About Jutland: a book?

Naval and military history books, recent releases, magazines, related documents, articles, etc.
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Karl Heidenreich
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About Jutland: a book?

Post by Karl Heidenreich »

Which is the best book about Jutland. Not only it´s text but the maps of the actions.
The book "Jutland: An Analysis of the Fightinig" seems to be unreacheable either at Barnes and Noble and Amazon. But as a matter of fact I read somewhere it lacks of diagrams and maps.
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marcelo_malara
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Post by marcelo_malara »

The book is available free online at http://webpages.charter.net/abacus/news/jutland/
I know that reading for the computer is a heavy task, so if not try http://www.bookfinder.com for a used copy.
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Karl Heidenreich
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Post by Karl Heidenreich »

Thanks!
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ontheslipway
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Post by ontheslipway »

There are nearly an infinite amount of books on the subject. I've read a few, and found them quite nice. "The Rules of the Game: Jutland and British Naval Command" by Andrew Gordon is very thorough, though sometimes so thorough it is almost boring at points. Still, it is seen as one of the more comprehensive works. I read Tarrant's "Jutland: The German Perspective - A New View of the Great Battle, 31 May 1916" but I forgot if it was good. Generally I like his books. Massie's "dreadnought" and "Castles of Steel: Britain, Germany and the Winning of the Great War at Sea" are very enjoyable.
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Karl Heidenreich
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Post by Karl Heidenreich »

Marcelo,
I printed the book from the website you said. It´s worth it. I´m beggining the reading and it´s quite different from the official history.
When thru I´ll post my opinion.
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marcelo_malara
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Post by marcelo_malara »

Well, I don´t know how the official history is.
I read Jutland by Bennet, and Campbell´s is far more detailed. On the downside, Campbell doesn´t discuss the "may be"s of the battle, nor does he discuss the reasons behind the manouvres, which Bennet does.
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_Derfflinger_
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Post by _Derfflinger_ »

As foeth correctly noted, there have been a truckload of books written over the years about Jutland. Given the magnitude of the battle, this is to be expected. Many are out of print, but can be found in used bookseller shops or via eBay, while a few are recent publications and still available.

I have several books on Jutland in my library, have read most of them - though many were read years ago, and offer the following comments:

"The Riddle of Jutland", L Gibson & J E T Harper, Coward-McCann, 1934 - Have not yet read, but is interesting in that it notes many of the ironies and mysteries of the battle. (FYI, I have a duplicate copy and will offer it for sale if anyone is interested)

"The Battle of Jutland", H H Frost, USNI, 1936 - I read this years ago; as I recall, it was excellent. A classic study on the battle by the USN

"Jutland", D Macintyre, Norton, 1958 - A good read, good primer on the battle, well done

"The Battle of Jutland", G Bennett, Bastford, 1964 - Like Macintyre's book above, a good read, gives a good account of the battle, also well done. I'd recommend either of these two books as a first read for anyone interested in Jutland

"The Smoke Screen of Jutland", J Irving, McKay, 1966 - Just bought it on eBay, have not yet read, looks to be unremarkable

"Jutland, An Eyewitness Account", S Legg, John Day, 1966 - Have not yet read, looks to be a brief account based on RN sailors' accounts of the action

"Jutland 1916", J Costello & T Hughes, Holt Reinhart Winston, 1976 - Excellent, many pictures and maps, a good "play-by-play" book. I usually go to this book if I have a question on Jutland

"Jutland, An Analysis of the Fighting", J Campbell, USNI, 1986 - One of the classic references, much detail, but I found it to be a bit of hard work to read

"Jutland, The German Perspective", V Tarrant, Arms & Armour, 1995 - I bought it in 1998 at the HMS Belfast bookshop during a London visit, read it on the airplane returning to the USA, don't remember much, except that I got sleepy. Might have been from the scotch :wink:

"The Rules of the Game, Jutland and British Naval Command", A Gordon, USNI, 1995 - I have not yet read, gives the RN perspective, and focuses on the command decisions of Beatty, Jellicoe, etc

"Flawed Victory - Jutland, 1916", K Yates, USNI, 2000 - recent, have not yet read

"Jutland 1916", C London, Osprey, 2000 - From the Osprey Military series, OK, typical of the books in this series, kind of brief, lots of pictures and some good maps.

Derf
JasonGawker
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Yes

Post by JasonGawker »

Hey, that's a very good question - this is definitely a very good board. That battle is quite interesting, the strategies and the different points of view on the matter. I suggest starting with the first books here, and they're also cheap priced, and then slowly move on and gain more and more perspective and knowledge.

Best,
Jason :D
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