The Grand Alliance (180 page)

Let me also know what they do about the hangar,
and any advantages in strength and structure possessed by K.G.V to compensate for the loss of gun-power.

[The First Sea Lord replied that the equivalent
American ship (U.S.S. North Carolina) had a heavier
main armament but somewhat lighter secondary
armament. The British ship had heavier protection and
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slightly higher speed. He preferred the British method
of carrying two aircraft in hangars amidships as compared with the American practice of providing two
exposed catapults on the quarterdeck. The discussion
continued with my minute of September 22 and his
reply dated October 2:]

C
OMPARISON
B
ETWEEN
U.S.S
. “
N
ORTH
C
AROLINA”

AND
H.M.S
. “
K
ING
G
EORGE
V
”

Prime Minister to First Sea

22.IX.41.

Lord, Controller and D.N.C.

Naturally, being all for stiff ships, I am very glad we
have 1370 tons more armour, and another 790 tons of
weight in the hull. The deeper armour belt and hard
nose are good. It is very satisfactory to be able to
combine this with superior speed, as has been done. I
am still not convinced however that the lengthening of
the citadel area caused by interpolating the aerodrome
amidships instead of aft has not used up a lot of this
fine armour without advantage to the “citadel” principle,
on which fighting and flotation alike depend. I should
like to go further into this on other papers.

2. Our ship is longer, narrower, and deeper than the
American. I presume this makes for speed.

3. We have exceeded the treaty limit by 1750 tons,
while the Americans with the sixteen-inch guns are
either within it or only two hundred tons over it. Can this
be true?

4. There is as much to be said for twenty five-inch
guns for A.A. and secondary armament as for sixteen
5.25-inch guns; in fact, some people would prefer more
numerous gun positions to deal with multiplied air
attacks.

5. It is when we come to compare nine sixteen-inch
guns with ten fourteen-inch guns that sorrow rises in
the heart, or ought to. Nine six-teen-inch at 2700

pounds per round equals 24,300 pounds. Ten fourteen-inch guns at 1590 pounds equals 15,900 pounds.

Difference, 8400 on the broadside.

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1080

6. It is interesting to note that the Germans in the
Bismarck chose four turrets of two fifteen-inch, whereas
we went to the other extreme of three turrets, of which
two were four-gun, but a smaller gun. The Americans,
coming in between the two, may have hit the happy
medium, and have as well the biggest punch.

First Sea Lord to Prime Minister
2.X.41.

I attach some further remarks referring paragraph by
paragraph to the points you have raised:
The King George V arrangement of space amidships
for aircraft has been repeated in Lion and Temeraire.

This space, fifty-five feet long, gives the impression of a
hiatus, but actually involves no hiatus in the citadel
below the armoured deck. The space from the fore end
of “A” turret to the after end of “Y” turret is completely
occupied by magazines, shell-rooms, and propelling
machinery, which must be protected by heavy armour.

Were the aircraft removed, no armour would become
available to be fitted elsewhere.

2. This is confirmed.

3. In King George V we set out to build a ship of
35,000 tons standard displacement, but additions were
made during construction and some of the estimated
weights (principally armament) were not realised.

Hence the ship came out 1750 tons heavy.

The American ship may also have come out heavy.

But if we were prepared to accept the hull scantling
reported and the protection of the American ship, we
estimate we could build her to a standard displacement
of 35,200 tons.

4. The number of five-inch guns mounted in the
American ship are got in at the expense of close-range
A.A. weapons.

5. I agree generally. The King George Vwas designed for twelve fourteen-inch guns, but two guns
were given up for increased armour protection. It is
probable that the rate of fire of the fourteen-inch is
slightly greater.

6. Bismarck’s standard displacement is estimated to
be 41,150 tons. It would appear that as soon as the
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Americans could design a ship they really liked with
sixteen-inch guns they went to 45,000 tons in the
Iowaclass.

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Appendix H, Book Two

MINISTERIAL APPOINTMENTS FOR YEAR 1941

(Members of the War Cabinet are shown in italics) Prime Minister and First Lord of

Mr. Winston S. Churchill

the Treasury, Minister of Defence

Admiralty, First Lord of the

Mr. A. V. Alexander

Agriculture and Fisheries, Minister Mr. R. S. Hudson of

Air, Secretary of State for

Sir Archibald Sinclair

Aircraft Production, Minister of

(a) Lord Beaverbrook

(b)
Lieut.-Colonel J. T. C. Moore-Brabazon (appointed May 1)

Burma, Secretary of State for

Mr. L. S. Amery

Colonies, Secretary of State for

(
a
) Lord Lloyd (till Feb. 4) the

(
b
) Lord Moyne (appointed Feb. 8) Dominion Affairs, Secretary of

Viscount Cranborne

State for

Economic Warfare, Minister of

Mr. Hugh Dalton

Education, President of the Board
(a)
Mr. Herwald Ramsbotham of

(b)
Mr. R. A. Butler (appointed July 20)

Exchequer, Chancellor of the

Sir H. Kingsley Wood

Food, Minister of

Lord Woolton

Foreign Affairs, Secretary of

State for
Mr. Anthony Eden

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1083

Health, Minister of

(
a
) Mr. Malcolm J. MacDonald
(b)
Mr. A. E. Brown (appointed Feb. 8)

Home Department, Secretary of

Mr. Herbert S. Morrison

State for the; and Home Security,

Minister of

India, Secretary of State for

Mr. L. S. Amery

Information, Minister of

(
a
) Mr. A. Duff Cooper

(b)
Mr. Brendan Bracken

(appointed July 20)

Labour and National Service,

Mr. Ernest Bevin

Minister of

Lancaster, Chancellor of the

(
a
) Lord Hankey

Duchy of

(b)
Mr. A. Duff Cooper (appointed July 20)

Law Officers:

Attorney-General

Sir Donald Somervell

Lord Advocate

(
a
) Mr. T. M. Cooper

(b)
Mr. J. S. C. Reid (appointed June 6)

Solicitor-General

Sir William Jowitt

Solicitor-General for Scotland

(a)
Mr. J. S. C. Reid

(b)
Sir David King Murray (appointed June 6)

Lord Chancellor

Viscount Simon

Lord President of the Council

Sir
John Anderson

Lord Privy Seal

Mr. Clement R. Attlee

Middle East, Minister of State

Mr. Oliver Lyttelton
(appointed July Resident in the

1)

Minister of State

Lord Beaverbrook
(May 1–June 29) Minister without Portfolio

Mr. Arthur Greenwood

Paymaster-General

(
a
) Viscount Cranborne

(b)
Lord Hankey (appointed July 20) The Grand Alliance

1084

Pensions, Minister of

Sir Walter Womersley

Postmaster-General

Mr. W. S. Morrison

Scotland, Secretary of State for

(a)
Mr. A. E. Brown

(b)
Mr. Thomas Johnston

(appointed February 8)

Shipping, Minister of
39

Mr. R. H. Cross (resigned May 1)

Supply, Minister of

(a)
Sir Andrew Duncan

(b) Lord Beaverbrook
(appointed June 29)

Trade, President of the Board of

(
a
) Mr. Oliver Lyttelton

(b)
Sir Andrew Duncan (appointed June 29)

Transport, Minister of
39

Lieutenant-Colonel J. T. C. Moore-

Brabazon (resigned May 1)

War, Secretary of State for

Captain H. D. R. Margesson

War Transport, Minister of
39

Lord Leathers (appointed May 1)

Works and Buildings, Minister of

Lord Reith

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1085

Notes

Book One

Chapter 1

1
See map, page 63.

2
The “infantry” tank was a heavy, slow, strongly armoured tank designed to accompany and support the infantry.

The “cruiser” tank was fast, better gunned than the infantry tank, but with lighter armour. It had a highly mobile fighting role.

The “light” tank was fast, with thin armour and only machine guns for armament. Used for reconnaissance.

Chapter 2

1
My italics. – Author.

2
Nazi-Soviet Relations, pp. 268, 271–72.

Chapter 3

1
See Appendix D, Book One.

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2
Volume I, Chapter 9.

3
Called in our jargon C.H.L. and C.H.E.L.

4
The Case of Rudolf Hess,
edited by J. R. Rees, p. 2.

5
Ibid.,
pp. 18–19.

Chapter 6

1
My subsequent italics. – Author.

2
My subsequent italics. – Author.

3
This refers to three fast transports specially prepared for military operations. See Volume II, page 463.

Chapter 7

1
A proposed mine barrier which was never laid. See Volume II, Book II. Chapter 30, page 607.

2
Volume II, Book II, Chapter 30, page 601.

3
See Appendix D, Book One.

4
See Appendix F, Book One.

5
See Appendix G, Book Two.

Chapter 8