Bismarck was the first of two Bismarck-class battleships built for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine. Bismarck was ordered under the name Ersatz Hannover ("Hannover replacement"), a replacement for the old pre-dreadnought SMS Hannover, under contract "F". The contract was awarded to the Blohm & Voss shipyard in Hamburg, where the keel was laid on 1 July 1936 at Helgen IX. The ship was launched on 14 February 1939 and during the elaborate ceremonies was christened by Dorothee von Löwenfeld, granddaught

How did German U-boats attack merchant vessels during World War II? Did they have to surface or could they launch torpedoes from underwater? They could fire from both the surface and periscope depth. When a convoy was first detected by a U-Boat, they would contact the base giving them the position and course of the convoy. This first sighting submarine would then shadow the convoy. Meanwhile, headquarters would send out a signal to all the submarines that could attack the convoy. It was then the