The Second World War at Sea in Photographs
7 total works
At the beginning of 1941, Britain stood alone against Germany and Italy. The Battle of the Atlantic was in full swing. Hitler's U-boats were operating in packs, descending on convoys and sinking many millions of tons of shipping. In May, the formidable German battleship Bismarck left port, heading out into the North Atlantic. After sinking the battlecruiser HMS Hood off Iceland, she was eventually cornered by the Royal Navy in the Bay of Biscay and sunk herself. A major breakthrough came when a naval Enigma code machine was captured from the U-boat U-110. With the attack by Hitler on Russia in June, convoys began to be sent up the coast of Norway to the northern ports of Murmansk and Archangel, carrying war material to support the struggling Soviets. December 1941 saw the war become a truly global conflict, with the Japanese attacks on Pearl Harbor, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Indonesia bringing the United States into the war.
Using many rarely seen images, Phil Carradice tells the story of 1941: The War at Sea.
Using many rarely seen images, Phil Carradice tells the story of 1941: The War at Sea.
The sixth year of the Second World War began positively for the Allies, with the successful landings at Anzio, codenamed Operation Shingle. The landings eventually led to the liberation of Rome, an important milestone in the war. The year 1944 was, however, dominated at sea by Operation Neptune, better known as the D-Day landings, on 6 June. From this point, the Allies continued to expand their foothold in Normandy, and throughout France. As the largest seaborne invasion in history, the Normandy landings were a turning point of the war.
Later in the war, on the other side of the world, the Americans were launching the successful amphibious attacks on the Mariana Islands. Having captured Saipan, the American forces were in a much better strategic position in the war against Japan. Operation Dragoon was launched in the south of France in the middle of August, and continued for a month. While the troops in northern France were making steady progress, the soldiers in the south were advancing quickly, taking Toulon and Marseille within two weeks.
In this book, Phil Carradice uses a variety of rarely seen photographs to continue the story of the Second World War at sea into 1944.
Later in the war, on the other side of the world, the Americans were launching the successful amphibious attacks on the Mariana Islands. Having captured Saipan, the American forces were in a much better strategic position in the war against Japan. Operation Dragoon was launched in the south of France in the middle of August, and continued for a month. While the troops in northern France were making steady progress, the soldiers in the south were advancing quickly, taking Toulon and Marseille within two weeks.
In this book, Phil Carradice uses a variety of rarely seen photographs to continue the story of the Second World War at sea into 1944.
The final year of the Second World War was very quiet in terms of naval operations, as European leaders turned their minds towards peace with the promise of unconditional German surrender. From January to May in Europe, the German navy was involved in a large-scale evacuation of refugees; however, the Soviet submarines were working very effectively at this time, so German losses remained high.
The majority of the fighting at sea took place in the Pacific and, from April to June, the Allies were fighting in the Battle of Okinawa, the largest amphibious assault in the Second World War Pacific theatre. The Americans used Okinawa as their base to attack mainland Japan; over 70,000 Japanese soldiers died. The last actions of the Battle of the Atlantic took place in May, and the German U-boat fleet surrendered en masse in the same month.
In this book, Phil Carradice uses a selection of rare photographs to finish the story of the Second World War at sea.
The majority of the fighting at sea took place in the Pacific and, from April to June, the Allies were fighting in the Battle of Okinawa, the largest amphibious assault in the Second World War Pacific theatre. The Americans used Okinawa as their base to attack mainland Japan; over 70,000 Japanese soldiers died. The last actions of the Battle of the Atlantic took place in May, and the German U-boat fleet surrendered en masse in the same month.
In this book, Phil Carradice uses a selection of rare photographs to finish the story of the Second World War at sea.
In the first of a series of books, naval expert Phil Carradice takes us through the war at sea in 1939, using previously unpublished and rare images of the battles, the ships and the people involved. The Second World War at sea began badly for the Allies. On the day that war was declared, the unarmed passenger liner Athenia was sunk off Rockall, creating an uproar on both sides of the Atlantic. The same month saw the loss of HMS Courageous, a badly needed aircraft carrier, as well as the daring raid by Gunther Prien's U-49 on HMS Royal Oak while she was berthed in the supposedly safe anchorage of Scapa Flow during October. In the meantime, German commerce raiders were creating havoc in the South Atlantic. It was only in December that the battlecruiser Graf Spee was finally cornered and scuttled off Montevideo, giving the hard-pressed Allies some good news to end the year.
January 1940 saw the escalation of the sea war between Britain and Germany. U-boats would claim numerous casualties, including HMS Exmouth and all 135 of her crew on 21 January 1940. In February, Hitler ordered unrestricted submarine warfare, while HMS Cossack rescued crews of British ships sunk by the Graf Spee from the supply ship Altmark. An air raid on the naval base at Scapa Flow saw the first British civilian casualties of the war in March. Two invasions of Norway began in April, with the Germans ultimate victors. HMS Glorious was sunk during the evacuation of British troops and aircraft. May saw Dunkirk, the British rescue of some 334,000 troops, and the Lancastria was sunk with the loss of over 6,000 lives in June.
July saw an attack on the French fleet by the British, in an effort to deny the battleships to the Germans. The Americans agreed to supply Britain with aged destroyers in exchange for bases and the invasion of Britain, Operation Sealion, was set for September.
November saw HMS Jervis Bay sunk while escorting a convoy, many of which managed to escape. The year ended with a continued assault on British ships by U-boats.
Using many rarely seen images, Phil Carradice tells the story of 1940: The War at Sea.
July saw an attack on the French fleet by the British, in an effort to deny the battleships to the Germans. The Americans agreed to supply Britain with aged destroyers in exchange for bases and the invasion of Britain, Operation Sealion, was set for September.
November saw HMS Jervis Bay sunk while escorting a convoy, many of which managed to escape. The year ended with a continued assault on British ships by U-boats.
Using many rarely seen images, Phil Carradice tells the story of 1940: The War at Sea.
As 1942, the fourth year of the war, began, victory for the Allies was still a long way off. German submarines were sinking ships off the coast of the United States in what would become known as the 'Second Happy Time' for the U-boat crews while Allied vessels were falling victim to Japanese aircraft and warships in the Far East. Scharnhorst, Gneisenau and Prinz Eugen made their dash through the Channel to German waters while in the Arctic the battleship Tirpitz and German aircraft and submarines menaced the convoys supplying Russia.
However, convoys continued to get through to supply beleaguered Malta despite heavy losses to submarines and aircraft, and in the Pacific the US Navy inflicted defeats on the Japanese at the key battles of the Coral Sea and Midway, battles in which the major vessels never actually saw each other, fighting with carrier-borne aircraft instead. Troops were landed on the island of Guadalcanal and in North Africa.
In this book, Phil Carradice uses many rarely seen images to tell the story of the Second World War at Sea in 1942.
However, convoys continued to get through to supply beleaguered Malta despite heavy losses to submarines and aircraft, and in the Pacific the US Navy inflicted defeats on the Japanese at the key battles of the Coral Sea and Midway, battles in which the major vessels never actually saw each other, fighting with carrier-borne aircraft instead. Troops were landed on the island of Guadalcanal and in North Africa.
In this book, Phil Carradice uses many rarely seen images to tell the story of the Second World War at Sea in 1942.
At the beginning of the year, the Battle of Guadalcanal was still raging on, but the Americans had secured their first complete victory in the Pacific by the end of February, although the war in this theatre was far from over, with several further engagements taking place throughout the year.
'Black May', the point in the Battle of the Atlantic at which the German U-boat losses outnumbered how many ships they had sunk, forced Doenitz to order a withdrawal. From July to August, the Allies were engaged in the invasion of Sicily, known as Operation Husky. The operation was successful, and allowed for the invasion of Italy. The year ended positively for the Allies, with the sinking of the Scharnhorst at the end of December.
In this book, Phil Carradice uses many rare images to tell the story of the Second World War at sea in 1943.
'Black May', the point in the Battle of the Atlantic at which the German U-boat losses outnumbered how many ships they had sunk, forced Doenitz to order a withdrawal. From July to August, the Allies were engaged in the invasion of Sicily, known as Operation Husky. The operation was successful, and allowed for the invasion of Italy. The year ended positively for the Allies, with the sinking of the Scharnhorst at the end of December.
In this book, Phil Carradice uses many rare images to tell the story of the Second World War at sea in 1943.