Hitler's Sea Wolves
Wolf packs of U-boats create a Graveyard in the Atlantic
Admiral Karl Donitz's mauraders terrorized the seas with u-boats during World War II. They would sink thousands of war ships, merchant vessels and even passenger ships.
Hermann Goringwas the commander of the German Air Force the Luftwaffe, and was one of Hitler's most celebrated Officers. Hitler reveled and cherished his air force and turned deaf ears to his navy commanders when they pleaded for funds to expand their sea forces.
Commodore Karl Donitz, head of Germanys submarine division was determined to shatter the belief that the navy was useful only as a secondary attack force. He argued that a powerful submarine fleet could destroy British shipping capabilities.
In September of 1939 the English aircraft carrier Courageous was sunk and in October a bold attack was planned by Donitz. A daring strike was designed on the British naval base at Scapa Flow off the coast of the Orkney Islands near Scotland.
Lieutenant Commander Gunther Prien, who was hand picked by Donitz for the mission succeeded in his dangerous task of infiltrating the narrow entrance of Scapa Flow which was heavily defended, mined, and naturally fortified by sunken ships that were the victims of the first world war.
He successfully torpedoed and sank the British Battleship Royal Oak and badly damaged another vessel in a span of three minutes and made good his escape amid confusion and panic.
Donitz was awarded the Knight’s Cross and promoted to Rear Admiral. Germany’s U-boat terror and submarine warfare had begun and by the wars end would claim over 4600 merchant ships alone, carrying more then 21 million tons of cargo.
Erich Raeder, Grand Admiral and Commander in Chief of the German Navy was ecstatic when the Fuhrer gave permission for U-boats to ignore the Hague Convention and The London Submarine Protocol of 1936 both of which prohibited attacks on merchant and passenger ships without warning.
The summer of 1940 called by U-boat Captains “The Happy Time” was disastrous for the British who would lose a total of 217 ships to U-boat attacks. The German subs wasted no opportunities to inflict ruin.
Germany’s triumphs were Great Britain’s woes and “The Sea Wolves” achievements held grave consequences for the island nation who were dependant upon its import of food to feed its people and its reliance upon imported iron, rubber, and oil to carry on the war effort.
Winston Churchill, the Prime Minister of Great Britain was frantic to find a solution to the u-boat menace. The English developed coordinated convoys to help protect precious merchant shipments.
Churchill was becoming increasingly anxious for assistance from America due to irreplaceable loss of resources caused by the continued battering of The Sea Wolves and they sanctioned the U.S. for help in escorting ships, providing much needed equipment and furnishing them with war-time loans.
U.S. sentiments for the harried British and their continued support would soon draw them into a war they were strenuously trying to avoid. But circumstance such as the attack on the U.S. destroyer Kearny on October 17, 1941 and the sinking of the destroyer Rueben James on October 31st by German U-boats soured any further pretense of neutrality.
The American public and its leaders were outraged by Germanys attacks on U.S. ships but before any decisive decisions or proclamations were made the Empire of Japan sped up the process by launching a surprise attack on the U.S. fleet harbored at Pearl Harbor naval base in Hawaii.
The U.S. fleet at Pearl Harbor was badly damaged and the U.S.’s declaration of war on Japan and Germany brought a swift response from Admiral Karl Donitzwho launched a full-scale assault upon the America’s East Coast.
The operation was dubbed code name “Drum Role” and was designed to disrupt vital U.S. shipping lanes and prevent their continued support of Britain with much needed supplies.
The Sea Wolveswould turn the Atlantic Ocean into a graveyard until U.S. forces learned harsh lessons about how to properly use convoys to protect merchant ships and later technology assisted the U.S. and Great Britain and supplied an effective means to find and annihilate U-boats and end their vicious reign of terror.
Reference: Pitt, Barrie "The Battle of the Atlantic"
Time-Life Books 1977
