| 9 December 1941 – 24 May 1943 The Battle of the Atlantic |
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| One of the most immediate effects of the outbreak of war between
the United States and Germany was the beginning of an intensive submarine campaign in American
coastal waters. German “U-boats” (the “U” stood for untersee, or undersea) immediately began hovering
off the East Coast, in many cases within sight of important port cities as New York, Charleston,
and Miami. As a result, during the first half of 1942 Allied merchant vessels and troopships entering
and leaving U.S. ports suffered staggering losses; U-boats were sinking well over 100 ships each
month by the beginning of the summer.
However, this started to change during the latter part of the year. That summer a convoy system was established in American coastal waters, enabling ships to travel in large groups, escorted by destroyers and other naval vessels. By the end of the year U.S. and British code-breakers had managed to unlock the secrets of the German naval code, allowing Allied ships and aircraft to locate and destroy the U-boats. Soon the number of ships sunk dropped off significantly, while the submarines themselves began suffering serious losses. Realizing that their efforts were failing, the German naval command withdrew all U-boats from the North Atlantic in May 1943. The Battle for the Atlantic had been won. Histories:
Personal Accounts: Photographs: |
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