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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
o Goal is to destroy Ally foreign supplies in order to prevent
the army
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
1. Force British Surrender
2. Prevent Allies from securing convoy routes
in the Atlantic
Allies’ Goals
1. Blockade Axis Europe
2. Secure sea movements
3. Acquire and maintain the ability to project
military forces overseas
Timeline
09/1939
Start of
Battle of
Atlantic
09/1939-06/1940
1st PhaseInterception of Ally
06/1940-05/1941
U boats directed
against Britsh
01-07/1942
4th Phase- Entry of
US into the war
after the Japanese
attack
05/1941-12/1941
3rd Phase- U boat
released for
antisubmarine operations
06-08 1943
6th Phase- Allies
try to block U-boat
transit in Bay of
Biscay
07/1942-03/1943
5th Phase- US
switches U-boats
back to Atlantic
09/1943-03/1945
7/8th Phase- Germans
attempt to use
weapons and Allies
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
o 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
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
o 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
o
o
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
o
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
o
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
The Allies had incredibly superior resources in
shipbuilding and aircraft production
o Anti-submarine detection equipment and weapons
o Allied signals intelligence crucial to victory
o 785 U-boats sunk
o
● Longest campaign in WWII
o
Total of 69 months
Impact of the Battle
● Britain/France and the U.S. had routes to exchange
weaponry.
o 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
o 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.