Wolf Pack: The Story of the U-Boat in World War II

by Gordon Williamson

Germany's World War II U-Boat fleet represented the elite of their naval personnel. In terms of technology, training, tactics and combat successes, the U-Boat Waffe was far superior to that of any other combatant nation. In this comprehensive book, the wartime development of the U-Boat is traced along with the experiences of typical U-Boat crewmen, from recruitment to combat. The author examines the operational tactics of the U-Boat fleet, as well as describing the massive bunkers that housed them. 'Wolf Pack' contains material taken from Fortress 3: 'U-Boat Bases and Bunkers 1941-45', Warrior 36: 'Grey U-Boat Crewman of World War II' and New Vanguards 51 and 55: 'Kriegsmarine U-Boat 1939-45 (1) and (2)', with the addition of a new section on wartime tactics.

Genres: History, War, Nonfiction, Nautical, World War II, Military History

272 pages, Hardcover

First published February 5, 2005

About the author

Gordon Williamson was born in 1951 and currently works for the Scottish Land Registry. He spent seven years with the Military Police TA and has published a number of books and articles on the decorations of the Third Reich and their winners. He is the author of a number of World War II titles for Osprey Publishing.

Reviews

[Prp · Rating 3 out of 5]

The subtitle says : ”The story of the U-Boat in World War II”
Well, it is nothing of the sort. The author has made a thorough research, has compiled a lot of information but has NOT written a story with it.
The book has four parts
Part I, The development of the Kriegsmarine’s U-boats: We are given every type of U-boat with all their specifications.
Part II , U-boat bases and bunkers: a minute description of each one of them (walls so thick, ceilings so thick, etc.) .
We are now over half of the book and so far we’ve hade a very boring read. Gordon Williamson could have given an overview and have saved those data for the appendixes.
Parts III, U-boat crews : recruitment, training (for each category), and so on.
Part IV, Tactics and operations: Sorted by years, which U-boat sinked which ship.
Since the book is practiclaly a mass of data, it would to be desired that no big errors crop up. It is inconceivable to set Operation Torch in 1943! It is not a typing mistake, since the operations are sorted by years. 1942 ends without a mention to it, whereas it appears at the end of 1943.
The U-995 renamed Kaura is given to the Danish Navy and a few lines later to the Norwegian one.
The book will be appreciated by people in search of raw information, but not by those wishing for a passionating story or, at least, an interesting one.

[Bryan Whitehead · Rating 3 out of 5]

British author Gordon Williamson serves up an exceptionally uneven account of Germany’s U-boat operations in World War Two. The work rocks back and forth between too much detail and not enough, rarely if ever hitting just the right note. For example, Williamson devotes nearly 60 pages to the subject of U-boat bunkers. This turns out to be even more boring than it sounds like it’s going to be, because he keeps repeating the same information over and over. I found myself mumbling, “Okay, I get it. They made the roofs of these things really thick, and the Allies didn’t have much luck trying to blow them up.” Further, we get extensive descriptions of how many pens each site had, but not a single map showing where in the world the site was located. The chapters on the boats themselves, their crews and their tactics are similarly hit-and-miss. That isn’t to say that there’s nothing good here. Some of the photos and illustrations are particularly interesting. But overall it just never quite comes together as a readable book.

[Artlvns · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good summarized information about German Uboats in WW2.
Contains high level information on topics such as:
* Equipment
* Crews
* Battles
* Naval base infrastructure

[Mark Maguire · Rating 4 out of 5]

I purchased this book in 2008 having watched the monumental Das Boot.

Inspired to learn more about the lives of the U Boot men, I used the search term U Boot on Amazon, and this was the only book which appeared. At the time, it felt as if the notion of wanting to learn more about the suffering of the adversary was a taboo, as the U Boot men were, in some way, beyond the pale, the archetypal Nazi's. Upon arrival, this book assumed a new purpose; provide a general overview of the subject whilst providing leads for further investigation.


The Author provided a general overview of the subject examining U Boot design and construction; the U Boat in service, conditions on board, and critically, an analysis of the U Boat Men whom served on board these menacing machines, and suffered an unparalleled mortality rate.

The narrative had an unfortunate tendency toward repetition. Despite this, a portrait of the U Boot men emerged. The archetype appeared to comprise of a de-politicised; rugged, and humanised individual, skilled and prepared to serve in the appalling conditions of the type VII and marginally improved type IX U Boots, whom were not immune to suffering of those in the cross hairs. A view neatly underlined by the sinking of the Laconia.

As a foundation for further reading; this book is indespensible. As an attempt to revise the "traditional understanding" of the U Boot men, it is commendable, and acts as a barrier against further works forged in the traditional understanding of the simplistic "good" versus "bad" world view.

[Hugo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book with lots of facts and information on the u-boats during WW2, even down to logistical details.

I would have preferred more descriptions of enemy encounters and patrols, instead of his we get lists and lists of number of ships destroyed, so it can get a bit dull and I found myself just glancing over entire pages, but it is well researched and seems very complete.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read