existence and, indeed, their remaining upright."
I will never get tired of your quips.
Well, at Salerno, said German armored vehicles also learned that 5" shells from nearly beached destroyers were no picnic either.
There is something about that British voice cutting loose with his trademark epic-level sarcasm...like fine wine.
@@danagiles5100 Not easily frightened. th-cam.com/video/ymFSzyTqfe0/w-d-xo.html
To be fair..the soviets found out that their new Stalin tanks are in fact quite vulnerable to german 8 and 11 Inch shells,showing them that parking your entire unit in a village with Otto Carius nearby is in fact,rather stupid^^
Rodney is the only known BB to have engaged a Panther tank in direct fire, with the on-shore fire control officer spending 30 minutes chasing it across fields with 16 inch gun fire before finally catching it with what is thought to be a direct - or near direct- hit given the vehicle essentially evaporated.
It's a great story. I'm not convinced it's actually true, but a great story nonetheless. Her firing certainly broke up a force of three dozen LXXXVI Corps panzers attempting a counterattack near Caen at the extreme range of 32,000 yards, but I've never been able to find good evidence of her gunners chasing an individual tank. I'd be interested in a link if you have one.
I can't help but imagine what that tank crew would have felt, even if it was just dumb luck that kept putting them in the cross hairs.
I heard a similar story about a US battleship during the Gulf War, but I've never been able to confirm it. Supposedly 3 Iraqi tanks got up on a hillside and took some potshots at it. The battleship replied with one of her 16" guns. Tank shell: smudged the paintjob. Battleship shell: totally obliterated the center tank and completely destroyed the two on either side of it.
The ultimate anti tank rifle. The 16"50
Tank commander: "Damn, I wish I was driving a Maus."
HMS Rodney: "Fine. You'd only leave bigger pieces."
A now I understand why she hammered the Bismarck so hard, she was going on a nice vacation, relax have herself looked after for a while and this inconsiderable German lady shows up and starts making all sorts of noise and trouble forcing poor old in need of vacation Rodney to deal with it. So logically frustrated and annoyed she wastes no time nor effort to dispatch with this trouble, not wanting to risk her vacation being totally cancelled.
HMS Rodney *Heading for vacation*
Bishmark * MAY I SPEAK TO YOUR MANAGER??*
My dear Sir, you made me laugh XD
@@Bill.Papadakis oh my goodness, Bismarck is a Karen 😂😂😂😂😂😂
I now want an Azur Lane version of that
HMS Rodney basically sprained her ankle while doing so to the Bismarck
Nelson and Rodney always looked to me like very aggressive supertankers.
You're not the only one to think that, they were nicknamed Rodol and Nelsol at one point.
I think you're right!! I believe they were ( from memory) nicknamed "Nelsol&Rodsol" after a class of RN fleet carriers with the "Sol" suffix, at the time?
Like bloody merchant battleships.
@@MrRikersBeard Bit of a surprise for the Somali pirates
@@bigblue6917 : I'd almost pay money to see that.
So basically Rodney was quintisentially British: her crew 'mutininied' by just downing tools & singing songs while in port, but making sure they kept everything tidy, and no matter how in need of refit or repair she was, Rodney did indeed just keep calm and carry on.
Tidy? Ship shape and Bristol fashion please Or squared away.
neh, the way some of those guys sing is probably a Geneva Convention violation. 🫤
☑️ I like the idea of battleship sailors mutinying for higher pay, and I feel that I deserve more money! Granted, neither do I serve in the navy _OR_ on a battleship, but what's to stop me from driving 45 minutes north to Philadelphia, buying a ticket for a tour of the USS New Jersey, then mutinying for higher pay as soon as I get onboard! I'm not convinced there'll be a piano for me to play while mutinying, _but_ I'm _SURE_ to get a raise when I'm done, even without the piano!
Granted, I'm self-employed, which means that I'm literally the only one who can decide whether or not to grant myself a raise. But I'm pretty sure I could convince myself of my "raise worthiness" with a proper battleship mutiny! 😏👍
That sounded like a Canadian mutiny. "We're going to protest by doing our jobs!"
Clad I'm not the only one who thought that!
@Hammerschlägen M Second cousin to Typo … No relation to Smart Arse.
@@ThePhoenix198 Guud Juan!
@Hammerschlägen M Remember...when called a smartass, reply: "Of course. Every part of my anatomy is intelligent!".
korbell Canadian here can confirm, the way we protest is by doing our jobs better than usual
I love this ship to death, for a multitude of reasons. The Nelsons represent remarkable engineering achievement under incredibly restrictive conditions, the crew of the Rodney in particular contributed heroically to the war effort, and on my list of ships which in any remotely sane world would have been preserved as museums she is in the top three along HMS Warspite and USS Enterprise.
The more I learn about these magnificent ships the more I get angry that they got scrapped.
The curator for USS New Jersey considers it one of the best Battleships ever built in a ship to ship duel on a par with New Jersey, some very clever design, it was more heavily armed and armoured than Bismark which would have turned and fled if it could I am sure.
Although, the USA has preserved some of the fast battleships, I tend to like HMS Rodney best because of the all 3 main gun turrets being forward. Even though it gives it a different profile than most ships it's unique & with all 9 guns being so close together, once the fire control gets the right solution those 9 guns will make 16" shells rain on target. I so pity the sailors that were aboard Bismarck, for they got to see the devastation those guns can cause at length. I've always thought that the Germans should have waited and unleashed Bismarck & Tirpitz at the same time. Then they would have been double hard to deal with. In a lot of ways the Germans made decisions that helped with their defeat, like attacking Russia, & declaring war on the US. They couldn't invade England because of the Channel so they invade Russia. Hitler could have conquered the world if he had had some patience. Scary but true.
@@daCAT-100mil-Baby Britain was broke and could not afford such luxery
@@kennethdeanmiller7324 No I disagree without a large navy Germany could NOT take the Empire
I always have a soft spot for both Nelsol and Rodnol, probably because of their unique look but there's something charming about them.
They are Art Deco battleships.
They were also quite efficient.
@@5000mahmud Not really, they were too compromised by the Washingon treaty, this made them too slow to operate with carriers and compromised handling in strong winds and seas, they also suffered on the performance of the 16 inch gun, which never lived up to expectations and considered not as capable as the 15 inch. They did their job, performed as well as they could, fortunately there were only ever two Axis ships in the North that could pose a threat and they were considered too slow to be sent to the Pacific so never risked coming into contact with Japanese. But in their defence, they were about as big a bang you could get while staying within the original Washington treaty limitations.
@@grahamariss2111 No as in they were hydrodynamically efficient and had a all-or-nothing armour scheme. The N3 and G3 would've been ideal though.
@@5000mahmud Clutching at straws with that are we not. The fact they were no matter how efficient their hulls, they were too slow to operate alone or support a carrier. The all or nothing armour is another compromise, because as the Bismarck showed a hit from Prince of Wales on fuel tank in the bows whilst in itself not significant, the loss of speed and oil trail left was sufficient to swing the initiative back to the Royal Navy. Also some things were simply wrong, such as approach to torpedo protection, being good ideas to solve the weight issue at the time, but shown to not be effective in practice , which left them very vunerable to mines and torpedoes. As I said, they were a creative solution to limitations of the Washington treaty, but like everything built within the rules they were heavily compromised so the Navy was never truly satisfied with them.
Two classmates at my old grammar school discovered both their fathers had served on the Rodney, both taking part in the attack on the Bismarck. One was a gunner, the other in the engine room, both found stone drunk in Liverpool one evening after the American refit. Dalrymple was well regarded as captain.
My own son married in 2014. His father-in-law was in his 90s and had been a marine on board the Nelson as part of Force H. Again, another happy ship. His description of the full broadside, opening up on Italian warships in the Med will remain with me. "They were quicker than us, but we had the range. And they had to be quick. Our gunners knew their business."
They must of known my Father from the Pool on Rodney from39 - 42. Bill Carr his name. My Grandad James Carr bare fist fighter in the Stadium in Liverpool take on all comers as far as Scotland 1920's
.
I know that Nelson and Rodney aren’t considered to be attractive ships by conventional standards, but I’ve always had a bit of a soft spot for them (especially Rodney) and I consider them to be some of my favorite ships as far as looks are concerned. Truth be told, I actually think they look better than the Queen Elizabeths, and I’d even go so far as to say I think they’re on a par with Hood as far as aesthetics are concerned. From my very first impression of them, I always thought of Nelly and Rodbox as looking like ships that don’t waste time or resources trying to *look* intimidating or impressive, because they just *are* both of those things.
Along with Hood and Warspite, they’re probably my favorite ships of the inter-war Royal Navy. But while Hood’s looks always brought to mind the word “Hunter” for me, and Warspite practically embodies the phrase “Old Warhorse”, Nelson and Rodney make me think of the word “Inevitable”.
Oh, and they both look like giant, moving castles from the front, which is both intimidating as hell and something I absolutely adore about them. 🥰
I don't get that. The comments are full of comments about her being ugly. Obviously her wepon placement dictates her fighting style, but that doesn't make her ugly. Then again I consider the M3 Lees interesting.
Jason Gleason You know, I never would’ve thought to compare the Nelsons to the M3 Lee, but I don’t think that’s actually a bad comparison to make. I mean, they’re both pretty unusual in appearance because they both had to fulfill certain requirements while staying within a set of fairly strict limitations, but once you understand *why* they were designed that way, neither of them seem quite as weird as at first glance.
Also, even if their looks prohibit them from being conventionally attractive, those same looks make them stand out quite starkly when compared to their peers and give them a lot of character.
@@kelb76 The first page of comments seem to be mostly claiming shes attractive.... but she's powerful ugly to my eye. Compelling to look at all the same.
I don't find them ugly so much as unconventional with their big blocky superstructure, I personally think the Dunkerques and Richelieus are better looking as far as the all-forward-firepower ships go, shame about them essentially never getting to do anything except getting bombed and shelled though.. but yes I'd imagine seing Rodney or Nelson steaming towards you would be rather unnerving given their appearance
@@mostevil1082 it's like the Apache Helicopter , you would but you wouldn't want your mates to find out :)
HMS Rodney: **Escorting Convoy** Come on. Let's have a go!
The Twins: NEIN!!!
Having none of that beast
If Rodney was able to punch through Bismarck's armor, the battlecruisers were going to have a very bad day against it's guns
My grandfather was onboard the Rodney during the battle with the Bismarck. He wasn't a member of the ship's crew, he was a 'hitchhiker' on his way to pick up an east bound convoy. The one thing I do remember my father telling me (I never met my grandfather, he died in 1944), was the damage done to Rodney by her main armament. Big 'I-beams' running through the mess deck had been bent sideways by broadsides Rodney fired.
Yep, because she pared down weight to meet naval treaty weight restrictions, to the point she wasn’t structurally sound**. They’d spring leaks so bad they were in real danger of sinking. Brits didn’t cheat, which given how other nations often treated restrictions as “guidelines” was maybe unwise.
** - when firing main battery
most of the concussion damage was done when the guns were firing point blank - which wasnt really expected for them to do. That smashed all the urinals too - and a good number of portholes
From my Dad's D-Day diary:
Wednesday 7th June 1944
This evening, Rodney was shelling a strong-point
this side of Caen. Shells going right over us.
Nine tons per salvo - what a row!
Please look after that diary and hope it shared widely so history is not lost.
My Father was bombarding the beaches on the Rodney on D-Day he was 17 years old.
Many years ago I had the privilege of working with a man named Cecil Greenwood who had served on H.M.S. Rodney throughout WWII, having volunteered before the outbreak of war.
I got along well with Cecil and he told me of many of his adventures and scrapes during this time, including a few that can't be repeated here. 😉
We know about the exploding toilet seat, so don't be shy.
Is one of them about the sheep?
I'll bet one of them is about the sheep.
A friends father served on Rodney,and POW.
@@sandydennylives1392 Actually, one story involves Rodney being among the first ships into Naples, very soon after the germans had left, and training its guns on the city to discourage anyone from getting funny ideas.
Anyway, Cecil and one of his buddies got shore leave, and being sailors decided they'd go looking for "a house of ill repute". Having no money but convinced that the germans would have taken all the food with them, and hence the "ladies of negotiable affection" would be very grateful for food, Cecil and friend took tinned food to pay for the good times they expected to have.
The result was rather different, and ended with Cecil being thrown naked into the street by the Madame of the house when he offered a few tins of peas as payment. 😂
@@Kevin-mx1vi He was pretty mean with the peas, at the culinary center of the pizza, but a great story, thanks!
My Dad George Moss served on the Rodney for a couple of years and during the sinking of the Bismark. He told me what it was like and I have some photos of it being attacked and sinking. He always wept telling me stories of lives lost.
I must be weird but I think these are two of the most beautiful ships ever built.
No, I believe you are a man of class and style.
I have him as my desktop so I can oogle at his profound masculinity every single day. Rodnol Oi, Oi, Oi !!!
Another absolute classic is USS California after her refit following Pearl Harbor. With a 12 gun 4 turret arrangement and her broad beam, like the Nelsols she just oozes death.
@@ThePaulv12
My next fave is the QE class, particularly Warspite that old warhorse.
@@waynesworldofsci-techwarspite was amazing. Scrapping her and Rodney was a crime.
Bismarck: *sweats profusely*
Meh, Ark Royal deserves credit for that one.
@@bkjeong4302 Some credit.
Show us on the model where the Rodney touched you
Bismarck according to the newest research was scuttled by the crew.
@@petrameyer1121 It was already sinking by the time they did - if anything they simply sped it up
I had a friend who's middle name was Rodney in honour of this ship. Apparently his father was on the beach on D-day pinned down by a pill box, Rodney was called and "plained it off at ground level"
For some reason I've always liked the Nelson class, especially Rodney. I think some of the reason was from a story I read as a kid about the sinking of Bismarck and Rodney's role. Regarding Rodney reportedly reaching a speed of 25 knots despite needing a serious overhaul I found during my time at sea that a good engineer always keeps a few knots and tricks up his sleeve.
As Captain Daniel V. Gallery of USS Guadalcanal (CVE 60) fame (U505 capture) put it (paraphrased) … "If you REALLY want to know how fast your ship can move, scare the bejesus out of the Chief Engineer and black gang. Tell them there are submarines nearby and the destroyers are off chasing sound contacts." Gallery said the Bridge pit log repeater worked up to 2 full knots above what the ship reached during builder and Navy trials. I would imagine Rodney's ChEng and engineering crew thought catching Bismarck every bit as desirable as Guadalcanal's thought of getting clear of the sound contacts.
I think an argument could be made that the 16" rifles mounted in the Nelson class were probably the most powerful 16" sent to sea by any Navy. Dr. Bob Ballard's survey of Bismarck and the incredible damage to her 'bank vault' armored tower support this view. I doubt KGV's 14" could manage that even from the point blank range Rodney was firing from at one point (within torpedo range.)
Thanks again for all you do sir. It's great stuff.
Another ship that had a damn good chief engineer was the USS Oregon BB-3. Sailing from California to Cuba in 66 days 1898 as the Spanish American War broke out. Then being one of the faster American warships to catch the Spanish fleet as it tried to break out from Santiago.
There is some good evidence that KGV's 14" guns were every but as destructive as Rodney's 16". The damage inflicted on Scharnhorst at the North Cape by Duke of York was terminal for that ship. The 14" were higher velocity rounds and had a large bursting charge relative to their calibre. They proved to be quite effective in operation. It is of note that KGV class ships accounted for 2 German capital ships in WW2.
@@ScienceChap Bear in mind that Scharnhorst was no where near as heavily armored as Bismarck nor as heavily compartmentalized, comparing the two is like comparing apples and oranges.
KGVs 14" AP shells were not as heavy as Rodney's 16". Higher velocity can make up for much of it but not all. To get the MASS necessary for the lighter projectile to penetrate heavy armor necessarily means a greater percentage of shell weight is in the formed steel of the projectile nose and a much lighter bursting charge.
Indeed, there is empirical evidence that says the 16"/45 mounted in the Nelson class was perhaps the most powerful mounted in any battleship of any navy, my own USN included, at least until the US 16" superheavy projectile entered service.
My gramps said that they were devastating and very accurate he said that they could sit in plymouth sound and hit targets in torbay within a few yards of each other which is incredibly accurate and equally devastating to think considering the size and weight of her shells he and my other freind who was on the Norfolk felt very sorry for there fellow souls on the Bismarck.
But both of them had lost friends on the hood so it was a hard pill for both to take
These guns weren’t actually very good.
Drach mentions her work at Normandy and others have added already, but I have 2 stories to include. On 30 June she ruined the attack of a Panzer Division 17 miles inland, prompting Rommel to tell his boss 'the effects of heavy naval bombardment are so powerful that an operation either with infantry or armoured formations is impossible in an area commanded by this rapid-fire artillery' and one surrendering officer to say 'we'll fight you and your tanks, but those naval guns are too much'. Meanwhile, an RAF pilot who'd been shot down was hiding in Caen and said the raid by 400 heavy bombers was less terrifying than Rodney's bombardment!
Honestly I think the Nelson is my favourite class of battleship. There's just something about their lines that just makes them look really cool and the three turrets forwards makes them stand out too.
My great-grandad served on Nelson for a while on an anti-aircraft battery (it gave him night terrors and he'd wake up screaming out orders while on leave, but he never spoke to anyone about what actually happened) before being sent to land in Normandy for D-day (he was a colour-sergeant in the Royal Marines) and got caught by a mortar one or two days after which ended his war pretty quickly (incidentally I don't think they got all the splinters out of his leg which caused a lot of pain for the rest of his life, which was probably greatly reduced as a result).
Even poor Rodnol was deserving of being preserved, just for her stellar performance in the Bismarck chase. Then again, if even Warspite couldn't be kept around...
Bismarck was like stylish boxer for the magazine cover ... Rodney and Nelson where MMA / bouncer types who everybody would call unstylish ... until first punch.
Joshua vs Fury?
That pretty much sums it up. MMA-fighters generally have bad boxing, and Bismarck was a weight class above.
just say it simple: Rodney heroically destroyed a GERMAN!!( Panther)
A truly beautiful ship, easily one of my favourite designs of all time.
My favourite ship, the maritime museum in Liverpool is a must for fans of this big gun beauty!
Damn I wish the Brits would have kept this around as a museum ship!! So many great English BB's went to the breakers. If they just would have saved this one and HMS Warspite!
Ryan Korte British battleships,no such thing as "English battleships" but yes I agree..
If I ever get a time machine you can bet your tea kettle I'll do my damndest to bring her back.
I think England is just too small to fit a big ship like this as a museum.
Of course they should have kept it. It's part of history.
HMS Belfast was the best we could manage. USS Texas is a straight copy of a WW1 Britsh battleship, I really want to get there to see it.
@@sctm81 it was a question of economics..basically bankrupt..also gearing up for the cold war...we do have many many artefacts but only HMS Victory or the Mary Rose..theres remains of a ww1 minesweeper that was being towed to be broken local to me..
Always thought the Rodney and Nelson were handsome ships, that acquitted themselves well despite all the early issues. It's a different look than other battleships for sure, but in a good way to my eye.
I was named after this beauty as my Dad was serving on her when she decommissioned.
So was my dad. He was responsible for stripping out the radar and electronics before she went to the breakers, and was sure that he saw her minus her turrets in Inverkeithing in late 1945, long before the often quoted 1948 date for her scrapping
I am certain my grandad served on here. He is no longer here, xxx
You are probably glad/lucky he wasn't on HMS Nelson or even HMS Pansy lol ... for a moment I thought you were going to say you were conceived onboard , that would of been a really interesting story! ... I would have been called Rifleman if my old man had followed suit about naming his kid after a ship he served on or even Trespasser (sub) … instead I was called Nick, a name he thought of while shaving apparently …. cheers
My Dad served on the Rodney too he was on communications.
Are you sure your names not Dave ?
Many of my friends had posters of football players and rock stars on there walls. I had Rodney and Nelson. They make me very happy
Rodney and her sister were essentially the last Ships of the Line. Steel castles designed to batter their opponent while being battered, ironically making them more useful for the final role of battleships (shore bombardment) than the more modern Fast Battleship
Weirdly I was once just down the road from Birkenhead and came across a objayda shop, In the window was a rather large, about 5 feet, very old model of the Rodney. I suspected it might of been a model made by the shipyard,,,,,, I was however forbidden to buy it by she who must be obeyed.
Ah. Good old Rumpole
I dont know if I spelled that correctly
@@brpitrepeters7983 Reference got sir :), spelled correctly
@@brpitrepeters7983 Or good old H. Rider Haggard.
Obvious question why didn't you go back later? It is, after all, what garden sheds are made for 😊
@@ThePhoenix198 Ah, I did, it was some months later as I don't live in the area and some other lucky bugger, With a shed, or without a fire breathing wife nabbed it.
HMS Revenge: (implements GIANT CONNING TOWER OF DOOM)
HMS Rodney: "Hold my tea....."
Ahh. That battleship that once fought like a cruiser.
Fuck you. If Bismarck wouldn't have been hamstrung and facing a whole battle group it would have creamed Rodney.
TwistedSister/Haratiofales But it didn’t, so it pointless to say lmao.
Bismark got yeeted on by a Plane destined for World War 1 xD
@@TwistedSisterHaratiofales You know you're talking about a ship that blew out it's own radar set had 1 less gun and similar armor effectiveness right?
@@TwistedSisterHaratiofales lol, triggered wehraboo.
Folks should have thought Samar about what ship you meant. I get it; Rodney maneuvered quickly, chased shell splashes to avoid hits, and landed multiple hits on the enemy, including torpedoes. Of course she did have a bit better armor than a destroyer escort. Samuel B. Roberts would approve.
A gorgeous, unique, and creatively designed ship: front end beetling, intimidating, overwhelming with menace and power. Illustrious!
This warrior had museum ship written all over her
Well, they also did scrap the Warspite, so them sending Rodney to the breakers isn't that much of a surprise...
@@Bird_Dog00 Warspite was great but Rodney was unique in design and completely destroyed the Bismarck.And Im starting to believe that the Turpitz was hiding primarily from the Nelson and Rodney.16 in guns so close together may have a unknown advantage as far as hitting and damaging the Bismark and Turpitz. And the captain of the Rodney seems to be a very underrated leader both in fire control and seaman ship.Once the Rodney fired all nine together that kind of energy on contact may do damage that has never been studied
Randy, her material condition was so poor, and the financial position of Britain was even worse postwar, that preserving her wasn't a realistic option. Unfortunate, since she was one of the best examples of an attempt to have the greatest firepower while still not cheating the Washington Naval Treaty.
@@randyjohnson805 Turpitz wasn't all that eager to encounter USS South Dakota either.
Something the UK has failed miserably at doing over the years.
I absolutely love your content! I have given a shout out to your channel many times on my own Sunday morning shows. Your sense of humor absolutely slays me! Not only are you very knowledgeable and informative but you make me laugh pretty much every video with some of the funny things that you say that maybe others don't quite pick up on. Thanks again for the great content and keep up the Great work!
Bismarck has left the chat.
Rather reluctantly by all accounts.?
Not a bad performance for a "tanker look-alike".
Rodney - "I wonder if we finally have these guns sorted out?"
Bismarck - "YAH THINK?"
Myself - Sits in wonderment at what the N3 and G3's would have been capable of, given the performance of the Washington Treaty "Wal-Mart" version....
I was lucky enough to shake hands and buy a pint to a ex HMS Rodney veteran a few years ago. Very humble and was actually solemn about watching the Bismarck sinking.
So many of these comments seem to joke about the deaths of sailors doing their duty.
Rodney is in my top 5 all time warships, what a career she had serving the UK and cause of freedom. I wish you guys had kept of them for museum ships, I would fly from Midwest USA to step foot on Rodney or Nelson plus countless other British warships. V
Thank you HMS Rodney.
Yes, I definitely agree that in a truly different world HMS Rodney, HMS Warspite & USS Enterprise(CV-6) should have been preserved as museum ships. HOWEVER, I read a little piece written by a sailor that wad aboard "the Grey Ghost" and he thought that having kids running around the deck laughing and eating ice cream & such would have been disrespectful to the sailors that fought & died on that deck. And he felt it was more appropriate for the "old girl" to go to the breakers so that other ships could sport the name of Enterprise IN HONOR of those sailors & the sailors that fought & lived as well!
You cannot eat Metal , the reason my
Mum and Dad left England to migrate
To Australia after the war , England was
Stuffed , best move they ever made , they had a Great life in Australia , there
Gone now , I certainly Grateful they
Came to Australia , I been there to bloody cold 🥶
Yet another beautiful battleship unceremoniously scrapped without a second thought.
And which part of the nascent National Health Service, or the nationalisation of parts of British industry would you have cancelled to fund the refurbishment and upkeep of Rodney, Warspite, et al as museum ships? Or which vessels needed by a post-war Royal Navy would you have sacrificed to do so? FFS people, Britain was financially broken by the Second World War and had higher priorities at the time.
@@ThePhoenix198 I'm sure they could have kept Warspite or Rodney and still funded the NHS. It wouldn't have cost so much in the grand scheme of things to preserve one of them for future generations. They just didn't care to.
Awm Joeyjoejoe I think it came down to the same reason why the Enterprise was not preserved. The ship was basiclly floating seiss cheese, the repair bill alone was not going to be kind. So that plus a struggling post war economy, I can understand. Even if I dont like it.
My favorite class ship, that picture of all 3 turrets and 9 guns all pointing upwards with the tiny little man for scale is awsome
From my research in contingencies for armoring existing vessels Rodney was a distinctly interesting case.
First off- its armor arrangement was internal and also used water and oil as part of its total armor protection. Thus it came in underweight at just ~33k tons.
The Rodney and Nelson were referred to as the "Trees Washington Chopped Down". That's in reference to the treaty limitations that changed a fast 'Battleship/Battlecruiser' with 18" guns a 30+ knot top speed and ~60k tons as designed and ample armor, (like the Lexington and Saratoga, as designed - that became redesigned into aircraft carriers) that had been compromised yet with some similarities.
As 1/2 size in displacement yet armed with 9 triple 16" turrets, they had the largest broadside at the time of their commissioning ~1927. The Maryland and West Virginia - U.S. - and Negato - IJN - had 8- 16" guns in 4- twin mounts. At the time the U.S. hadn't developed the 2700 pound armor piercing projectiles. So the 1 ton × 9 Rodney and Nelson had the largest broadside in the world for a decade.
But there were issues from saving weight. At speed, the ship's hull "panted". That means it flapped at 20+ knots especially in 'Force 5' or above winds in a seaway. Also regarding speed, obviously the Duke of York had heard about the 25 knot speed claims as they zeroed in on the Bismarck. When asked if they could add some knots, the Rodney reportedly answered, "22 knots is all we can give you and we are at 22 knots now". The Duke of York answered (famously), "your 22 knots is slower than ours". I don't if that was classified when I read it first 35 years ago but it has appeared in print subsequently.
Also, about its getting in to point-blank range in its final minutes against Bismarck due to fuel shortages, (they had to break off or run out of fuel within 1 hour) the Rodney suffered severe 'blast damage' from lowering the elevation of its 16 inch guns and ships hull was knocked out of alignment much the way large bomb misses to capital ships frequently did. With aircraft carriers this mis-alignment from near misses caused multiple incidents of ruptured fuel tanks including aviation fuel and that conflagrated hours after actions had ended on the U.S.S. Lexington after the 'Battle of the Coral Sea'. Their was more too it than that with the Lexington, but as it listed it 'uncentered' the ship rupturing the aviation fuel tanks and a spark caused a major 'conflagration'. The Rodney had similar issues after its 'blast damage' in the Bismarck action that was never fully corrected.
I came across documents that they had to be towed to perform bombardments off the French coast in 1944 and after the Bismarck action it was mostly used as a stationary flagship.
The deadly business of war made almost palatable by this informative and (very) witty commentary. Nice one.
HMS Rodney …..Captained by a Genius .. Crewed by Gallant men determined to do their Duty ….She Looks like an oil tanker….. Maneuvers like a destroyer ….. torpedoes like a cruiser …. Engages and Shoots like a Battleship…. Not bad for 45,000 Horsepower …
Don`t quote me on this but I read somewhere that on her way to the States for her refit. subsequently hijacked by having to pop along and sort the Bismarck out , she was also carrying the last of the British Gold Reserve en route to Canada. Like the Warspite she was just one of those glorious old warriors that couldn`t keep out of trouble to the very end.!!!!
Don't forget that HMS Rodney also was carrying the "Elgin Marbles" at the time of the Bismarck epic, from the UK to the US for safe keeping during WW2.
I don't care how she looked. This is my favorite battleship of all time. Imagine ... just for one second ... having that bearing down on you, with ALL THOSE 16-inch cannon pointing directly at you? I know people make fun of her and her sister-ship for their appearance but there's just something about them that I really, really like.
making jokes of her is like making jokes of the local bar boxing champion .... you make jokes if he is not in the range
Just a big nest of floating guns pointing at you, no wonder other battleships tried to gtf out of there.
I heard a story about HMS Rodney. A rumour went around the fleet that an Orkney farmer had supposedly caught a member of her crew "in a compromising position" with a sheep! - this almost certainly *WASNT* true but I'm sure you can see why young sailors would find it funny. Anyway, HMS Repulse was leaving port one day just as Rodney came into port carrying an Admiral. Protocol stated that Repulse had to give way and salute the Admiral. Repulse's crew mustered on deck and saluted.......then made "BAA" (sheep) noises resulting in Repulses Captain later getting a reprimand from the Admiral!
German armored column: We've got this spot secured and the enemy cannot engage us at this distance.
HMS Rodney: I present a counter to your statement, sir.
German flamenwreckage: Makes smoke....
I have a cap tally from HMS Rodney given to me by a friend whose family sponsored British sailors in Boston MA during WWII . As a lad he was lucky enough to have had a tour of the Rodney whilst being refitted and was given two cap tallies, one of which I have. My friend was fascinated to find out that both my dad and step dad were submariners in the RN during part of WWII and that I had attended the Royal Hospital School (known as 'the cradle of the navy.") Naturally my name is Rodney - what else?
Loved the Rodney...she was one of my first model ships.....when I was a wee chipmunk.
To me, the Nelsons look like very large and mean Jaguar XKEs
Well said sir!
I agree with that. They're built up in the rear and low and slinky in the front. The short turrets help in that regard. They look like their sailing full speed while sitting at anchor.
A compromised inter war designs, which did more than anyone could reasonably expect of it in the war, for all its faults. Recall reading the words of a Spitfire pilot who I recall was spotting for her (or Warspite's guns) during D Day about how he was nearly blown out the sky by the shell's sonic shock wave, and then seeing what looked like rapidly moving dustbins flying away from him.
Wasn't hmas warspite there also,sending her "hate' over to some poor Hitler youth.
@@roybennett6330 Yes Warspite was there minus s turret, a boiler room and patched up with concrete after taking a hit from a guided bomb.
Graham Ariss and the funniest thing about Warspite and d-day was the fact that she wore out her own guns and had to go back for more ammunition!
I thought that the individual components very attractive and wonder if the remaining units of the Hood class might have sported them.
Yes indeed I have it in Alfred Price Spitfire
Thanks drachinel she was a loveable leviathan with incredibly accurate massive guns god bless all that served in her my gramps included she kept him safe and amused for several years
Rodney Street, Birkenhead, overlooking Cammell Lairds. My nan actually served the queen her cuppa during HMS Ark Royals launch.
Nice one salior. I bet your proud of yor family history.
Do you mean the current queen Elizabeth or Queen Elizabeth the Queen mother and the ark royal the ww2 carrier, or the Audacious class carrier?
@@JevansUK Queen Mother launched the Audacious class and the Invincible class Arks.
She could deliver 9 gun broadsides while displaying a fraction of her superstructure as a target for the enemy.
It's such a shame she wasn't saved.
One of my favourite British battle ships, thanks for that, made Saturday worthwhile, nothing like some classic British heavy metal on a Saturday lunchtime 🤣
Much joy..much joy. The reason the internet was made. In to a 1000 Zanusi washing machines she was made, but now her memory will never fade..
What a stunning battleship!
Her captain sounds like the captain from down periscope lol. That extra speed was from dropping some corn whiskey down the engine.
7:14 "...and indeed their remaining upright" LOL
Wonderful to see. My dad's twin brother served on the King George the 5th and I have long been aware of the Rodney's history. Thanks for the video and history.
Slayer of Bismark and D-Day savior. One of the ships my grandfather talked about. His destroyer was fire support for the landings. Rodney made some impressions.
Nothing says "Hi you shouldn't stand there" better than a Sixteen inch shell hurtling towards you.
16 inch shells raining death from the heavens while "it's raining men" plays on loop.
@@Kakarot64. Hallelujah!
Could you imagine standing on the deck in front of #2 turret when this ship fired a broadside? Me neither!
Rodney was my grandad s ship . He went for his training first to an ex holiday camp down in England he was a gunner and fireman , I have pics of him on the deck
That "Holiday training camp" was probably "HMS Royal Arthur" which was a shore training establishment that was actually Billy Butlins pre-war Skegness holiday camp. My own father did his basic training there in 1940 before being posted to HMS Dorsetshire and witnessing the sinking of the Bismarck.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 your spot on that’s where it was .. now have a photo of my grandfather and a big group of them and officers at front .. yes Royal Arthur on a board down middle at bottom.. thanks for your interest and comment mate .
@@hujjesb Great stuff. keep that family history safe mate, I've got a small "Introduction to service in the Royal Navy" handbook that was issued to my dad when he was sent there back in 1940.
He said that winter was a hard one, and the east coast gets it worse from the east. He told me that two poor fellers from his intake died after they sneaked off to sleep in the boiler room to keep warm and were killed by carbon monoxide poisoning.
Them old fellers had it hard, thank god it was them and not us. Bless em all.
My Grandfather served on the Rodney, he was a Chief petty officer, i have his medals and all paperwork pertaining to his Naval career sadly he died in 1962 aged 64, when i was only Two, so i never got to hear about this awsome Battleship
My Fathers middle name was Rodney, also alas, not here any more
From what I've read it was battleship gunfire from this ship and other British and American battleships, (all of them old apparently) that played a big part in keeping German armored forces from approaching the coast where the Normandy landings were taking place.
Yes they did a good job
There being no main armament at the stern, seems the designers of the Nelson Class didn't anticipate retreat.
Tone, Dunkerque, Richelieu, but that came with an advantage aswell
My favourite battleship of the war
It is amazing to think that they were able to target tanks and defences from 22 miles away! When she shelled the battery on Alderney she sailed behind the Cherbourg peninsular and so was not even able to be seen.
With her top speed, I guess the engines were worn out and so they could run her faster than normal and not worry about long term damage.
Really interesting from someone in Australia who reads and likes military history
As a kid I always daydreamed the "what if" of what would have happened had the Rodney been there instead of Hood.
There probably wouldn't have been any subsequent wild goose chase.
If she was sunk, sadly probably something like "We told you those ships suck 15 years ago!" and most likely no merciless shiphunt with all ships they can find.
@@josynaemikohler6572Merciless? No, termination with extreme prejudice. It's called 'war'.
@@ThePhoenix198
Yeah, but the loss of Hood was a symbol, and humililation of biritsh pride. Same reason why they sunk SMS Dresden despite being in neutral territory.
Loss of Nelson would suck, but it would not be an outcry. Just regular causalties of war. In war you can lose a ship. But losing essentially the smybol of your navy in around 4 minutes are a completely different matter. British action against Bismarck after sinking Nelson would be probably much more coolheaded.
@@josynaemikohler6572 except they wouldn't lose, HMS Rodney, better captain, better gun crews, more guns (yes, even than Bismark), but most importantly better radar, and a pretty damn good armour system, Rodney had much better armour than that old reconditioned battle cruiser HMS Hood, a ship from WW1. She was the main destructive weapon wrt to Bismark and she was avoided wherever she went, with good reason. I cannot say for definate, but i think Bismark would have been sunk earlier and the old WW1 vet didnt need to be in there really.
A great old girl. Thanks, Drach!
Rob Rose. great video! My dad was a royal marine and served on Rodney during ww2! He was also first crew on HMS Bermuda. Did 2 Russian convoys!!
HMS Rodney is named after: Admiral George Brydges Rodney, 1st Baron Rodney,
Born 13 February 1718 - Died 24 May 1792), was a British naval officer.
At 7:00. 16 inch shell headed towards tanks.
German tank commander: "Dammit, I told them the armor should be 10mm thicker."
Don Jones: 10 FEET thicker would have been better :-/
In the 70s/80s I lived next to an old man who fought on the rodney against the Bismarck all I remember he was scary and said when asked if he could swim his reply was no as there was no point as he was stationed at the bottom of a turret feeding the cordite propellant charges into the hoists. I was too young to appreciate what he had gone through RIP Mr Parker
The owner of a hobby shop I used to buy models at had a menu from a diner in Boston that was signed by members of Rodney’s crew. It was signed “The boys who sank the Bismarck.”
Love the story you tell about this ship. Rodney and her crew were a well oiled machine!
My favourite RN and all-time-favourite battleship class. Both for the engineering ingenuity they represented (including obsessive legalistic distinctions between 'cheating' (not-done, old boy!) and 'everything but' (perfectly valid!)) as a solution to the well known 'treaty battleship' design problem, AND for the unique aesthetic qualities it bestowed on them. OK, they were never going to rival the elegant classical lines of 'Hood' or 'Scharnhorst' but had something that in a sense 'becomes' a capital ship even more. Immense and imperturbable, they just looked and were "the business".
No wonder German fleet commanders decided invariably to give them a wide berth.
I clicked on the front page at just the right time :D Great stuff as usual Drach! Now I have to find a copy of that cutaway 07:28...
Great presentation and coverage.
They served well.
Keep the stories alive.
Used to play Great Naval Battles of the North Atlantic decades ago Rodney and Nelson were such unique ships. Loved the way they looked and were my favorites when speed wasnt an issue.
At least one should have been saved.
The sexiest ship ever built (alongside the Nelson ofc)
Thank you. I agree.
Wow, I was just to ask about her. For some reason, the more I hear about Big Rod Rodney, the more sympathy I have for the ship. If I were asked what's my favorite combat ship, I'd scratch my head and say Moskva? Tirpitz? But lately Rodney is becoming my definite.
Moskva? That didn't age well
@@antonytye3484 wrong Moskva.
I don't care what anyone says the Nelson class are a pair of beautiful looking ships
Nice pictures of my favorite battleship, I had never seen these. Thanks!
Battletanker Love Nelson-class Design
The thing I disliked about the movie Sink The Bismark, was the implication that King George V did most of the damage resulting in Bismarks demise
also how germans were portrayed as complete lunatics
HMS Rodney did 10 times the damage, the the King George was a newer ship that the press needed to hype, HMS Nelson and Rodney were more feared with good reason
@@tonytye8963 KGV suffered a number of turret failures during the last action against Bismarck. Tovey was well aware how fortunate he was to have Rodney at his side.
@@dovetonsturdee7033 From Hodges "at one point KGV's output was down to 10% and only one gun in the twin was fault free throughout".
My father was a gunner in Y turret from 1942.
the comment on her speed makes me wonder if part of her Engineering crew was on RMS Carpathia that fateful night 1912
I've always loved the Nelson class, a very radical design for the Royal Navy and one of the most interesting battleship classes ever built. Especially when you consider they were mainly cut down G3/N3s, made to fit into the new treaties.
They weren't perfect but they were very good and definitely contributed heavily to the Allied war effort in WW2.
Agreed with the rest, but "contributed heavily"? WTF? No battleship deserves that credit.
@@bkjeong4302 Agree to disagree but thank you for the comment.
Definitely a very British ship design in that it posses the notion of never covering your stern as a virtue rather than a flaw that could be disasterously exploited should the balance of power shift against them.
I think HMS Rodney and HMS Nelson were the "sexiest" battleships afloat. Their profiles are very sleek and I love the forward arrangement of their big guns. (The short turrets are very classy.) They almost have a "race car" look if you will. I know their speed was about 22 knots but they "look" like they're doing that when they're standing dead in the water. I'm an artist and my British history bent is towards the Navy of Nelsons time, but I can certainly appreciate the "stylish" design work on this class.
Can you imagine the sheer terror of the Panther tank crew who were being chased by 16" shells from Rodney.
The most mismatched duel in the history of planet Earth.
It's akin to shooting a model tank (1/35 scale) with a .50 BMG Rifle.
Sometimes I can almost believe these great ships were truly greater than the sum of their parts...the sailors I know tell me this is indeed the case
Just learnt that my Great Great Uncle served on HMS Rodney after reading about the Battle of Denmark Strait in a book... Pretty awesome if he was indeed on the ship at the time of sinking Bismarck!
There is a huge scale builders model of Hms Nelson on display at the Discovery Museum in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Very impressive bit of work.