October 1939. U-47 returns to port after sinking HMS Royal Oak. The battlecruiser Scharnhorst is seen in the background.

The term is the anglification of the German word U-Boot [▶], itself an abbreviation form of Unterseeboot (literally, "undersea boat"), the German word for submarine. The primary targets of the U-boat campaigns in both world wars were the merchant convoys bringing supplies from Canada and the United States to Europe. Austrian submarines of World War I were also known as "U-boats". U-47 returning to port after sinking the Royal Oak. ... Unterseeboot 47 (U-47) was a German type VII B U-Boat (submarine). ... HMS Royal Oak was a Revenge-class battleship of the Royal Navy, sunk early in World War II. She was laid down at Devonport, Devon on 15 January 1914 and launched on 17 November of that year. ... Scharnhorst was a 31,500 tonne Gneisenau class battlecruiser of the German Kriegsmarine, named the Prussian general and army reformer Gerhard von Scharnhorst and to commemorate the World War I armored cruiser SMS Scharnhorst. ... To anglicise (or in North American English anglicize) is to adapt a foreign word into the English language, often modifying its form to correspond to standard English French demoiselle, meaning little lady. Another common type of anglicisation is the inclusion of a foreign article as part of a noun (eg. ... Image File history File links De-U-Boot-pronunciation. ... World map showing Europe (geographically) When considered a continent, Europe is the worlds second-smallest continent in terms of area, with an area of 10,600,000 km² (4,140,625 square miles), making it larger than Australia only. ...

World War I

In May of 1915, U-20 sank the liner RMS Lusitania. Though there was a great deal of outrage at the sinking of an "innocent" merchant ship at the time, historians now believe the Lusitania had 10 tons of weapons aboard, making it a valid target under international law. Of the 1,195 lives lost, 123 were American civilians, including a noted theatrical producer and a member of the prestigious Vanderbilt family. This event turned American public opinion against Germany and was a significant factor in getting the United States involved in the war on the Allied side. Jump to: navigation, search 1915 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Unterseeboot 20 (U-20) has been the designation of two submarines of the German Navy. ... RMS Mauretania, the Lusitanias sister ship The RMS Lusitania was an ocean liner of the British Cunard Steamship Lines. ... International law, deals with the relationships between states, or between persons or entities in different states. ... Jump to: navigation, search This article details the family of Cornelius Vanderbilt. ...

With the United States already on the side of the Allies, Germany announced on 31 January 1917 that its U-boats would engage in unrestricted submarine warfare. On 17 March 1917, German submarines sank three American merchant vessels. See First Battle of the Atlantic. January 31 is the 31st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1917 was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. ... Unrestricted submarine warfare is a kind of naval warfare in which submarines sink merchant ships without warning. ... The First battle of the Atlantic ( 1914– 1918) was a naval campaign of World War I, largely fought in the seas around the British Isles and in the Atlantic Ocean. ...

World War II

During World War II, U-boat warfare was the major component of the Battle of the Atlantic, which lasted the duration of the war. Germany had the largest submarine fleet in World War II, due to the Treaty of Versailles which limited the surface navy of Germany to six battleships (of less than 10,000 tonnes), six cruisers and 12 destroyers. Winston Churchill, the United Kingdom's Prime Minister for most of the war, was quoted as saying, "The only thing that really frightened me during the war was the U-Boat peril." During the early stages of the war, and soon after the United States' entry into the war, the U-boats were extremely effective in destroying allied shipping, coming up to the Atlantic coast of the United States and even the Gulf of Mexico. Advances in convoy tactics, radar, sonar (called Asdic in England), depth charges, the cracking of the German Enigma code, the introduction of the Leigh Light and the range of escort aircraft turned the tide against the U-boats. In the end, the U-boat fleet suffered extremely heavy casualties, losing 743 U-boats and about 30,000 submariners (a 75% casualty rate). HMS Repulse (British battlecruiser, 1916-1941) leading HMS Renown and other ships during maneuvers. ... Jump to: navigation, search The treaty was an International affair The Treaty of Versailles of 1919 was the peace treaty which officially ended World War I between the Allies and Germany. ... This article is about a battleship as a type of warship. ... The USS Port Royal (CG-73), a Ticonderoga class cruiser. ... USS Lassen, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet or battle group and defend them against smaller, short-range attackers (originally torpedo boats, later submarines and aircraft). ... Jump to: navigation, search The Right Honourable Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, KG, OM, CH, FRS, PC (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, best known as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. ... This long range radar antenna (approximately 40m (130ft) in diameter) rotates on a track to observe activities near the horizon. ... Jump to: navigation, search The F70 type frigates (here, La Motte-Picquet) are fitted with VDS (Variable Depth Sonar) type DUBV43 or DUBV43C tugged sonars Sonar (sound navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation under water to navigate or to detect other watercraft. ... Depth Charge used by U.S. Navy later in World War II The depth charge is the oldest anti-submarine weapon. ... In the history of cryptography, the Enigma was a portable cipher machine used to encrypt and decrypt secret messages. ... The Leigh Light (abbreviated L/L) was a British World War II era anti submarine device used in the Second Battle of the Atlantic. ...

Survivors from U-175 after being sunk by USS Spencer, 17 April 1943.

During World War II, the Kriegsmarine produced many different types of U-boats as technology evolved. Survivors from U-175 aboard the USS Spencer, photo by Jack January, April 17, 1943. ... Survivors from U-175 aboard the USS Spencer, photo by Jack January, April 17, 1943. ... The Kriegsmarine (or War Navy) was the name of the German Navy between 1935 and 1945, during the Nazi regime, superseding the Reichsmarine. ...

• Type I
• Type II
• Type V
• Type VII
• Type IX
• Type X
• Type XIV
• Type XVII
• Type XVIII
• Type XXI
• Type XXIII

U-505 was a Type IXC, notable for its capture by the United States Navy in 1944. It is presently a museum ship in Chicago, Illinois at the Museum of Science and Industry. The capture of U-505 was critical due to the capture of her codebooks, which provided the Allies with the ability to read recent German codes. U-110, a Type IXB, had been captured in 1941 by the United Kingdom's Royal Navy, allowing the British to decipher the German Enigma code before the entry of the US into World War II. The Type I U-boat was a 1936 attempt by the German Kriegsmarine to produce an oceangoing U-boat. ... The Type II U-boat was designed by Germany as a coastal submarine, modeled after the Finnish CV-707. ... Type VII U-boats were the workhorses of the German World War II U-boot-waffe, and appeared in several sub-types. ... The Type IX U-boat was designed by Germany in 1935 and 1936 as a large ocean-going submarine for sustained operations far from the home support facilities. ... Type X (XB) U-boats were a special type of German submarine (U-boat). ... The Type XIV U-boat was a modification of the Type IXD, designed to resupply other U-boats. ... Type XXI U-boat U 3008, postwar photo Type XXI U-boats, also known as the Elektroboote, were the first submarines designed to operate entirely submerged, rather than as surface ships that could submerge as a temporary, awkward mode of operation. ... Type XXIII U-boats were designed to operate in the shallows of the North Sea, Black Sea and Mediterranean Sea where larger Type XXI Elektro boats were at risk in World War II. They were so small they could carry only two torpedoes, which had to be loaded externally. ... Unterseeboot 505 was a Type IXC U-boat of the Kriegsmarine, captured by the United States Navy in 1944, and presently a museum ship in Chicago, Illinois. ... The Type IX U-boat was designed by Germany in 1935 and 1936 as a large ocean-going submarine for sustained operations far from the home support facilities. ... Jump to: navigation, search The United States Navy (USN) is the branch of the United States armed forces responsible for naval operations. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1944 was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... A museum ship, or sometimes memorial ship, is an old ship that has been preserved and converted into a museum open to the public. ... Jump to: navigation, search Chicago, colloquially known as the Second City and the Windy City, is the third-largest city in population in the United States and the largest inland city in the country. ... The Museum of Science and Industry is housed in the only surviving building from the 1893 World Columbian Exposition and is a National Historic Landmark. ... Unterseeboot 110 (U-110) has been the designation of two submarines of the German Navy. ... The Type IX U-boat was designed by Germany in 1935 and 1936 as a large ocean-going submarine for sustained operations far from the home support facilities. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1941 was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Jump to: navigation, search The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the senior service of the British armed services, being the oldest of its three branches. ... In the history of cryptography, the Enigma was a portable cipher machine used to encrypt and decrypt secret messages. ...

On 2 November 1942, U-518, under the command of Kapitänleutnant Wissman, attacked two ore carriers at Bell Island, Newfoundland that were shipping iron ore from the island's mines to feed the allied war effort. The attack began at 3:30 a.m. and S.S. Rosecastle and P.L.M 27 were sunk with the loss of 69 lives. However, one of the most dramatic incidents of the attack occurred after the sinkings when the submarine fired a torpedo at the loading pier. Bell Island became the only location in North America to be subject to direct attack by German forces in World War II. Jump to: navigation, search November 2 is the 306th day of the year (307th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 59 days remaining. ... Jump to: navigation, search This article is about the year. ... Bell Island, Newfoundland Bell Island is an island located off Newfoundlands Avalon Peninsula in Conception Bay. ... Newfoundland (French: Terre-Neuve; Irish: Talamh an Éisc; Latin: Terra Nova) Newfoundland (originally, Terra Nova) was very likely named by the english John Cabot in 1497, which would make it the oldest European name in North America. ... Bell Island, Newfoundland Bell Island is an island located off Newfoundlands Avalon Peninsula in Conception Bay. ... Jump to: navigation, search World map showing North America (geographically) A satellite composite image of North America North America is a continent in the northern hemisphere, bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the south by the Caribbean Sea, and...

See also

• List of U-boats
• List of the most successful U-boats
• Karl Dönitz
• S. S. Athenia

Unterseeboot 2 (1906) (1935) Unterseeboot 4 (1915) (1935) Unterseeboot 5 (1910) (1915) (1915) (1935) Unterseeboot 19 (1910) (1935) Unterseeboot 20 (1912) (1936) Unterseeboot 27 Unterseeboot 28 Unterseeboot 32 Unterseeboot 47 (1938) Unterseeboot 48 Unterseeboot 74 Unterseeboot 81 Unterseeboot 96 Unterseeboot 110 Unterseeboot 123 (1918) (1940) Unterseeboot 135 (1918) Unterseeboot 155... Categories: U-boats ... Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz. ... The S.S. Athenia was the first British ship to be sunk by Germany in World War II. Athenia was built by the Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Ltd. ...

References

• Stern, Robert C. (1999). Battle Beneath the Waves: U-boats at war. Arms and Armor/Sterling Publishing. ISBN 1854092006.
• Kurson, Robert (2004). Shadow Divers: The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World War II. Random House Publishing. ISBN 0-375-50858-93
• Buchheim, Lothar-Günther, Das Boot (Original German edition 1973, eventually translated into English and many other Western languages). Movie adaptation in 1981, directed by Wolfgang Petersen

Jump to: navigation, search Das Boot (German for The Boat. ... 1981 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Wolfgang Petersen Wolfgang Petersen (born March 14, 1941 in Emden, Lower Saxony, Germany) is a German film director. ...

External links

• http://www.uboat.net/
• http://ubootwaffe.net
• The Diary of a U-boat Commander – Project Gutenberg edition (WWI)
• German U-Boats 1935–1945 (in German)
• Book excerpt: U-Boat Attack
• U-Boat U-35 and Prisoners-of-War, WWII
• U-Boat U-434, POWs in Canada