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THE HUNT FOR BISMARCK

The article on the Bismarck (June/July, page 11) brought back vivid memories of the sea chase. I was serving on board one of the cruisers escorting the new aircraft carrier Victorious. Our ship was pitching, rolling, and yawing–battling very high waves, which kept our upper deck awash. The Victorious was most times covered with spray. Watching the aircraft take off in the appalling weather was nerve-racking. When the aircraft returned after their attack on Bismarck their landing was even more nerve-racking.

We continued the chase in this gale force weather until we heard the Bismarck had been sunk. She now lies on the ocean bed at 13,400 feet below the surface. More than 1,400 men died on Hood and over 2,000 died on Bismarck. There was no jubilation, only sadness.

Thomas L. Ward,
Mission Viejo, California

Editor’s note: Several readers pointed out the misspelling of the German battleship’s name in the June/July article. The above version is correct.

YOU SAY MODRED, I SAY MORDRED …

The ad appearing on the bottom of page 19 in the August/September issue proclaims, by the title of the book it offers for sale, to know ‘The Real King Arthur’. An author who titles his work in such a way must be a real authority on the subject–even if self-appointed. But even the ad appears to contain one gross inaccuracy.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but Christopher Wren and Lord Tennyson have led me to believe that Arthur’s nemesis was named Sir Modred, not Sir Mordred, as Mr. Tuner calls him. If this appeared in the editorial columns I would pass it off as a typographical error rampant in today’s publications. But in an ad to sell a book, particularly one purported to be an authoritative study of historical lore, I can only assume the author didn’t know the difference or was very careless in his proofing of the copy.

Robert E. Lewis,
Norwalk, Connecticut

Editor’s note: I believe it was Coleridge who advised that when reading the work of a good author, you should always presume yourself ignorant of his understanding until you are absolutely certain that you understand his ignorance.

‘Mordred’ is just one of several widely accepted variations of the name of Arthur’s opponent at the Battle of Camlann. Tennyson and Wren (the author of Beau Geste, not the famous architect) are relative late-comers to the Arthurian literary scene, and their version of the knight’s name differs from that found in some earlier works–most significantly in Le Morte D’Arthur by Sir Thomas Malory, who wrote at great length about about the character he called ‘Mordred’.

Those who insist on unwavering conformity would actually be forced to reject both versions. Modred/Mordred is based on an even earlier reference in the 10th-century Annales Cambriae, in which the name is spelled ‘Medraut’. Most people, however, are less rigorous, and recognize all these alternatives as legitimate variations of the same name.

THE DEMOCRATIC PROCESS

The profile of Angela Lansbury (August/September, page 52) called to mind a personal experience. In the early 1930s I, along with several other youngsters went around the streets carrying a poster bearing a photo of George Lansbury, Angela’s grandfather, when he ran for the British Labour Party in the District of Bromley-by-Bow, in the East End of London. I can recall singing a slogan that went:

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