Print this page The Battle of the Atlantic

The Battle of the Atlantic was the longest and most strategically vital campaign of the Second World War. This course examines how control of sea lanes shaped the conflict, exploring submarines, convoys, intelligence and technological innovation. We consider the human experience of prolonged naval warfare and why victory in the Atlantic proved decisive for the Allied war effort. Ideal for those interested in military history and global conflict.

DELIVERY MODE

• Face to Face

SUGGESTED READING

• J. Dimbleby, The Battle of the Atlantic: How the Allies Won the War, Oxford University Press, 2016
• M. Terraine, Business in Great Waters: U-boat Wars, 1916-1945, 1999
• N. Monserrat, The Cruel Sea, Cassell & Co, 1951
• D. Owen, Anti-Submarine Warfare: An Illustrated History, Seaforth Publishing, 2007
• C. Blair, Hitler’s U-Boat War, The Hunters, 1939-1942, Modern Library NY, 1996
• M. Walling, Forgotten Sacrifice: The Arctic Convoys of WW2, Osprey, 2012

COURSE OUTLINE

• WWI submarine warfare origins and the interwar period: Dönitz's U-boat vision, Britain's ASDIC development, and critical import vulnerabilities.
• Early war phase 1939-1941: The surprisingly small German submarine fleet, surface raiders including Bismarck, and the impact of France's fall on U-boat operations.
• The intelligence war: Enigma codebreaking at Bletchley Park, the Shark cipher blackout of 1942, and German successes against British naval codes.
• Drumbeat and diversions 1942: The slaughter off America's coast, strategic dispersal of U-boats to Norway and Mediterranean, and the brutal Arctic convoys.
• Technology and tactics: Type VII and IX U-boats versus Flower-class corvettes, wolfpack operations, radar, HF/DF, and the evolution of convoy escort doctrine.
• The 1943 crisis and turning point: March 1943's critical moment, factors behind Allied victory in May, and the closing of the Mid-Atlantic air gap. Liberty ship and Escort Carrier programs.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this course, students should be able to:

1. Understand the strategic importance of the Atlantic campaign to the Allies’ victory, including Britain’s critical dependency on maritime imports and understand how close Germany came to severing this lifeline.
2. Analyse the interplay between politics, technology, strategy, and tactics in the campaign, including the role of Enigma codebreaking, radar development, and the evolution of U-boat and anti-submarine tactics.
3. Evaluate the key turning points and decisions that shaped the battle's outcome, from strategic diversions of U-boat forces to the crisis of March 1943 and the factors that led to Allied victory.
4. Assess counterfactual scenarios and alternative German strategies, developing critical thinking about how different decisions regarding fleet size, tactics, or wonder weapons might have altered the campaign's outcome.