U-Boat Tactics in World War II

Thus, this article can serve as a foundational text for the American perception of the German military and its tactics. Although the article focuses on a particular commander, the level of respect showed towards Brauchitsch reveals the writer’s understanding of the power of Germany. The modern connotation of the word (quick and hard striking maneuver warfare) as a form of military strategy is used and explained here by the author as if it is the official German military doctrine. Historians argue endlessly over the idea of an “origin” and it remains the same here. When was “Blitzkrieg” introduced to the American public? Was it invented by Western journalists to for sensationalism purposes or rather, German propaganda that was “swallowed up” by the Allied press? The author of the article seemed very educated in the concept of Blitzkrieg (if it indeed is an official military concept) and used appropriate language to emphasize the speed aspect of the tactic. Some phrases depicting Blitzkrieg included “a war of quick penetration and obliteration,” “Swift columns of tanks… plunged through Poland…broken down the Polish defenses before they had time to

Come 1918, Germany knew they needed a big push for the win. Their supplies were rapidly depleting as all efforts to thwart the continuation of Britain’s blockade via “unrestricted submarine warfare” were unsuccessful. American troops were being shipped in, albeit slowly, and Germany

With Austria-Hungary, Germany, and Italy involved in the navy and the army involving Great Britain, Russia, and France, armed forces became stronger and stronger through the passing days. Especially after the Germans arguably distasteful decision to resume unrestricted submarine warfare in 1917 to reach further control through their navy around Great Britain's waterways. As represented in Document 9,”which depicted Germany, choosing,” war and barbarism over civilization peace and

In the thirty-eight years of the United States Naval Submarine Service no United States submarine had ever sunk an enemy vessel. With the ignition of the Second World War the poorly equipped and poorly trained Silent Service, nicknamed for the limited access of the media to the actions and achievements of the submarines, would be thrust into the position American submariners had longed for. The attack on Pearl Harbor left the United States Navy with few options for retribution. The three remaining aircraft carriers were to be “the last line of defense.” Commander Stuart S. Murray made the precarious situation clear to his skippers, captains, upon sending them on their first war patrol. He stressed the importance of smart sailing by

How did the actions in a particular theater of your choice during World War II represent a continuum of development from either an earlier war or represent a radical departure from the same?

The Maxim-gun, an oil-cooled machine-gun designed by Hiram Maxim in 1884 that didn’t require hand-cranking or any other kind of manual intervention, had been offered to the British military by Hiram. However, the British High Command rejected the inventor’s offer, believing that there was no real need for it. The Germans, on the other hand, quickly grasped the strategic advantages that it offered and began developing their own version of Maxim’s design. Consequently, when the war broke out in 1914, Germany had a much greater arsenal of machine-guns. This is reflected by articles in The Sphere, which reported in 1914 that Germany had a new type of machine-gun with a telescopic sight, and The Illustrated War News, which noted that the weapon had revolutionised German artillery

War has always had the tendency to quicken the advancement and development, and World War 1 with its strange conflict of nineteenth and twentieth century thoughts and advances. One of the most important technological creations that were created during World War 1 was the U-boats or the German Submarines. The damage of any enemy transportation by German U-boats was an excellent reason in both World Wars I and II. German U-Boats were very important and one of the best technological achievements and were in charge of destroying around half of all the food and supplies transported by the British Merchant Navy. U-boats played a very important part in World War I.

Ideas were made realities as the country discovered more efficient tactics of warfare. On the water, the idea of being completely submerged and attacking from below came from Southerner H.L. Hunley. Hunley was “involved in the construction of several submarines, including one named after him” (Bruce). Hunley was not the first to think of the idea of a submarine but was the first to create a working model. His model consisted of “a crew of nine, eight of whom turned hand cranks along a single screw shaft that served to propel the craft” (Bruce). His invention was not flawless but was the first completely underwater machine that was ultimately deadly to the Union ships. It was the first submarine which allowed for future generations to reflect upon this first invention and improve upon it for a more effective machine. This first inkling of a thought would help achieve much greater machines decades in the future. The newly built machine was fallible and many sailors died while operating the ship. On February 17, 1864, “the Hunley sank shortly the Union screw sloop Housatonic. Although the Hunley sank shortly thereafter, it was the first submarine to claim an enemy vessel” (Bruce). The first kill from a submarine was monumental because it proved that the submarine could be a useful and feared machine lurking in the water. It had proved itself to be valuable in the time that it served and convinced the army to continue to improve upon it after the war. Following the war, the “navy continued experiments but it was not until the end of the 19th century that inventors developed a truly effective submarine” (Bruce). The military realized that the submarine had much potential that could be derived with more intensive research and analysis. Still effective today, the invention thought of centuries ago proved to be an effective killing machine. Improvements on land warfare

The navy expanded during the war in order to respond to increasing threat of the German U boats*

​The German U-Boats were like a submarine that was a lot more advanced than those that were built by other nations; and they were the first submarines made by the Germans. The U-boat was 214 feet long, it could carry 35 men, and 12 torpedoes at a time. And it could travel underwater for 2 hours at a time. With these Germany had a lot of success against the British warships. (https://www.britannica.com/technology/U-boat)

The Germans had sent out U-boats because they simply could no longer afford a purely defensive naval strategy. The Germans were the first to use torpedoes in battle to make their U-boats even more deadly. A torpedo is self-propelled underwater missile launched from a tube located on the deck or inside the hull of a warship. Torpedo tubes were first built into submarines in 1885 by the Swedish armaments manufacturer, Thortsen Nordenfelt. Torpedoes in 1914 carried a contact-triggered explosive warhead and had a range of 10,000 meters and could travel at 41 knots.1 However, their ideal range was about a kilometer because they tended to be inaccurate over longer distances.

Warfare is a grim and horrible thing. Napoleon’s wars cost hundreds of thousands of lives for example. Yet, less than one hundred years later, Europe would discover the full horror of modern war. The technology of World War I made that conflict incredibly agonizing and prolonged the conflict, costing many lives. In the end, technology also produced some startling results.

The Second World War was one of the most terrifying events in the world’s history. The U.S.A fights back like never before against Italy, Japan and Germany. Previously the WWII by the 1930’s America was completely poor and lost. By entering in the War, The U.S. becomes a superpower in just four years. The disruption of World War II arouses the mobilization of American industrial and in the military section. The preparation for the battle and the mobilization of the War was a complete success; purpose and determination led the U.S.A to win the WWII.

American army officer Omar Bradley once said,“If we continue to develop our technology without wisdom or prudence, our servant may prove to be our executioner.” The meaning of this quote lies in the destruction and devastation of humanity and geography during war. If we do not stop advancing in ways of killing and causing suffering, we will soon face the consequences of these technologies. Throughout World War I and World War II, there was a ginormous technological boom in which countries were competing to invent new weapons or vehicles used in warfare. Specifically, World War I could be blamed for the start of the creating of new technologies used in warfare even today. These technologies were often invented or created during World War I,

The tactics used in World War II had to come from somewhere and that was the past. The main reason for this was because most high ranking officers only knew old tactics. One of the biggest strategies that most are familiar with is the use of trench warfare. The many problems both sides faced when using trenches was how vulnerable soldiers were inside them. They were prone to constant chemical attacks, artillery barrages, and tanks. Trench warfare was not a pretty fight but it was one of the most used tactics throughout the war. An offensive at Somme was a prime example of the use and tactical advantage tools of war gave a side. In the summer of 1916, General Douglas Haig ad ordered and eight day artillery bombardment to soften up the German