Tirpitz was the second of two Bismarck-class battleships built for Nazi Germany during World War II. The ship was laid down in November 1936 and commissioned in February 1941. Tirpitz was armed with a main battery of eight 38-centimetre (15 in) guns in four twin turrets. She was the heaviest battleship ever built by a European navy. In early 1942, the ship sailed to Norway to act as a fleet in being, forcing the British navy to retain significant forces in the area. In September 1943, Tirpitz, along with the battleship Scharnhorst, bombarded Allied positions on Spitzbergen, the only time the ship's main battery was used offensively. On 12 November 1944, British Lancaster bombers equipped with 12,000-pound (5,400 kg) "Tallboys" bombed the ship, causing her to capsize. A deck fire spread to an ammunition magazine causing a large explosion. Between 1948 and 1957, the wreck was broken up in a salvage operation. (This article is part of a featured topic: Battleships of Germany.).

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Featured_topics/Battleships_of_Germany

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1871:

The Duke of Buckingham formally opened the Brill Tramway (locomotive pictured), a short railway line to transport goods between his lands and the national rail network. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brill_Tramway

1918:

The United Kingdom's Royal Air Force was founded, towards the end of the First World War. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Air_Force

1970:

U.S. president Richard Nixon signed the Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act into law, requiring that a prominent warning by the surgeon general be placed on cigarette packages. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_Health_Cigarette_Smoking_Act

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

couth: 1. (obsolete) Familiar, known; well-known, renowned. 2. (Scotland) Variant of couthie. 3. Agreeable, friendly, pleasant. 4. Comfortable; cosy, snug. […] 5. Marked by or possessing a high degree of sophistication; cultured, refined. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/couth

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

When bad fortune occurs, the unresourceful, unimaginative man looks about him to attach the blame to someone else; the resolute accepts misfortune and endeavors to survive, mature, and improve because of it.   --Anne McCaffrey https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Anne_McCaffrey