Download 17_The Atlantic - It`s the Learning, Stupid

Title
Description
Keywords
Objectives
Author
Organisation
Version
Date
Copyright
17. Reading – The Atlantic
Mark Callagher
Introduction
There were five principle theatres where World
War II was to be fought
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
The Atlantic
The Mediterranean and North Africa
Eastern Europe
The Pacific and Asia
Western Europe (from June 1944)
The Axis Powers had gained considerable
successes right up to the middle of 1942.
It was in the critical 18 months from mid 1942
through to the end of 1943 that the tide was
turned in the Allies favour.
The Atlantic Charter
In August 1941 Churchill arrived just
off Newfoundland (near Canada) on
board the battleship HMS “Prince of
Wales”. The occasion was to be his
first meeting with President
Roosevelt.
When Churchill boarded the USS
Augusta and came face to face with
the American President there was a
moment of silence until Churchill said
“At long last Mr President”, to which
Roosevelt replied “Glad to have you
aboard Mr Churchill”.
The meeting was to establish the
Atlantic Charter, a vision for a postWorld War II world, despite the fact
that the United States had yet to enter
the war. The participants hoped that
the Soviet Union would adhere as
well, after having been attacked by
Nazi Germany two months earlier.
<caption>HMS “Prince of Wales” arrives for Atlantic Charter
Conference</caption>
Eight Points
The Eight Points of the Atlantic Charter were that:
1. No territorial gains were to be sought by the
United States or the United Kingdom.
2. Territorial adjustments must be in accord with
wishes of the peoples concerned.
3. The peoples had a right to self-determination.
4. Trade barriers were to be lowered.
5. There was to be global economic
cooperation and advancement of social
welfare.
6. Freedom from want and fear was to be
enforced.
7. There was to be freedom of the seas.
8. Disarmament of aggressor nations and postwar common disarmament was to be done.
<caption>Roosevelt and Churchill together</caption>
Germany First
Japan or Germany?
Before America entered the war Roosevelt had agreed that it was to be a priority to defeat
Germany before Japan.
The treacherous Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbour both delighted and worried
Churchill. He knew that the United States would now be fighting the Axis powers with Britain,
but he was concerned that President Roosevelt would be unable to resist public pressure to
exact vengeance for Pearl Harbour.
Germany First
Churchill travelled to the USA two weeks after Pearl Harbour to convince Roosevelt to stick
to a “Germany First” war strategy.
Appreciating that the American public and Congress would not tolerate a war strategy that
allowed the Japanese to proceed on an unchecked rampage across the Pacific, President
Roosevelt decided to keep secret his government’s commitment to the “Germany First” war
strategy.
Battle of the Atlantic
The Battle of the Atlantic was the
longest battle of the Second World War,
beginning from the first day of hostilities
and ending on the very last day of the
war. It was also the most important
battle during the entire Second World
War because the success of every other
campaign in every other theatre of war
depended upon its success. Many
experts agree that defeat of the German
U-Boats and control of the shipping
lanes linking the Allied nations of Great
Britain, United States and Canada was a
key factor if the Allied nations were to
invade occupied Europe and the
heartland of Germany itself.
Churchill said that:
“The Battle of the Atlantic was
the key feature of the War.
Never for one moment could
we forget that everything
happening elsewhere on land,
sea or in the air depended on
its outcome.”
Winmedia
File
Path
Width
Height
Autostart
Align
Long
description
Caption
Link to player
sonar ping2.wav
C:\Documents and
Settings\Mark
Callagher\My
Documents\History\P
PT Origins of World
War II\
75
42
True
Left
Sonar Ping
False
Battle of Atlantic begins
Germany had almost won the
First World War in 1916 and
1917 by cutting off Britain’s
supplies from the USA. The
Germans tried to do the same
thing in the Second World War.
German U-boats sank as much
Allied shipping as possible. If the
Germans sank more ships than
the British could build, Britain
would be cut off and lose the
war.
<caption>Ship sinks in the Atlantic after a German U-Boat torpedo
attack</caption>
Britain dominated above the waves
At the start of the war the British & French Navy were far superior with 22 Battleships and 83
Cruisers to Germany’s 3 small “pocket” Battleships and 8 Cruisers
The balance began to change in the summer of 1940 with the defeat of France when Hitler ordered
an air and submarine assault on British shipping to cut off British imports and starve Britain into
submission.
By 1941 Germany had also produced two superior new generation heavy battleships, the Bismarck
and Tirpitz. However, after a huge naval battle, Britain managed to maintain its superiority above
the oceans by sinking the Bismarck and forcing the Tirpitz to hide in the Norwegian Fjords.
<caption>German Battleship “Bismarck”, sunk May 1941</caption>
Winmedia
File
Path
Width
Height
Autostart
Align
Long description
Caption
Link to player
16_inch_guns.wav
C:\Documents and Settings\Mark Callagher\My
Documents\History\PPT Origins of World War II\
75
42
True
Left
Battleship 16 inch guns
False
Merchant Navy Convoys
At the outbreak of war, the
British Government took
control of all British merchant
ships. Their crews, the
Merchant Navy, were civilians
and not part of the Royal
Navy.
All merchant ships had to sail
in groups called convoys.
Each convoy had an escort of
naval ships, mostly destroyers.
There were never enough
escort ships to go round. Most
convoys sailed between North
America and Britain. Later,
some convoys went to supply
Russia.
<caption>An Atlantic Convoy</caption>
Wolf-Packs
The biggest threat
to the Atlantic
convoys was the
German Wolfpacks. At the start
of the war German
U-boats
(submarines) had
hunted individually,
but a new strategy
proved to be more
successful.
The U-boats spread
themselves in a line
across the Atlantic.
When a convoy was
<caption>German U-Boat in the Atlantic</caption>
spotted they came
together as a pack.
At night they
surfaced and fired
their torpedoes.
Most Allied shipping
was sunk by this
Wolf-Pack method.
ASDIC
Asdic was a device for locating
submerged submarines by using
sound waves. It was named after
the Anti-Submarine Detection
Investigation Committee (ASDIC)
and later renamed SONAR
(SOund Navigation And
Ranging).
It consisted of an electronic
sound transmitter and receiver.
This was housed in a metal
dome beneath the ship’s hull.
High-frequency beams - audible
‘pings’ - were sent out and
bounced back when they hit a
submarine. The time that passed
before an echo was received
showed the range of the
submarine. The pitch of the echo
revealed if it was approaching or
moving away.
Winmedia
File
Path
Width
Height
Autostart
Align
Long
description
Caption
Link to
player
Destroyers
asidic pings.mp3
C:\Documents
and
Settings\Mark
Callagher\My
Documents\Histo
ry\PPT Origins of
World War II\
75
42
True
Left
Asdic Pings
False
<caption>Asdic (Sonar) in action</caption>
Initially Destroyers were the most commonly used anti-submarine weapon. They would travel with
an Atlantic Convoy. If a U-boat was detected by Sonar then depth-charges would be dropped to
disable or destroy it.
<caption>Destroyer</caption>
Winmedia
File
Path
Width
Height
Autostart
Align
Long description
Caption
Link to player
GenQtrs.wav
C:\Documents and
Settings\Mark Callagher\My
Documents\History\PPT
Origins of World War II\
75
42
True
Left
<caption>Destroyer depth-charging a U-boat with the
convoy in the background</caption>
General Quarters Alert on a
Destroyer
False
Animation
Play this Animation to learn how to defeat the U-boats and guide your convoy to safety:
<include>
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/games/battle_atlantic/index.shtml
<width>715</width>
<height>500</height>
</include>
Allied losses
By mid-1941 so many ships
were being sunk that the
British Government stopped
publishing the figures. It was
clear that the U-boats were
winning.
In 1941
1299 Allied ships were
sunk. This was six times as
many as could be replaced.
Only 87 U-boats were sunk.
The Germans could easily
replace these losses.
By July 1942
U-boats were being
launched at a rate of 30 a
month.
In 1942
1700 Allied ships were lost.
The Turning Point
Since December 1941 the USA had
joined the war. US “liberty” ships were
being launched faster than the U-boats
could sink them.
The US Navy could now also help
escort the convoys. The Royal Navy
was at last getting new ships that had
been ordered in 1940.
<caption>An American liberty ship being launched</caption>
American complacency
Initially the USA was
complacent about the Atlantic
Battle. Lights were left on all
across the American East
Coast. German U-boats took
advantage of this opportunity.
The Battle Intensifies
Radar and convoy support
groups were increasingly
used from 1942. Hunterkiller groups of destroyers
went with the convoys to
seek and destroy U-boats
even if it meant leaving the
convoys.
Convoys were also getting
more protection from
aircraft. By mid 1942 Uboats could only operate
effectively in the “Atlantic
Gap” – an area out of range
of land based aircraft.
Victory over the U-Boat
The Allies started to win.
In 1943, 237 U-boats were
sunk, many by aircraft. The
USA and Britain were
coordinating their Naval and
Air forces to win a decisive
battle. The Allies built four
times as many ships as
were sunk.
In May 1943, Admiral
Doenitz, the commander of
the U-boat fleet recalled his
boats from the Atlantic. He
said:
“At the present
time it is not a
victory but the
survival of boats
and their crews
that must come
first”
U-Boats were no longer a
threat.
The threat of blockade
against Britain had ended.
The build-up of forces for a
land attack on Europe was
made possible.
Overall U-Boat Losses
Overall Merchant Ship Losses
Conclusion
The removal of the U-Boat threat now made it possible for the Allies to prepare for an invasion of
Fortress Europe from Britain.