By: Haylie, Grace, and Daya Battle of the Atlantic By: Haylie, Grace, and Daya

Overall Impact/Thesis

Thesis: The Battle of the Atlantic was essential for The Allies’ victory in World War II, as the improvement of technology helped preserve crucial ship routes that were at risk due to German militarism.

Background Information

Background Information Naval war Lasted 6 years (1939-1945) Britain, Canada, United States (Allied Powers) Vs Germany and Italy (Axis Powers) Purpose: secure ship routes between Britain and North America through the Atlantic Ocean “Longest military campaign”

The Situation Britain was dependent on oversea supplies Needed ship routes to keep fighting in WWII Involved North America Germany tried to cut off these routes by sinking Allied ships bringing supplies across Atlantic Purpose of battle: save the ship routes between Britain and North America

The Start Sept. 3rd 1939 Britain had declared war on Germany German submarine U-30 attacked British passenger ship Athenia, thought they were attacking a British cruiser 112 civilians died

Axis Powers’ Strategies

Important People Karl Doenitz Reinhard Hardegan Admiral that succeeded Hitler as head of state Known for his extreme involvement in U- Boats Made major decisions for Germany Reinhard Hardegan Famous U-boat commander

German U-Boats Advanced submarines Main tactic used in this battle Groups called “wolf packs” Built during war and really effective in early 1942 and 1943 1942, sunk over 1,500 British ships Most important German development of the battle

Allied Powers’ Strategies

Important people Alan Turing Computer scientist that decoded enigma machine Winston Churchill UK Prime Minister Coined “Battle of the Atlantic”

Convoys Transported oil, food, aircrafts, tanks, troops, etc. Surrounded by escorts: protected convoys from U-Boats Escorts were other boats or planes

The Turning Point (1943) April-May 1943: climax of the battle The Allies developed new technologies that could defend against and overpower U-boats

Airplanes and Depth Bombs Depth bombs fired to destroy nearby U-boats Can be detonated up to 300ft underwater Sends deadly shock waves Dropped by ships or aircraft onto U-Boats Planes acted as escorts Useful when radar system improved Carried bombs

Q-ships Appeared to be neutral merchant vessels Lured U-boats to the surface then attacked with hidden guns Concealed gun in Q-ships

Radar Systems New airborne radar system Made it possible to detect submerged vessels Allowed them to make surprise air attacks with depth bombs when submarines surfaced Enabled Allies to combat the U-boat fleet effectively for the first time

The Enigma Machine (1941) Cipher machine the Germans used to decipher and send encrypted messages to U-boats Contained Germany’s military Strategies May 1941, a British ship destroyed German U- Boat U-110 “Operation Primrose” They found the enigma machine → now able to decipher German messages

To Help You Visualize... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAdiWFEd4Vc

US involvement Politically neutral, but Germany was hostile to them The US officially joined the battle in 1942 Axis powers attacked ships and navy vessels along North America Sparked US involvement Propaganda encouraging U.S. citizens to conserve food to make losses of supply convoys less costly.

Timeline

Timeline September 20th: U-Boats start operating in massive “Wolf Packs” September 6th: First organized Ally convoy sails May 9th: the first Enigma machine code is discovered 1939 1940 1941 1942 September 3rd: German U-Boats sink first British ship/start of battle July 6th: German ships operate out of captured French bases March 11th: US is cleared to help the Allied Powers

Timeline Cont. May: battle is over, with an Allied Powers victory 1943 1945 May 1st: Allied planes and radar are successfully used (turning point/climax) June 6th: German bases in France are deemed inoperable

Map Analysis The number of red dots (sunk Allied ships) greatly decreased in and after 1943, and the number of U-Boats sunk increased Demonstrates massive impact of the Allies’ new technology Through the years, increased number of new convoy routes Demonstrates the Allied Powers’ efforts (persistence)

Analysis of Battle Allied victory in the Second World War would not have been possible (Britain would have run out of resources) Helped keep the Allied convoys running and the supply lines to Europe open. Development of new technology improved warfare

Impact on WWII Successfully preserved the ship routes between North America and Britain, allowing them to continue to fight in the war Germany and the Allied Powers developed new military tactics and technology Also helped allies crack German Naval codes through the finding of the Enigma Machine Proved the strength of the British Navy

Cool Facts Britain would have run out of food and had to surrender in 3 weeks w/o convoys Battle lasted 2073 days February 28, 1942, a US aircraft and a navy destroyer hunted and depth-bombed a U-boat... which turned out to be a whale. Over 1 million Canadians fought

Works Cited "Alan Turing." World History: The Modern Era, ABC-CLIO, 2017, worldhistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/2028214. Accessed 23 Apr. 2017. Biesinger, Joseph A. “Battle of the Atlantic.” Germany, Facts On File, 2006. History Research Center, online.infobase.com/Article/Details/266880?q=battle of the atlantic. Accessed 2017. "British Navy Anti-Submarine Q-Ship." World History: The Modern Era, ABC-CLIO, 2017, worldhistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/1322174. Accessed 23 Apr. 2017. Bruce, Anthony, and William Cogar. “Battle of the Atlantic, 1940–1943.” Encyclopedia of Naval History, Facts On File, 1997. History Research Center, online.infobase.com/Article/Details/407158?q=battle atlantic. Accessed 2017.

"'Defeat the Kaiser and His U-Boats' "'Defeat the Kaiser and His U-Boats'." World History: The Modern Era, ABC-CLIO, 2017, worldhistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/344829. Accessed 23 Apr. 2017. "Enigma Machine." World History: The Modern Era, ABC-CLIO, 2017, worldhistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/1941863. Accessed 23 Apr. 2017. Hess, Gary R. “The Battle of the Atlantic.” The War in Europe: The Turn of the Tide, Harlan Davidson, 2016. History Research Center, online.infobase.com/Article/Details/404740?q=battle of the atlantic. Accessed 2017. "Karl Doenitz." World History: The Modern Era, ABC-CLIO, 2017, worldhistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/301609. Accessed 23 Apr. 2017. Laurie, Clayton D. “Battle of the Atlantic, 1940–1943.” Encyclopedia of American History, Vol. 8, Revised Edition, Facts On File, 2009. History Research Center, online.infobase.com/Article/Details/195949?q=battle atlantic. Accessed 2017.

Newspaper reporting start of World War II. Image Newspaper reporting start of World War II. Image. Britannica Library, Encyclopædia Britannica, 2 Feb. 2017. library.eb.com.ezproxy.kcls.org/levels/referencecenter/assembly/view/191274. Accessed 23 Apr. 2017. Sheffield, Gary. "BBC - History - World Wars: The Battle of the Atlantic: The U-boat Peril." BBC News. BBC, n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2017 “Timeline of the Battle of the Atlantic.” WW2 Timeline of Events, Second World War, 13 Aug. 2003, www.secondworldwarhistory.com/battle-of-the-atlantic.asp. Accessed 25 Apr. 2017.