THE WORLD WAR TWO GROUP discussion

Members can discuss any aspect of Submarine warfare during the Second World War in this area.

One of our new members, Nick, has an interest in U-boats and submarine warfare during the Second World War. I figured there would be others out there that would like to discuss this interesting aspect of WW2 and good books related to U-boats, sub's and battles, so please post away :)

Thanks Rick.

My favorite submarine books are the ones written by the actual captains and crewmembers. Their personal stories are more engaging than books written by historians. Their exciting tales of day-by-day trials and tribulations, successes, sinkings and the terrors of depth-charging are far more compelling than the "big picture" histories of the entire Battle of the Atlantic.

I will list just a couple to start things off. Iron Coffins by Herbert Werner is the personal story of a U-Boat First Watch Officer who later became a Captain. He starts off early in the war when the U-Boats were highly successful, then tells of the dark days when his comrades were sunk without trace by Allied aircraft and escorts. He also describes the fate of his hometown and the deaths of his family in Allied air raids. It is an altogether unforgetable account of life in Doenitz's U-Bootwaffe.

Iron Coffins: A Personal Account Of The German U-boat Battles Of World War II

Another personal favorite is Thunder Below by Captain Eugene Fluckey. He was an American skipper facing the Japanese in the Pacific theater. He was an extremely aggressive and successful officer who ended up winning the Congressional Medal of Honor for valor.

Thunder Below!: The USS *Barb* Revolutionizes Submarine Warfare in World War II

Some excellent recommendations there Nick and thanks for your comments on each book which will be very helpful for others who may be interested in one of these titles.

One of my favourites books on the subject is Convoy by Martin Middlebrook.

by Martin Middlebrook
Description:
Martin Middlebrook has written some of the greatest classics in military history, covering major turning points in the two World Wars. Here, using extensive primary research, he follows the Battle of the Atlantic from the perspective of two convoys eastbound from the U.S. in 1942. A detailed blow-by-blow record of the perilous crossing captures the danger as the vital convoys face U-Boat wolf packs. On-board accounts reveal what it was like as torpedoes hit, boats sank, men were rescued, and submarines went on the hunt.

Convoy is a good one Rick. I read that one a few months ago. It is a bit unusual because it focuses only on two convoys that are crossing the Atlantic at the same time and eventually merge together after being decimated by U-boats in the sea off Greenland. You don't see too many books that tell the story from the viewpoint of the crew on the merchant ships. Most books are told from the perspective of U-boat commanders or escort commanders that are hunting the U-boats. But this one concentrates on the the hardships and heroism of the merchant marine captains and crews. Lots of good info on how the convoys maneuvered and how the escorts tried to defend the tankers and merchantmen.

Hi Nick,

I like books that can offer perspectives from all involved and the poor old merchant seamen is usually sidelined in many accounts. I have a few favourite books on U-boats and their commanders that are hard to beat though, like this one:

U-333 (no cover) by Peter Cremer

OR:

by Peter Cremer
(same book I think, just different edition/title)

I've read these two books covering US subs in the Pacific theatre.


by James F. Derose

by Alex Kershaw

This book is one that I want to try and read soon as it covers submarines and their crews from all countries during WW2:

by Jean Hood
Description:
This book is a testament to the courage, tenacity, initiative and humour of the many thousands of Second World War submariners who served their countries, often in the most difficult and extraordinary circumstances. It allows men of all ranks and nationalities to tell their stories in their own words. Their accounts are expertly woven together by Jean Hood with additional references in the form of patrol reports, diary entries and letters. Some of these first-hand accounts come from post-war autobiographies but many have been gained during interviews and correspondence with veterans themselves. Their underwater world is brought vividly to life, from the monotony of patrol work to the adrenalin rush of an attack, and from the deathly stillness of trying to avoid Asdic detection to the drama of escaping a doomed boat. We can share their differing memories of food and drink and the common problems of sleeping conditions and capricious toilet arrangements.

Here are two decent books by Michael Gannon, I liked the last book more so than the first but both are good accounts:

by Michael Gannon

by Michael Gannon

I have read that Peter Cremer book and it was excellent. I have not read the others you posted yet. I may have read Operation Drumbeat a while back but will have to check.

I just got these two books on Amazon and will read them soon:

These two by Clay Blair are great accounts of the German U-boat campaign:

Great books there Nick and Michael! So many good books on this subject that I dare say we will find a few more that we will all want to read.

I've got this title, one of many, yet to read as well:


by Mike Ostlund
Description:
In April 1944, the highly decorated submarine USS "Gudgeon" slipped beneath the waves in one of the most dangerous patrol areas in the most dangerous military service during World War II. Neither the" Gudgeon" nor the crew were ever seen again.

Author Mike Ostlund's "Uncle Bill" was aboard the ship as a lieutenant junior grade. Through extensive research of patrol reports in U.S. and Japanese naval archives, interviews with veterans who had served aboard the "Gudgeon" before its final patrol, and the personal effects of the lost men's relatives, Ostlund has assembled the most accurate account yet of this remarkably successful submarine's exploits, of the men aboard, from steward to captain, and of what we know about her demise.

Through these stories we experience the excitement of first sighting, then closing in on an enemy ship, and the seconds ticking away as the crew awaits the detonation of torpedoes. We hear the groans of collapsing bulkheads through the hull of the submarine, then the eerie cry of inch-thick steel as it is rent apart. The "swish-swish-swish" of a Japanese destroyer's attack approach. The thundercrack of exploding depth charges between muttered prayers and anguished, flinching anticipation where the crew, all equal in peril now, must sit absolutely still and take the punishment as they suppress the urge to do something, anything.

We also share the anguish of the girls they left behind when they learned the ship was lost; and of the memories and life lessons of the young men who went to sea abord "Gudgeon" before its last patrol knowing hardly anything, and coming home having seen too much.

Here is another pretty decent title that may interest readers here at the group:


by Peter Padfield

One more account of a U-Boat commander, this book covers the story of Wolfgang Luth:


by Jordan Vause
Description:
An exceptional figure in the history of the German Navy, Wolfgang Luth was one of only seven men in the Wehrmacht to win Germany's highest combat decoration, the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds. At one time or another he operated in almost every theater of the undersea war, from Norway to the Indian Ocean, and became the second most successful German U-boat ace in World War II, sinking more than 220,000 tons of merchant shipping.

A master in the art of military leadership, Luth was the youngest man to be appointed to the rank of captain and the youngest to become commandant of the German Naval Academy. Nevertheless, his accomplishments were overshadowed by those of other great aces, such as Prien, Kretschmer, and Topp.

The publication of this book in hardcover in 1990 marked the first comprehensive study of Luth's life. Jordan Vause corrects the long neglect by providing an entertaining and authoritative biography that places the ace in the context of the war at sea.

The Blair books are awesome classics. You can't be a U-Boat fan without reading those.

Vause's book about Wolfgang Luth is right up my alley. I love the books that spotlight individual commanders. I read U-Boat Ace a few years ago and it is very good.

I have not read the Padfield and Ostlund books. I will have to add those to my collection.

Good to see you have found a few books to add to your collection Nick :)

Is Iron Coffins your all time favourite U-boat book or do you have another that comes in above that?

by Herbert A. Werner

One book that I purchased recently covering the Battle of the Atlantic that I am yet to read is; Turning the Tide.

by Ed Offley
Description:
The United States experienced its most harrowing military disaster of World War II not in 1941 at Pearl Harbor but in the period from 1942 to 1943, in Atlantic coastal waters from Newfoundland to the Caribbean. Sinking merchant ships with impunity, German U-boats threatened the lifeline between the United States and Britain, very nearly denying the Allies their springboard onto the European Continent--a loss that would have effectively cost the Allies the war.

In Turning the Tide, author Ed Offley tells the gripping story of how, during a twelve-week period in the spring of 1943, a handful of battle-hardened American, British, and Canadian sailors turned the tide in the Atlantic. Using extensive archival research and interviews with key survivors, Offley places the reader at the heart of the most decisive maritime battle of World War II.

Reviews:
“Through the eyes of their prey, Ed Offley tells the constant terror of German hunter-killer wolf packs going after ships and their military escorts. To win, the allies needed just to survive, to carry desperately needed supplies to Europe. The miracle is these ships do far more. They turn the tide and pummel their tormentors in a moment of history that makes one hell of a story.” - Sherry Sontag, co-author Blind Man’s Bluff

“What’s left to add to the oft-told tale of the Battle of the Atlantic? Ed Offley manages to invest the story of the convoys with renewed drama. Buttressed with statistics and details of tactics and ordnance, Turning the Tide is worth a place on the shelf with the best maritime nonfiction.” - David Poyer, author of Ghosting and The Crisis

“In this volume the author has selected a series of stories that both explicate and dramatize the most fateful months of the Allied-German battle for control of the North Atlantic in World War II. I am confident that the reader will find, as I did, his stories to be both engagingly written and compelling in effect.” - Michael Gannon, author of Operation Drumbeat and Black May

“Long before there was D-Day, there was D-Day in the North Atlantic Ocean for England. In Turning the Tide, Ed Offley delivers the definitive bible of how the Allies in March and May of 1943 turned defeat into victory against an armada of German U-boats determined to strangle resupply lines to England. The book delivers high suspense on the storm-tossed North Atlantic by taking readers inside the U-boats and the Allied convoys as well as American, English and German high commands racing for technological advantage at sea. In the end, Offley’s masterful account not only probes what gave each side an edge but reveals the bravado it took for a rather small group of Allied and German sailors to fight to the death in one of history’s great naval struggles.” - Carl LaVO, author of Back from the Deep, Slade Cutter, and The Galloping Ghost

“Offley tackles a complex and difficult campaign spanning months across a vast ocean and involving a myriad of actors, and turns it into a compelling piece of writing. In a field where the outcomes of battles are often treated as mere statistics—of tonnages sunk or shipping safely escorted—or as evidence of the impact of technology, Offley’s Atlantic tale is full of people wrestling with the sea, the enemy and their fate. In the end, Turning the Tide captures the human dimension of the crisis of the Atlantic War in the spring of 1943 in a way no one has for nearly forty years. And it is a welcome reminder that the Atlantic war lay at the heart of Allied victory in World War II.” - Marc Milner, University of New Brunswick, author of North Atlantic Run and The Battle of the Atlantic

“Offley meticulously re-creates the terrifying U-boat assaults during this pivotal spring…and explains how the Allies turned the tide of the years-long battle…. An intensely focused account that cuts through the battle’s sprawl and duration, supplying the general reader with an appreciation of its character and importance.” - Kirkus

“The author focuses on individual combatants, from the lowest ranks to the highest, emphasizing the human elements and making for an extremely readable text that should appeal to neophytes as well as professionals.” - Publishers Weekly

“This is an account of the crucial convoy battles of March to May 1943 that saw Allied naval escorts and air power finally subdue the deadly Kriegsmarine subs. Offley…shows how the battle was very much a mind game, each side trying to outfox the other. The author’s emphasis is on the harrowing experiences of the men on both sides.” - Library Journal

“This sound, readable WWII naval history focuses on a crucial period of the Battle of the Atlantic, one Offley argues was the turning point in the campaign…. Equally strong in writing, research, and backgrounding, this is a fine addition to material on the epic Battle of the Atlantic.” - Booklist

“Turning the Tide…is good narrative history which gives the reader a flavour of what it was like to fight in the Battle of the Atlantic at its climax. It was a struggle of unremitting strain and terror for friend and foe alike.” - Navy News (London)

“Ed Offley’s new book Turning the Tide is a story few know in the history of World War II. The cat-and-mouse tale played out in the book in dark seas, during treacherous storms has first-hand accounts told by those [who] saw the battles up close and personal with real life-and-death consequences.” - Panama City News Herald

“[A]s Ed Offley shows in this detailed and compelling book, a combination of technology and tactics enabled the Allies to turn the tide in the longest and most deadly naval battles ever fought…. He brings his naval expertise to bear in describing each side’s actions and perspectives during those pivotal encounters. Moreover, he does a masterful job of detailing the horrors of battle as brave men fought each other with fire and steel and also fought the ferocious and frigid waves in which many of them drowned.” - Virginian-Pilot

“[An] excellent new book…. Offley describes in clear and wonderful detail how the Allies did it…. [His] writing is superb, and his research in the text and in the appendices are clear and to the point.” - Virginia Gazette

“Turning the Tide is a dramatic contribution to understanding of a long-running and geographically huge confrontation that may have mattered more to the outcome of World War II than more commented-on campaigns…. As important and engaging as the sweep and generalities of the largest naval campaign in history are, the bulk of this book, and Offley’s signal contribution, is his first-hand, blow-by-blow descriptions of some of the deadliest and most game-changing encounters of the Atlantic war…. Offley skillfully blends history and statistics and analysis as well as heart-pounding narratives of sea-battles that have the immediacy of a good novel, only they tell of real people and real events. Turning the Tide…belongs on the bookshelves of professional historians or of general readers attempting to understand a central campaign in the most horrific war in human history.” - The American Spectator

“[A] thorough and scrupulous operational history…. Turning the Tide ably sketches in the background and then sends the reader out on board two convoys in March 1943…. Offley recounts the struggle of ONS5 meticulously. We follow each merchant vessel and each U-boat and understand what they are up to; but we also get a sense of what it must have been like for the submariner in his dank little world and the watchman on his sleet-flailed bridge…. [A] valuable book.” - Proceedings

“When we think of World War II, we tend to think of two theaters of war: the European continent and North Africa, and the Pacific…. Far less attention has been paid to a third theater, the brutally cold, gale-slashed North Atlantic, where the British and American navies struggled against German U-boats to protect the supply lifeline that made the eventual Allied victory in Europe possible. Ed Offley’s well researched, tautly written account does its part to even the scales.” - Philadelphia Inquirer

“Ed Offley presents us with masterly military writing…. Offley, in careful detail that shows his knowledge of the subject, tells how Allied strategists and tacticians devised ways of leveling the playing field.” - Washington Times

“Offley’s story…has all the guts and glory of the best World War II novels. Here, the heroes are real in this most important battle…. From the admirals to the ordinary seamen, Offley gives us the whole story, but he also manages to capture the intimate danger of pushing a small ship through treacherous seas while someone is shooting at you.” - Florida Times-Union

“[A] great historical account…[a] disturbing, fantastic new book…. Offley has sifted through a towering heap of official records, read a library’s worth of histories, even interviewed surviving U-boat sailors. He’s brought all that formidable research together, crafted it with a very considerable degree of narrative skill, and produced a volume worthy to stand with Gunter Hessler’s The U-Boat War in the Atlantic: 1939-1945 or Clay Blair’s magnificent 2-volume Hitler’s U-Boat War. In passage after passage, he brings the submarine experience – Allied and Axis alike – vividly to life…. Offley is keenly attuned to the give and take of the Battle of the Atlantic…and he’s adept at painting quick portraits of determination – and bravery – on both sides of that battle.” - Open Letters Monthly

Here is another book offering a first-hand account from a German U-boat commander:


by Otto Giese
Description:
The war diary of former German naval officer Otto Giese recounts a seafaring career of extraordinary scope. It begins with the dawn of World War II, while the author is a junior officer on board the ocean liner SS Columbus, and continues through his confinement in a British prisoner-of-war camp after the war. This book showcases more than one hundred high-quality photographs taken by Giese throughout his wartime service to present a unique historical overview Interspersed among tales of hardship and loss are colorful, anecdotes that relay the camaraderie surrounding plots to escape detention at Angel Island the unlikely processing of German seamen at Ellis Island, and Giese's experiences policing guerrilla warfare in the Malayan jungle. He greets the incongruous movements of war with equanimity and offers an unwavering assessment of the dictates of duty.

Rick that Otto Giese book Shooting the War is an excellent choice. I read that one a few years back and I really enjoyed it. It is right in my wheelhouse because it is a first-person story of a man who actually served on a U-Boat. That is what I like best.

Glad it's a book you like and have enjoyed. The first-hand accounts always tend to grab you don't they!

Can you think of any other titles from U-boat commanders that you could recommend?

This is one book that may be a bit hard for people outside of Australia to access but offers an interesting and different account of a U-boat far from Germany:

by David Stevens
Description:
The most comprehensive account of Germany's plans for an underwater offensive against the southern continent in World War II.

In case anyone is interested here is some updated information on the recent release by Franz Kurowski; U-48: The Most Successful U-Boat of the Second World War.


by Franz Kurowski
Description:
Following the signing of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, Germany was not permitted to build or operate submarines. However clandestine training onboard Finnish and Spanish submarines took place and U-boats were still built to German designs in Dutch yards. At the outset of the Second World War, Donitz argued for a 300-strong U-boat fleet, since his force of 57 U-boats 'could only inflict pin-pricks against British seaborne trade'. In August 1939, U-48 left Germany, commanded by 'Vaddi' Schultze, to take up a waiting position around England. It scored its first success on 5 September, when it torpedoed the British freighter Royal Sceptre, then the Winkleigh on 8 September. On both occasions - the first of many - Schultze showed himself to be a notable humanitarian: he addressed signals to Churchill giving positions of the sinkings so that crews could be saved. By 1 August 1941, U-48, the most successful boat of the Second World War, had sunk 56 merchant ships of 322,478 gross tons and one corvette. She was then transferred to the Baltic as a training boat. Schultze became commander of operation 3 U-Flotilla and later was appointed commander, II/Naval College Schleswig. He died in 1987 at the age of 78. U-48 was scuttled on 3 May 1945.

'Aussie Rick' wrote: "Good to see you have found a few books to add to your collection Nick :)

Is Iron Coffins your all time favourite U-boat book or do you have another that comes in above that?

[bookcover:Iron Coffi..."

Just picked up a copy of Iron Coffins today in the used bookshop. Looks like a good one.

Nice buy Steve! Let us all know what you think of it once you get a chance to read it. I'm keen to hear your thoughts.

I found this book in the new releases. Apparently this author also writes some of the books in the Tom Clancy series.

Codename Caesar: The Secret Hunt for U-Boat 864 During World War IIby Jerome Preisler

Synopsis
By February of 1944, both Germany and Japan were falling back under constant attack from Allied forces. The end would have been inevitable, if not for a desperate, audacious plan by the German High Command.

The Germans would pack a submarine—boat U-864—with their most advanced rocket and jet aircraft technology, a group of Japanese and German scientists, and tons of mercury for use in missile and torpedo detonation systems. With this, Japan could re-establish air superiority in the Pacific, forcing the Allies to divert troops and material long enough for Germany to re-group and prepare a final defense of the Fatherland.

Unknown to them, British codebreakers, working hand-in-hand with the Norwegian underground, had discovered what the Axis powers were up to. Chasing U-864 and her cargo throughout the North Atlantic, the British bombed German naval bases and hidden installations in an attempt to destroy the submarine and her hidden cargo. But in the end, she was able to head out to sea and attempt to complete her mission.

The British submarine HMS Venturer was waiting for her. In a cat-and-mouse silent battle beneath the waves, they hunted one another, each waiting to strike. The Venturer won the game, sinking U-864 and becoming the only submarine in history to sink another sub in underwater combat.

This is the action-packed, dramatic account of one of the unsung greatest victories in military history, and of a historical moment in the annals of naval warfare.

Sounds like an interesting book Nicole, thanks for the information.

Yeah I might have to get that one Nicole.

Nicole wrote: "I found this book in the new releases. Apparently this author also writes some of the books in the Tom Clancy series.

Codename Caesar: The Secret Hunt for U-Boat 864 During World War IIby[authori..."

There's a 1hr doc on this i saw not long ago PBS/history channel.
it was quite interesting. besides the drama of the war, the uboat is still a major concern as the mecury was used as ballast, many tons of it, and could eventually be a threat to the fishing in the area.

Thanks Nicole I'd not seen this and it looks good, as does the documentary Carl.

Found and added the cover for the book:



by Jerome Preisler

For those who have a real and deep passion for the subject, this new book may offer some great and interesting information on the German U-boat war:

by Daniel Morgan
Description:
During WWII over 250 Allied warships from a dozen navies were sunk by German U-boats. This groundbreaking study of 110 vessels provides a detailed analysis of every sinking for which source material survives from both the Allied and German sides. Representing the first large-scale publication of U-boat war diaries in any language, the book offers a wealth of new information, including the circumstances of the sinkings, the technical environment, and the fate of the crews.

Ohhh that looks like me typer of book Rick.

It does sound like an excellent research book or one you could just flick through and read bits and pieces on particular U-boats or commanders.

Here is another new release (Nov. 2012) covering the US Submarine service during WW2:


by Michael Green & Edward Monroe-Jones
Description:
When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, the U.S. Navy had a total of 111 submarines. However, this fleet was not nearly as impressive as the number suggests. It was mostly a collection of aging boats from the late teens and early twenties, with only a few of the newer, more modern Gato-class boats. Fortunately, with the war in Europe was already two years old and friction with Japan ever-increasing, help from what would become known as the Silent Service in the Pacific was on the way: there were 73 of the new fleet submarines under construction. The Silent Service in World War II tells the story of America's intrepid underwater warriors in the words of the men who lived the war in the Pacific against Japan. The enemy had already begun to deploy advanced boats, but the U.S. was soon able to match them. By 1943 the new Gato-class boats were making a difference, carrying the war not just to the Japanese Imperial Navy, but to the vital merchant fleet that carried the vast array of materiel needed to keep the land of the Rising Sun afloat. As the war progressed, American success in the Solomons, starting with Guadalcanal, began to constrict the Japanese sea lanes, and operating singly or in wolfpacks they were able to press their attacks on convoys operating beyond the range of our airpower, making daring forays even into the home waters of Japan itself in the quest for ever more elusive targets. Also taking on Japanese warships, as well as rescuing downed airmen (such as the grateful first President Bush), U.S. submarines made an enormous contribution to our war against Japan.This book takes you through the war as you learn what it was like to serve on submarines in combat, the exhilaration of a successful attack, and the terror of being depth-charged. And aside from enemy action, the sea itself could prove to be an extremely hostile environment as many of these stories attest. From early war patrols in obsolescent, unreliable S-boats to new, modern fleet submarines roving the Pacific, the forty-six stories in this anthology give you a full understanding of what it was like to be a U.S. Navy submariner in combat.

This new book sounds fascinating, I dare say it may interest a few members here as well:


by Peter F. Stevens
Description:
Fatal Dive: Solving the World War II Mystery of the USS Grunion by Peter F. Stevens reveals the incredible true story of the search for and discovery of the USS Grunion—as well as the U.S. Navy’s shocking cover up of the submarine’s baffling disappearance. Discovered in 2006 after a decades-long, high-risk search by the Abele brothers—whose father commanded the submarine and met his untimely death aboard it—one question remained: what sank the USS Grunion? Was it a round from a Japanese ship, a catastrophic mechanical failure, or something else—one of the sub’s own torpedoes? For almost half the war, submarine skippers’ complaints about the MK 14 torpedo’s dangerous flaws were ignored by naval brass, who sent the subs out with the defective weapon. Fatal Dive is the first book that documents the entire saga of the ship and its crew and provides compelling evidence that the Grunion was a victim of “The Great Torpedo Scandal of 1941-43.” Fatal Dive finally lays to rest one of World War II’s greatest mysteries.

Reviews:
“Peter Stevens unreels a fascinating piece of nautical history. This real-life drama of war, suspense, and human achievement in the face of frightful odds is mesmerizing from start to finish. A book for all.” - lIEUTENANT GENERAL DAVE PALMER (RETIRED), author of George Washington and Benedict Arnold and George Washington’s Military Genius

“A thriller that plows forward with the unrelenting intensity of a World War II submarine hunting down an enemy cruiser, but this tale is powered by the devotion of three faithful sons desperately searching for their father, Lieutenant Commander Jim Abele—and to solve the fate of his crew, the men of the USS Grunion. A masterful mystery that is truly a love story disguised as a war story.” - MICHAEL KEANE, author of Patton: Blood, Guts, and Prayer

"A fascinating account of how a brave man’s loyal sons discovered that a stateside design flaw had doomed him and his crew. Touching and eloquent.” - JOHN KOSTER, author of Operation Snow: How a Soviet Mole in FDR’s White House Triggered Pearl Harbor

“Suspenseful…a chilling conclusion.” - PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

Good find Rick

Rick, Nick:

I've been chasing down some books on the exploits and tragic demise of the USS Harder, a Gato-class submarine sunk by the Japanese in Dasol Bay, Pangasinan in the Philippines in August, 1944. I've found two excellent books on the events, a first book released in 1958, "Through Hell and Deepwater", now out of print but re-released in a later mass market paperback that can be found with the bigger online booksellers, and a second book that followed almost 5 decades later in 2006, "Death at a Distance", by Michael Sturma.

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookD...


Death at a Distance: Loss of the Legendary USS Harder

Only seven U.S. submariners earned the Medal of Honor in World War II, and Sam Dealey, the USS Harder's commander, was one of them, an award bestowed posthumously after he, and his entire crew, were lost off Dasol, Pangasinan during a Japanese depth-charge attack. The Harder's aggressive, close-in, fighting spirit is legendary, and its record of sinking a total of eighteen enemy ships (with a tonnage in excess of 55,000) made Dealey one of the top five submarine skippers in the war. During a single patrol his crew sank five enemy destroyers in five short-range torpedo attacks - an unprecedented feat. The moniker given to the sub and her crew was "Hit em again, Harder!" She also played important roles in several rescue missions, extracting men dropped behind enemy lines and retrieving downed pilots.

A great story, and these two books provide some excellent insights.

Best,
Matthew

Thanks for bringing those two books to the groups attention Matthew. I am sure a number of group members will appreciate your efforts, thanks.

I just picked up a copy of this book that covers an area not usually dealt with in depth in many accounts on U-boat operations:

by Lawrence Paterson
Description:
Next to nothing has been written about the U-boat war in the Indian Ocean. This is the story of a forgotten campaign. The battle began in August 1943, when a German submarine arrived in the Malaysian harbour of Georgetown. In total, nearly fourty U-boats were assigned to penetrate the Indian Ocean, serving alongside troops of the occupying Imperial Japanese forces. The Japanese allowed U-boats to use Malaysia as an operational station. From that base, they mixed with Japanese forces on a hitherto unseen scale: a move which spread the U-boat war throughout the vast Indian Ocean and into the Pacific. Success in this theatre of war held a real chance to swing the tide of battle in North Africa in favour of Rommel, but the Germans essentially did too little too late. The joint action also gave U-boats the opportunity to penetrate the Pacific Ocean for the first time, attacking shipping off the Australian coast and hunting off New Zealand. Plans were even afoot for an assault on American supply lines. The cooperation' also brought into stark relief the fundamental differences of German and Japanese war aims. After the crews of Italian supply submarines joined the Germans and Japanese, relations between the fighting men of the three main Axis powers were often brutal and almost constantly turbulent. Stories of U-boats laden with gold and treasure stem almost exlusively from boats destined to and returning from Japanese-controlled Malaysia, laden with material exchanged between the two major partners of the Triple Axis Alliance.

One area of submarine warfare we haven't covered yet is Japanese submarine operations during WW2. Here is one book on my 'to-read' list that may interest others:

by John Craddock
Description:
Unheeded warnings, missed opportunities, a failure to connect the dots--more than 60 ago, America was rocked by a devastating surprise attack on its Pearl Harbor naval base, one that destroyed a big part of our nation's Pacific fleet. To this day historians argue over whether that attack could have or should have been detected ahead of time. In First Shot, John Craddock investigates a little-known but clear eleventh-hour warning that, had it been heeded, might have enabled the Navy's Pearl Harbor command to blunt the Japanese assault and save ships and lives.

Craddock reveals that the attack plan of Japan's Admiral Yamamoto included five midget submarines, each carrying two men and two torpedoes. First Shot vividly recreates the action on the deck of the USS Ward on the morning of December 7 as the outmoded relic of an earlier war engaged a tiny, state-of-the-art undersea fighting machine.

Reconstructing these events from original and primary source materials as well as new revelations from the discovery in August 2002 of the minisub sunk by the Ward, Craddock poses and answers a number of questions: Why was the Ward's urgent message ignored by Pearl Harbor command? Why would Admiral Yamamoto, son of a samurai warrior and a brilliant strategist and tactician, jeopardize his surprise attack by trying to penetrate Pearl Harbor's sea defenses with five midget submarines that could inflict only limited damage? How might an advance warning of even one hour have changed the American response to the attack?

Craddock further reveals that Japan's use of midget submarines was not limited to the Pearl Harbor attack. Hundreds were built, and Yamamoto deployed them repeatedly asthe war unfolded. Even in the Pearl Harbor attack the two-man crews knew they had little chance of survival; as Japan's early successes were replaced by stalemate, then losses, and finally a desperate endgame, the crews accepted--even welcomed--that their missions were suicidal.

Kazuo Sakamaki, the only survivor among the midget sub crews in the Pearl Harbor attack, was also America's first Japanese POW. To be captured was to dishonor his family and his motherland, and Sakamaki repeatedly attempted suicide after being shipped to a prison camp in Wisconsin. His is a poignant story of a soldier's defeat, despair, and ultimate redemption.

First Shot molds a forgotten piece of history into a fascinating narrative--a bittersweet tale of duty done and duty shirked; bold successes and calamitous failures; and the undeniable fact that, in the broad course of historic events, the actions of ordinary individuals can change everything.

I've read books on both Royal Naval, German and Italian submarine/U-Boat operations, but hadn't appreciated the US Navy's Submarine branch's contribution in terms of the scale of losses it inflicted to Japanese merchantile shipping and the consequences of this to the victory over Japan, until I read of it in by Max Hastings.

Is there a book that provides a balanced, yet specific and readable account of their operations that anyone can recommend please?

Hi Geevee, I think Clay Blair's book; Silent Victory is considered the definitive account on US sub operations in the Pacific during WW2.


by Clay Blair Jr.

There is also this new release due out in a few months that may offer a good concise account:


by Michael Green & Edward Monroe-Jones

Thanks Rick - I'll look out for both.

I've written a couple online articles on WWII U-boat operations you might find interesting. At the very least, the list of sources will give your a few more book titles to look for.

1. The Other Pearl Harbor: The U-Boat Assault on America. http://suite101.com/article/the-other...

2: The Bull of Scapa Flow: http://suite101.com/article/the-bull-...

Cheers!

Thanks for the links Martin, much appreciated.

Martin wrote: "I've written a couple online articles on WWII U-boat operations you might find interesting. At the very least, the list of sources will give your a few more book titles to look for.

1. The Other P..."

Thanks Martin.

Just spotted this and thought people would be interested. Expected publication August 2103.

by Jak P. Mallmann Showell

Looks good, nice find Geevee!