10 Barrels vs 8: Can the Royal Navy Hit? | Tirpitz vs King George V | War on the Sea

What happens when one of Britain’s most distinctive treaty battleships goes head-to-head with Germany’s most formidable surviving capital ship?

In this viewer-requested War on the Sea battle, HMS King George V takes on Tirpitz — two very different answers to the same pre-war problem: how do you build the most powerful battleship possible while working around treaty limits?

King George V: Ten Barrels, Fourteen Inches

HMS King George V was very much a product of the treaty era.

Britain designed the class around a 14-inch gun limit, sticking with that calibre even after rival navies invoked the escalator clause and moved towards 16-inch weapons.

The result was the distinctive quad-twin-quad turret arrangement, squeezing ten main-gun barrels into the available displacement.

The class would go on to see significant wartime service. King George V herself took part in the pursuit and destruction of Bismarck, while her sister HMS Prince of Wales had already faced the German battleship at the Battle of the Denmark Strait.

Tirpitz: The Battleship That Rarely Fought

Tirpitz had a very different war.

Larger, faster and carrying heavier main guns than King George V, she was one of the most powerful battleships afloat — yet she never had the opportunity to build the combat record of her sister Bismarck.

Instead, Tirpitz spent much of her career operating from Norwegian fjords as a fleet-in-being.

Her presence alone forced the Allies to dedicate ships, aircraft and resources to containing the threat she posed to Arctic convoys.

She survived x-craft submarine attacks and repeated Allied air strikes before RAF Tallboy bombs finally capsized her at anchor in November 1944.

Tirpitz vs King George V

On paper, the German ship has several advantages.

Tirpitz is heavier, faster and delivers the more powerful individual main-gun broadside.

King George V, however, brings ten main-gun barrels against Tirpitz’s eight.

There is another difference in our War on the Sea setup. According to the game’s mod data, King George V carries no torpedo tubes, while Tirpitz has eight.

Does heavier firepower win the day?

Or can ten British barrels put enough rounds on target to overcome the German battleship?

Watch the full battle on Grim Reapers – WWII Naval Battles (GR2):

Want More Battleship History?

GR crew member Jax has also released a fascinating look at USS South Dakota — an American contemporary of the ships in today’s battle.

South Dakota was designed under treaty restrictions that forced an extraordinary amount of battleship into a relatively compact hull.

Her wartime career included grounding on an uncharted reef just weeks into her first deployment, action at the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands, a catastrophic electrical blackout during the Pacific War’s famous battleship night action, and a wartime censorship campaign that turned her into the mysterious “Battleship X.”

Jax also explores some of the more extraordinary stories connected with the ship, including the 12-year-old gunner who served aboard her, an investigation into a deadly powder explosion, and what became of the battleship after the war.

Watch Jaxom Talks – USS South Dakota:

You can find more from Jax here:

And for more WWII naval battles, ship match-ups and War on the Sea, visit Grim Reapers – WWII Naval Battles:

Your call: Tirpitz or King George V — which ship are you backing before the first salvo is fired?