The Significance of Naval Warfare in World War II (WWII)

1
The Significance of Naval Warfare in World War II
(WWII)

• Mikel

2
Navy-significant Events Prior to WWII

• Attacks on mercantile ships in WWI
• Treaty of Versailles restrictions
• British trade deficit
• 10035 tonnage

3
Commerce
4
Why attack commerce?

• British reliance on trade
• Lack of natural resources
• Large sector of the workforce
• Historical precedent

5
Effect of the disruption of trade on the British
war effort
6
What were used?(Germans)

• Mines
• U-Boats
• Surface attacks
• Raiders disguised
• as merchantmen

7
What were used? (British)

• Weaponry from WWI
• Rationing
• Armament of Merchantmen
• Convoys

8
Surface Attacks

• Admiral Scheer 5 month operation
• 16 ships, 100,000 registered tonnes lost

9
Merchantmens Armament

• Used previously in WWI
• Swift attacks
• Could operate in various waters
• Ex. Atlantis

10
Convoys
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Convoys, Importance

• Regulation of Gibraltar to UK
• Important North Atlantic Movements
• Battle of the Atlantic
• Supply of Malta

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Battle of the Atlantic U-Boat Fears
13

• ... The only thing that ever
• really frightened me
• during the war was the
• U-boat peril
• - Winston Churchill

14
The Battle of the Atlantics Significance

• The UK would serve as a springboard
• Inability to move resources

15

• Germany's best hope of defeating Britain lay in
  winning what Churchill christened the 'Battle of
  the Atlantic'.
• - Dr. Gary Sheffild

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Pacific
17

• Sinking of Japanese Merchant ships
• Slowing/countering Japanese expansion
• Regaining the Philippines and other territories
• Swift movement/attacks aircraft carrier

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Amphibious Warfare
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The Importance of Amphibious Warfare

• Beach attacks
• Quick expansion across borders

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How Amphibious Warfare was Employed
21
Bibliography

• Ireland, Bernard. Jane's Naval History of World
  War II. New York HarperCollinsPublishers, 1998.
  Print.
• Keegan, John. The Battle for History Re-fighting
  World War II. New York Vintage, 1996. Print.
• "Battle of the Atlantic." History Web Pages. Web.
  31 Aug. 2010. lthttp//history.sandiego.edu/gen/WW2
  Timeline/atlantic.htmlgt.
• "WORLD WAR 2 Naval Warfare - Atlantic and Pacific
  - Pearl Harbor, Midway." History of War Online -
  World War Two, World War One, Civil War. Web. 31
  Aug. 2010. lthttp//www.historyofwaronline.com/WW2-
  3.htmlgt.
• "North Africa, WW2, Tobruk, Benghazi, Torch,
  Malta, Suez, Egypt, Greece, Crete, Alexandria,
  Med Fleet, 8th Army, Montgomery."
  NAVAL-HISTORY.NET. Web. 31 Aug. 2010.
  lthttp//www.naval-history.net/WW2CampaignsNorthAfr
  ica.htmgt.
• Sheffield, Gary. "BBC - History - World Wars The
  Battle of the Atlantic." BBC - Homepage. BBC.
  Web. 31 Aug. 2010. lthttp//www.bbc.co.uk/history/w
  orldwars/wwtwo/battle_atlantic_01.shtmlgt.
• "The Supply of Malta 1940-1942 by Arnold Hague."
  NAVAL-HISTORY.NET. Web. 31 Aug. 2010.
  lthttp//www.naval-history.net/xAH-MaltaSupply01b.h
  tmgt.
• "German Warship Scharnhorst (1936)." World War
  II. Web. 31 Aug. 2010. lthttp//anonymous-generalto
  pics.blogspot.com/2008/10/german-warship-scharnhor
  st-1936.htmlgt.