STirpitzBookReview

Reviewed by Steven Douglas Mercatante [1]

The story of the Tirpitz, as presented by military historians Niklas Zetterling and
Michael Tamelander, is really a metaphor for the experiences endured by many of
Germany's Second World War capital ships and the concomitant Allied efforts to
destroy them. It is in this look at the struggle between Allied and German maritime
assets in one of the Second World War's most hostile physical environments that
helps elevate Zetterling's and Tamelander's work on the Tirpitz to more than just
another look at one of the Third Reich's largest surface combatants and helps make it
a truly enjoyable read.

Zetterling and Tamelander are veteran historians who have produced numerous
publications on critical aspects of the Second World War including; books on the
Tirpitz' sister ship - the Bismarck, the 1940 campaign in Norway and Germany's
Second World War Eastern Front. This wider base of knowledge upon which these
two military historians draw upon is certainly evident in their recent work on the
Tirpitz. There is no question primary and secondary sources germane specifically to
the battleship Tirpitz inform their work, including archival records on the Kriegsmarine
from the Bundesarchiv-Militararchiv at Freiburg. However, it is in the larger context
from which they approach the subject of Germany's last super-battleship that helps
this particular publication stand out.

Tirpitz, The Life and Death of Germany's Last Super Battleship could have very easily
been written to include a breakdown of the ship's design, construction and day to
day history. Some readers doubtlessly would prefer more of such technical details and
the lack of more than a modicum of such information, though explained by Zetterling
and Tamelander as a product of doing so in their previous treatment of the Bismarck,
is perhaps this book's salient flaw. However, Zetterling and Tamelander are up front in
clearly explaining that this book's focus is on the Tirpitz role in the war at sea once it
became operational, the Allied drive to destroy the Tirpitz, and thus the events that
unfolded around the ship rather than a focus on the ship itself. After reading Tirpitz,
The Life and Death of Germany's Last Super Battleship it appears the authors have
largely succeeded in meeting their stated objectives.

As such, the book's real value is two-fold. First, it provides an excellent starting point
for the generalist unfamiliar with the war at sea along Europe's northern periphery and
the Tirpitz role in this war. Second, it accurately synthesizes the available work on
Allied efforts to destroy the battleship into one, at times, entertaining read.
Therefore, it is no coincidence that this book comes alive in its descriptions of the
1942-1944 Allied efforts to destroy the Tirpitz and the battles surrounding the
Murmansk-bound convoys during the spring and summer of 1942. The perspectives
provided by accounts of those who participated in and were present during these
battles bring particular life to the story of these events. These descriptions help
broaden this work's appeal to beyond that of a general military history enthusiast but
also for those interested in the harshness of life at sea. Even though this particular
work reveals little that would be new to those well versed in the literature and
available historical record in relation to the Tirpitz; such readers would doubtlessly
enjoy the first hand accounts provided by those involved in the battles surrounding
the German battleship.

Zetterling and Tamelander's work is well organized into twenty-six easily digestible
chapters that mostly stick to a chronological approach of the Tirpitz' life and death
with the story picking up after the battleship had been already designed, built and
passed its sea trials. Thus, the meat of the book revolves around events during the
years 1942-44. There is one major digression from the focus on events in Northern
Europe, when the authors describe the British commando raid at St. Nazaire, France.
A raid the British Admiralty ordered up to destroy the last remaining dry-dock in
Western Europe capable of servicing the Tirpitz. Zetterling and Tamelander bolster
the book's content with a number of maps that are well placed proximate to the
events described in the text. Though the book is not an operational history per se, it
consistently explores the lead up to each battle or campaign including discussions of
the larger pressures from higher up the command chain influencing the immediate
decision makers and the immensely important role played by the weather in fighting at
and near the sea. Finally, though the included black and white pictures are few,
those that are included are well chosen and some seem to be unique to this particular
book.

Overall, Tirpitz, The Life and Death of Germany's Last Super Battleship is a book this
reviewer enjoyed and does not hesitate to recommend.