Hood gets a proper refit - now what?

[paulcadogan]

Also, if Bismarck is damaged, but escapes back to Norway, then Germany, having damaged both (rebuilt) Hood and PoW, once all are repaired and Tirpitz is ready, the British are now faced with the threat of the Big Twins. They are going to need to maintain 2 to 1 superiority in the Home Fleet to counter them. This would mean KGV, PoW, DoY and Hood - no other ships had the combined speed and firepower for the job.

How would they have dealt with the Far East? Would Churchill have been able to convince the Admiralty to pull a KGV from the Home Fleet? Plus with the "Little" Twins still at Brest, Renown would have been kept at least in the western Med "on call". Force Z may have ended up being Nelson, Rodney and Repulse!

[RNfanDan]

I don't think that it is a given that if a rebuilt Hood or Renown would be sunk in place of Repulse. Either ship would have much more AA power and far superior UW protection and subdivision.

I never implied that Repulse would not be sunk; reconstructed or not, Hood goes to the Far East with her and Prince of Wales (still a more modern ship, any way you add it up) likely stays in the west.

Repulse is old, but no RN big-gunned ship is faster except her sister, Renown. Repulse was sent to Singapore not because of her marvellous AA capability (she was among the poorest-armed of RN capital ships in that regard), but because of her high speed and 15-inch guns. A discussion of the Far East question pivots, with a modernised Hood, on the distinct possibility that two battlecruisers go. Repulse is almost certainly in the mix, no matter what other capital ships are available. I doubt that any of the KGVs are spared from Bismarck and/or Tirpitz watch.

Think Churchillian for a moment....he wanted a "visual impact" force to be sent to Singapore, one with enough teeth to make Japan think twice about any designs on Malaya. What better showing could possibly have been made than with what was, arguably, the world's most famous capital ship, fairly fresh from a reconstruction and with plenty of speed and firepower, in consort with another fast capital ship (probably Repulse) and a carrier?

Prince of Wales, I think, would not be the choice.

It's purely what-if of course, but I think Hood still gets the worst of endings for her 20-year-old hull at the hands of the indifferent Japanese, who were clearly unafraid of a small flotilla of British warships in that theater of operations. Sorry if this is taking the thread off course...

Interesting subject!

[paulcadogan]

Sorry Dan, I thought you meant Hood would go with PoW instead of Repulse. And I don't think we're really off topic as this thread can deal with ANY consequence of Hood being rebuilt although I'm sure the original intent was for the D/S.

There is something in what you say given Hood's interwar role as "frightener". But in the autumn of 1941 the RN's capital ship strength was at a pretty low ebb. Peter C. Smith in his Renown book outlines the situation - Barham sunk, QE and Valiant immobilized at Alexandria, Warspite, Rodney and Resolution refitting in the US, Nelson damaged in the Med.

Repulse had been sent to the Far East to be joined laterby PoW, but it had much earlier (September) been decided that Renown should replace her in January 1942, but this was rescinded in October and Renown went to the Home Fleet instead.

If a modernized Hood was avalaible, it's still a toss-up where she would have been sent. Thinking "Churchillian" I would surmise he would still want one of Britain's most modern battleships to act as frightener for the Japanese - especially since at that time all their big ships were modernized older ships. PoW went to Singapore because Duke of York had joined the fleet (though in working up mode) and together with KGV and Renown, gave the Home Fleet a force that could confidently face off with and overwhelm Tirpitz, (and they came close to doing so in March 1942).

But as I said, if BOTH Bismarck & Tirpitz were available to the Germans, the Admiralty could not afford to spare any of its best ships for a theatre where war was still just a threat. Substitute a modernized Hood for Renown and you have KGV, PoW, DoY and Hood to contain the big twins.

We may actually have had a situation where the Admiralty might have got its way and just assembled an Indian Ocean fleet instead, based on Ceylon with R-class battleships, Repulse and maybe Renown. The Singapore debacle might never have happened! Hmmmm! There might have been quite a Churchill-Admiralty battle!

[RF]

1. Hood gets a proper refit.2. Hood gets sent to the Far East.3. Hood gets sunk.Same historical funnel, different order of flow.

If a refitted Hood survives the DS and Bismarck is stopped or turned back, Hood would be retained with the Home Fleet, along with KGV & DoY to guard against further sorties by Bismarck (if she survives Rheinubung) and/or Tirpitz. REPULSE would still get sent to the Far East. Sorry Dan....the old girl still goes down..

Given the international reputation of Hood pre-WW2 I think in this scenario that Churchill would have made a specific point of sending Hood to the Far East as in his mind it would offer the best deterrent to the Japanese entering the war. The Home Fleet would not have been any weaker than it was in reality and a force of Hood, POW and Repulse plus Indomitable (if it hadn't run aground) wpould be far more substantial. A different commander would have helped as well.

With respect to the Atlantic threat, even if Bismarck was still around by the autumn of 1941 the system of German supply ships in the Atlantic had largely been obliterated so a sustained KM surface ship campaign would not be possible.

[paulcadogan]

With respect to the Atlantic threat, even if Bismarck was still around by the autumn of 1941 the system of German supply ships in the Atlantic had largely been obliterated so a sustained KM surface ship campaign would not be possible.

But the focus shifted to the Arctic. In the PQ-12 operation, would the British have been comfortable hunting Tirpitz AND Bismarck with KGV, DoY and Renown only? To me, the only way Hood (and PoW) gets sent to Singapore is if Bismarck did not survive Rheinubung or if Churchill was willing to so compromise Home Fleet capabilities.

[RF]

Using KGV, DOY and Renown wouldn't be Churchills' only optons, they would be supported by cruisers and other small ships. Expect a greater focus on raiding German supply logistics in northern Norway, use of commandoes and Royal Marines. Also bear in mind that the Arctic convoys at that time (and indeed throughout WW2) were more political than economic or military and were certainly not essential to Britain staying in the war. Deterring Japan would be more vital to British interests and Churchill would realise that Hood would be better off facing some of the lesser Japanese battlecruisers than a Bismarck.

Hood could have been sent to the Far East, even if it mean't suspending the Arctic convoys (which they frequently were anyway).