The Grand Scuttle

[Funebrero]

The Grand Scuttle - The sinking of the German fleet at Scapa Flow in 1919

Dan van der Vat - 1982 (my copy 1986) 310 pages

I bought this book by chance really, as I was making an amazon order i noticed the book and saw a 2nd-hand copy for £1.40 inc p&p so I added it to my order. Money well spent as I enjoyed the book very much and learnt a lot at the same time.

Van der Vat is by his own admission not a historian, rather a journalist who stumbled accross the story and decided to investigate more. I think it is noticable that the narrative isn't written to suit any of the author's preconceptions, ideologies nor general viewpoints on the war, unlike some other WW1 books.

The book is written in 4 parts;

The naval race and prelude to war (60pages)

The war at sea and Jutland (50 pages)

The Internment and Scuttle (130 pages)

The salvage of the wrecks (30 pages)

There are also some useful maps, information on the fleets in the appendix and some nice photos (though I would have liked more!).

I read the book not having a huge knowledge on the war at sea so I found the first two parts both useful and interesting, even if they covered some ground that I already knew. I suppose there may however be an inherent problem with this kind of book for some of the forum's more knowledgeble members.

I'm thinking that for many people, if you are so interested in the war as to buy a book like this on a (relatively) minor episode, you would probably already know all about the arms race and the war at sea, making the first half of the book perhaps tedious. Luckily for me that was no problem.

It also reminded me of a persistent dilemma I have with books on WW1. Is it better to read general military history of a theatre before reading about specifics, thus already knowing the context of the story?

Or is better to have one's interest piqued in a previously untrodden theatre by reading a book on a more minor aspect, then exploring further?

I tend to go for the second and in this case the book on the Scuttle has prompted me to buy more books on the war at sea. I suppose in that sense the author can be pleased with his work as he has made me investigate further.

Anyway, back to the book itself.

I found the narrative fast and easy, plenty of detail without being overly pedantic. I also particularly liked the details on the individual characters, they each gained their own personality which for me is key to a book of this kind. Its even-handed approach appeals to me and on finishing the book I felt well satisfied. Some people might wish for more details on the salvage operations, for me there was enough on that, it isn't my chief concern in the story.

I would absolutely recommend this book, particularly to people who like me might classify themselves as "mild-enthusiasts" rather than academics on the war. It probably wont win any prizes but its a good read on an interesting topic and covers enough areas to link itself to genereal WW1 reading. £1.40 put to very good use!

[ph0ebus]

Thanks for sharing this!

Here's some pictures in my collection of the German Fleet at Scapa Flow (pre-scuttling):

Enjoy...

-Daniel

[Martin Bennitt]

If you haven't already, try the same author's 'The Ship that Changed the World' about the Goeben and the Breslau.

cheers Martin B

[Funebrero]

Thanks for the photos Phoebus

If you haven't already, try the same author's 'The Ship that Changed the World' about the Goeben and the Breslau.

cheers Martin B

And thanks for the recommendation Martin

I've just ordered a hardback copy from amazon for 1p plus p&p. This book could well be my gateway to another area of the war where I have little knowledge.

[Simon Mills]

For those interested in the sinking of the High Seas Fleet at Scapa Flow in 1919, Admiral von Reuter's memoir was re-published in the UK in 2005. It was a limited run publication but copies are still available from Wordsmith Publications. The ISBN is: 1-899493-04-2. The book is illustrated and costs £14.95.

[kenneth505]

Is it better to read general military history of a theatre before reading about specifics, thus already knowing the context of the story? Or is better to have one's interest piqued in a previously untrodden theatre by reading a book on a more minor aspect, then exploring further?

Chance encounters lead to rich rewards. This summer I found a used copy of Bennett's The Battle of Jutland 1964 which led to a similar experience to yours. I find the best approach is to pick a topic and rotate thru the three major groupings, Strategy, Tactics, Operations. That way when the high level stuff gets to much one can dive into a first person narrative and remind oneself of the actual costs.