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Phases of the U-boat Campaign
The U-boat campaign can be broken into two distinct phases. The
first was aimed at allied surface warships; The second, and ultimately
more successful, was targeted towards allied shipping - using
the U-boat as a tool to enforce an embargo. Early in the war efforts
were almost exclusively concentrated towards surface warships
with the results looking promising. On 22-Sep-1914 the U 9 under
command of Kapitanleutnant Otto Weddigen sank the British light
cruisers Abourkir, Hogue and Cressy in the English Channel. The
problem here is that both sides soon refused to put their warships
at risk by cruising the high seas. The great naval build-up of
the last decade may have been one of the most monumental wastes
of money of all time - both fleets spending the majority of the
war at their home bases with the notable exception of Jutland.
On 4-Feb-1915 the Germans began their first campaign of submarine warfare aimed at allied and neutral merchant vessels in the waters surrounding the UK. At this point the practice of allowing the crew to disembark before the vessel was sunk (usually by deck gun since torpedoes were conserved if at all possible) was still generally followed. A notorious exception to this rule was the Lusitania, a Cunard passenger liner that was sunk by U 20 under command of Captain Schweiger on 7-May-1915 off the coast of Ireland. 124 Americans were among the 1,198 casualties. (There are more details on the Lusitania towards the bottom of this page)
Three more Americans were killed when the U 24 sunk the Passenger liner Arabic on 19-Aug-1915. The American government brought pressure to bear on Germany and demanded an end to sinking without warning. On 30-Aug-1915 Germany prohibits further action of this type. On 18-Sep-1915 the Germans, in an attempt to reduce further damage to American shipping, withdraw all U-boats from the English Channel area. U-boat activity would be at a lull for the next several months.
1916 would see this lull come to an end. On 13-Mar-1916 the German military issued orders which loosened its stance on sinking without warning. Their U-boat commanders would be able to fire on British ships in home waters as long as they did not appear to be of the passenger variety. The UB 29 violated this convention by sinking the passenger liner Sussex on 24-Mar-1916 which once again resulted in American loss of life. On 24-Apr-1916, for the second time, U-boat commanders are instructed not to sink without warning. This was done amid threats of America breaking off diplomatic relations with Germany. None the less, allied and neutral losses continued to climb throughout the second half of 1916, rising from 37,000 tons in Jun-1916 to 180,000 tons by Dec-1916.
By 1917 the situation was getting difficult for Germany. While the U-boat enforced embargo was proving to be an effective weapon, it also seemed that it would bring America into the war against Germany. The only hope now, it appeared, was to increase U-boat activity in an attempt for victory over Great Britain before America could get into the European picture. On 1-Feb-1917 Germany declares unrestricted submarine warfare for the third time. This action causes the United States to break off relations on 3-Feb-1917. The submarine, the weapon that had proven itself most useful in the war on commerce, had now sealed the fate of Germany by swinging the Great Neutral to the allied cause. America declares war on Germany on 6-Apr-1917.
U-boat activity intensified greatly in the first half of 1917 with British losses at 300,000 tons in Feb-1917, climbing to half a million by Jun-1917. This period marked the zenith for U-boats. The coming of the convoy system and other anti-submarine tactics would curtail British losses (never to rise beyond 100,000 tons per month) and would transform the predator into prey.
