3 weeks go by without seeing a single US or British warship. 90,000 tons of merchant cargo have gone down the past 3 weeks with no escort. Then, on November 3rd, at 6:00 AM, New German radar picks up contacts 40 miles away.
The Germans, having believed a 3 ship one escort convoy was approaching, Order flank speed ahead. The truth couldn't be more different, however. One of the most powerful British battleships received intelligence stating "German capital warships near Faroe Islands. Submarine Undine reports 3 German Blucher-class heavy cruisers. Britain immediately sends out her top of the line battleship, HMS Duke of York, along with a new gunboat: a J class destroyer.
However the intelligence was not so much a coup as it was misleading: 2 brand new German Bismarck class battleships, both weighing an astonishing 50.000 tons, escorted by a 16.000 ton German Heavy Cruiser: the Blucher.
They wield the fire power to crush any ship in the British Fleet.
At 6:54 AM, King George opens fire at the suspected cruisers. British armor piercing 14 inch shells plunge into the sea. The British ships blast away, but Lutjens, wanting to hold fire to try and identify the or what looked like tankers about 20 miles off, holds his fire.
At 7:00 AM, Bismarck and Tirpitz gives the order to fire. Germany has unrelased the fury of the most powerful warship on earth, used to its most deadly way: BB vs. BB fights.
Bismarck first salvo stops Duke of York dead in her tracks, the first hit hit the compass platform, second hit the upper top part of the second funnel, third hit the bridge, 4th hit the radar, and the other 8 plunged into her waterline. Duke of York suddenly burst into flames as her wooden decks caught flame.
Second salvo had the same results. Nearly 300 men were killed bellow decks, as all these shells went right into the engine room. Tirpitz scores her first hit, when a 5.9" secondary shell struck her funnel, doing minor damage. Tirpitz then got several more main and secondary battery shots before switching targets to the J class. Blucher, only scored a hit on the lower part of funnel 2.
Bismarck fires again. Her rounds devastate the British warship, causing her to start trying to retreat to the north a 13.8 knots.
The ships now aim at the J class. The destroyer had been rapid firing Blucher. She (the destroyer) now suffers heavy damage, and is listing 20* to port. Tirpitz scores direct hits on her, and some men onboard the destroyer even think "Did we just take a torpedo!?"
Blucher is forced to port. So close from Britain, the entire home fleet could sortie out and sink all ships.
Blucher fires a final mighty salvo, before the destroyer goes down. 39 were killed.
With Blucher retreating, Lutjens hurriedly decides to sink what he correctly identified as a T3 Tanker, and a smaller 7.000 ton ship. The jobs done in a few minutes.
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