Battle of the AtlanticBattle of the Atlantic

German U-Boats patrolled the Atlantic against the British blockade of Europe and in an effort to stop supplies from America from ever reaching Britain. U-boats operated in groups of 10 called "wolf packs." The German navy, carried out submarine warfare to cut off Britain's imports and military supplies.

The Allies developed a convoy system where merchant ships were guarded by destroyer escorts. The British developed a system for detecting U-boats that resembled radar. this development gave the Allies the edge in the Battle for the Atlantic. 

Britain needed supplies to fight the war Convoys of ships brought oil, wood,

aluminum and finished goods like planes and tanks

Without supplies Britain could not continue the war

The Germans tried to cut off supplies to Britain by sinking transport ships

They used some raiding vessels (cruisers and battleships), but primarily U-boats (submarines)

The campaign pitted the German Navy’s surface raiders and U-boats against Allied convoys from

North America and the South Atlantic to the United Kingdom and Russia, protected mainly by the British and Canadian navies and air forces, later aided by United States ships and aircraft.

The Allies tried to protect the transport ships in three ways:

Convoys – large flotillas of ships Escorts – Destroyers and Corvettes

deployed to protect the convoys Air cover – limited to within a few

hundred miles of Canada and Britain Allied ships feared the mid-Atlantic where

there was no air cover

Groups of U-boats would hunt for convoys in “Wolf Packs”

U-boats would maneuver in front of the convoy and then submerge – surfacing in the middle of the convoy

German subs would first use deck guns to sink boats – if a threat existed they would use torpedoes instead

Allied warships would look for U-boats using “ASDIC” – a early form of Sonar.

If a surfaced U-boat was detected, warships tried to ram them

If the U-boat submerged, Allied warships would drop “depth charges” – barrels of explosive set to go off at different depths.

Planes would also attack and drop depth charges

June 1940 – February 1941 “The Happy Time” for the U-boats – Hundreds of ships sunk

March 1941 – December 1941 – Allies use ASDIC, HF-DF radar + better tactics to thwart U-boats -- British break German Code – “Enigma”

Jan., 1942 – July 1942 – “Operation Drumbeat” – U-boats attack USA shipping – easy targets

July 1942 –Feb 1943 – Wolf Pack in Mid-Atlantic April-May 1943 – Climax of the Battle – U-boats

suffer enormous losses -- remain a threat until the end of the war

Pictured here ex-veteran Reginald Draper from Chester, reading the comments on the wreaths laid by the lord Mayor and the ships commanders. Reginald a former Lieutenant Commander, served in the Royal Navy 1943-1946.

Before WWII the Navy had 11 combat vessels, 145

officers and 1,674 men.

After WWII471 naval ships, 95,000 sailors

You are to deploy your convoy in the best formation to protect it from the Nazi U-boats that are hunting it. You must create a diagram AND explain it in 3-5 sentences

You have 20 transport vessels that go about 10 knots (11mph)

You have one destroyer (small warship with depth charges & ASDIC) as a command vessel

You have two corvettes (very small escort vessels with depth charges & ASDIC)