U-boat War off the U. S. Coast, 1942-45, Volume 1

In January 1942, one month after the United States entered World War II, German U-boat submarines began a spree of destruction against American and Allied shipping off the coast of the United States, beginning first with the East Coast and later extending to the Gulf Coast. This volume chronicles the height of the German U-boat offensive along the U.S. East Coast through May 1942 and the struggling efforts of the U.S. Navy to gain control of a situation for which it is largely unprepared. The lack of suitable warships and aircraft to combat the menace allows the U-boats to enjoy a runaway success for four months, resulting in heavy losses of ships, crews, and cargoes that pose a threat to the U.S. and British war efforts. The gradual increase in surface and air forces finally begins to curb U-boat success and allow the inauguration of coastal convoys to protect shipping.

The U-boat War off the U.S. Coast, 1942–45 is a narrative history of the naval operations and warfare fought off the East and Gulf Coasts of the United States in World War II. German U-boat submarines arrived off the U.S. coast in January 1942 in an offensive aimed at destroying the merchant shipping of the United States and other Allied nations and were to continue their efforts to do so during the remainder of the war. During the first four months of their offensive, the U-boats achieved great success, destroying Allied shipping in American waters at an alarming rate. At the same time, the U.S. Navy struggled in its efforts to stop the carnage and defeat the U-boat assault. Eventually, with the acquisition of increased numbers of aircraft and warships, the inauguration of coastal convoys, and new antisubmarine weapons and technologies, the U-boat menace was finally brought under control. Until now, the Battle of the Atlantic as it was fought in American waters has received only limited coverage despite the very intense fighting and naval operations that characterized it. The U-boat War provides a comprehensive detailed account from the perspective of individual merchant and naval ships and U-boats to chronicle their operations in American waters during three years of war, highlighting the links that bind them together using source materials and original documents from both sides. This first volume of the two-volume set details the high-water mark of the U-boat offensive off the U.S. East Coast during the period of January to May 1942.