Battle of the Atlantic Mark Belianski, Meghan Hennedy, Sankalp Katta, Kartik Mahajan, Shilpa Narayanan “... the only thing that ever really frightened me during the war was the U-boat peril.” -Winston Churchill

Background Germany does not have the same naval power as Allied power Goal is to destroy Ally foreign supplies in order to prevent the army When Britain and France entered the war in 1939, the German Kriegsmarine new that they would not be able to compete with the Royal Navy in regards to capital ships, so they went after the supply ships from Canada and United States. German U-Boats were submarines that were extremely effective at damaging enemy ships

Thesis The Battle of the Atlantic allowed for the Allies to secure convoy routes between Britain/France and the United States; this ultimately strengthened their defense and attack mechanisms to help win the war against the Axis.

Who fought the battle? V.S.

Axis Aims in the war Force British Surrender Prevent Allies from securing convoy routes in the Atlantic

Allies’ Goals Blockade Axis Europe Secure sea movements Acquire and maintain the ability to project military forces overseas

Timeline 06-08 1943 6th Phase- Allies try to block U-boat transit in Bay of Biscay 01-07/1942 4th Phase- Entry of US into the war after the Japanese attack 09/1939 Start of Battle of Atlantic 06/1940-05/1941 U boats directed against Britsh 05/1941-12/1941 3rd Phase- U boat released for antisubmarine operations 07/1942-03/1943 5th Phase- US switches U-boats back to Atlantic route 09/1943-03/1945 7/8th Phase- Germans attempt to use weapons and Allies invade Normandy 09/1939-06/1940 1st Phase- Interception of Ally ships

German U-Boats Submarines Known as Wolfpacks Extremely effective at destroying its target Donitz lead the operations

Important People Admiral General Karl Dönitz Promoted to Commodore and was given full command of German U-Boats in January of 1939 Believed that a campaign dedicated to sinking British merchant ships would knock Britain out of any future wars Liked to attack at night on the surface

The Beginning (Autumn 1939- Fall of France) Effective blockade set up by Britain and France U-Boats intercepted Merchant ships and sank them Karl Donitz oversaw the U-Boats and their operations

Lend-Lease Act (1941) US, though technically neutral, was helping Britain US Provided Britain with essential materials Food, Raw materials, Ammunition, Tanks, etc. Cash-and-Carry Britain couldn’t pay for materials so they set up lend-lease system Britain received aid from Canada as well

THE U-BOAT PERIL(September 1939 to May 1940) Battle began at start of British Involvement in war Submarine U-30 sinks British Passenger ships 1,100 dead Battle began on the day Britain and France declared war on Germany U-Boats were called “Wolf Packs” by the allies Submarine U-30 san the 13,851 ton British liner Athenia carrying over 1,100 passengers.112 lives were lost 28 of those were Americans U-Boats have sunk 41 merchant ships Fall of France great increased U-Boat effectiveness the French coast provided more direct access for submarines to reach the shipping lanes. Karl Donitz, head of the U-Boat arm, was able to implement the “Wolf Pack” tactic “Wolf Pack” tactic was when Four U-boats attack a convoy sink a few ships and scatter Location of First Attacks

DEMO

May-June 1940 (Fall of France) Britain lost a significant Naval Power in France Italian and German Onslaught blockaded Suez canal and Mediterranean route Alternative route around the Cape of Good Hope North Atlantic route becomes important

British at this stage Falling apart and needing help

United States Entry (Fall of 1941) United States enters war officially American convoy ships were unguarded U-Boats saw these unguarded ships and attacked them

Canadian+US Assistance (1942) Help from Canada’s expanding military came just in time Canadian naval and air forces filled void left in North Atlantic by the departure of U.S. forces to the Caribbean and Pacific

Important People Winston Churchill Was Prime Minister in Great Britain throughout WWII Worked with U.S. President Roosevelt and Soviet Union leader Joseph Stalin to create Allied war strategies Said that the Battle of the Atlantic was the only time he thought Britain would surrender (due to the intimidating German U-Boats) Regarded as one of the best statesmen of the 20th century

Casablanca Conference and the End of the War(1943) Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt planned strategy at the Casablanca conference Introduction of new naval forces and different tactics gave the Allies an Upper hand Germany was defeated in May

DEMO

Results of the Battle Allied victory Longest campaign in WWII The Allies had incredibly superior resources in shipbuilding and aircraft production Anti-submarine detection equipment and weapons Allied signals intelligence crucial to victory 785 U-boats sunk Longest campaign in WWII Total of 69 months

Impact of the Battle Britain/France and the U.S. had routes to exchange weaponry. It was difficult for the Germans to attack on Britain/France. Role of the Atlantic fleets of U.S. Navy and Royal Navy rose to significance Supported Operation Overlord and D-Day

Works Cited Axelrod, Alan. “Battle of the Atlantic.” Encyclopedia of World War II, Vol. 1. New York: Facts On File, 2013. Modern World History Online. Web. 16 Mar. 2015. Battle of the Atlantic. Digital image. Grognard. Grognard, n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2015 Hickman, Kennedy. “Battle of the Atlantic.” About Education. About.com, n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2015. Hickman, Kennedy. "Karl Doenitz - Bio of World War II German Naval Commander." About Education. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2015. History.com Staff. "Winston S. Churchill." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 2009. Web. 18 Mar. 2015. Macpherson, Ken, and John Burgess. “Battle of the Atlantic.” Maritime Command Museum. Maritime Command Museum, n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2015 Milner, Marc. “Battle of the Atlantic World War II.” Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2015 Polmar, Norman, and Thomas B. Allen. World War II: The Encyclopedia of the War Years, 1941-1945. New York: Random House, 1996. Print. Rohwer, Jürgen. “Battle of the Atlantic.” World History: The Modern Era. ABC-CLIO, n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2015. Theil, Anne. Convoy System. Digital image. PBWorks. PBWorks, n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2015.