U-Boote - Kriegsmarine : livres (2e GM)

Deutsche Kriegsschiffe: U-Boote 1935-1945 (Typenkompass)

Ce livre de référence présente tous les sous-marins utilisés par la Kriegsmarine allemande entre 1935 et 1945.

Chaque U-Boot est présenté à l'aide d'une photo, d'une description historique et d'une fiche technique.

Kriegsmarine U-boats 1939-1945 (1) (Osprey)

This, the first of two volumes on Germany's World War II U-boats, traces their development from the early U-boats of the Kaiser's Navy, the prohibition on Germany having U-boats following the Armistice in 1918 and the subsequent Treaty of Versailles, the secret development of U-boats using a 'cover-firm' in Holland, culminating in the formation of the 1st U-boat Flotilla in 1935 with the modern Type II.
The operational history section includes examples from the Classes Type VII A, Type VII B, VII D, VII E and VII F before concentrating on the mainstay of the U-boat arm, the Type VIIC. Comparisons are also made with the standard allied submarines, their strengths, weaknesses and U-boat tactics.

Contents: Introduction - The Type I - The Type II - The Type VII - The Type XIV - Armament - The torpedo - The mine - The powerplant - Other standard equipment - Bibliography - Colour plate commentary - Index.

Kriegsmarine U-boats, 1939-45 (2) (Osprey)

This title follows from New Vanguard 51: Kriegsmarine U-boats 1939-45 (1) and charts the continuing development of the U-boat in German service, including the evolution of the Type IX as a long range 'cruiser' intended for solo operations in distant waters.
Also covered is the revolutionary Type XXI, conceived of in 1942 and launched in April 1944, the first true submarine rather than submersible, whose arrival was just too late to influence the war. Other vessels covered are the Type XXIII, a small vessel armed with only two torpedoes but technically highly advanced, and the Type X minelayers, which were rarely used in their intended role and more often used as supply boats.

Contents: The Type IX - Armament - Torpedoes - Mines - Rockets - The Focke-Achgelis - Other standard equipment - The Type X - The Type XB - The Type XXI - The Type XXIII - The Wa201 - The Type XVIIB - Foreign submarines - Midget submarines - Bibliography - Colour plate commentary - Index.

U-Boot, missions de combat

"U-Boot, Missions de combat" conduit le lecteur au cœur d'un sous-marin de combat, lui offrant ainsi une vision globale de ce que pouvait être la vie quotidienne et le combat au sein de ces "cercueils d'acier".
Pour la première fois, les témoignages des membres d'équipage sont joints aux photographies d'un sous-marin de type VIIC, le U995, et grâce aux très rares objets de collection et aux photos d'archives également mis à l'honneur, cet ouvrage rend compte de l'expérience de la vie à bord avec force détails réalistes.

Les membres d'équipage de chaque section présentés tour à tour, depuis la salle des torpilles jusqu'à la salle des machines et des moteurs électriques, offrant un panorama complet de ce que représentait une patrouille à bord d'un sous-marin de combat.

Un ouvrage illustré de plus de 120 objets de collection, de quelque 50 photos du dernier sous-marin de type VIIC, le U995, et de plus de 170 photos d'archives.

U-boat Tactics in World War II (Osprey)

At the start of the war, German U-boat technology vastly out performed that possessed by the Allies, and under the pressure of the war continual development helped keep pace with wartime needs and improvements in anti-submarine weaponry.
But it was not just the technology that had to change. German U-boat tactics evolved over time. Used in a variety of roles, from coastal patrolling through to the combined actions of convey-hunting 'wolf packs', the tactics used by U-Boats were diverse.

This book analyses how the U-boats dominated the seas thanks to their innovative and daring tactical deployment, and how the cracking of the Enigma code effectively hamstrung them, greatly reducing their impact, a problem that even their advanced tactics failed to solve.

Contents: Introduction - Convoy Night Attacks - Surface Attacks with Deck Guns - Basic Rules for Interception of Enemy Merchant Ships - Solo Missions - Wolf Pack attacks - Patrol Lines - Combined Attacks - Bachstelze - U-Boats as Mother Ships - Special Weapons and Equipment - Defensive Equipment and Tactics - Defensive Tactics.

The U-Boat War - Rare photographs from Wartime Archives (Images of War)

A unique visual record of Hitler`s infamous submarine fleet and a grim account of those that lived, worked and risked their lives stalking the depths of the Atlantic and Mediterranean seas. The book analyses the development of the U-boat, the recruitment and training, and reveals how the crews tried to destroy essential Allied supplies across the Atlantic and bring Britain to its knees.

Using some 250 rare and unpublished photographs together with detailed captions and accompanying text, the book provides an outstanding insight into the various operations and the claustrophobic existence of the crew, where they lived in cramped and often deplorable conditions.

It depicts how this potent force became one of the most dominant German fighting units during World War Two, and became such a worry to Allied shipping that even Winston Churchill himself claimed that the `U-boat peril` was the only thing that ever really frightened him during the war.
On their defeat hung the outcome of the war, and through courageous and determined resistance against overwhelming odds the Allies eventually inflicted such catastrophic damage on the U-boats that its losses were too great to continue. Of the 38,000 men that went to sea onboard these deadly vessels, only 8,000 were to survive to tell the tale.

The Milk Cows - The U-Boat Tankers at War 1941-1945

During the Second World War the Germans developed a specially adapted U-boat oil tanker with two aims. First, by refuelling the attack U-boat fleet their range of operations and duration of patrol could be significantly increased. Secondly, these underwater tankers were far more likely to avoid detection than surface support ships.
The submarine tankers, affectionately known as 'Milk Cows', were regarded by both the Germans and the Allies as the most important element of the U-boat fleet. Allied forces had orders to attack the tankers first whenever a choice was presented.

Until late 1942 the German Milk Cows operated with great success and few losses. But from 1943 onwards the German rendezvous ciphers were repeatedly broken by the Allies and losses mounted rapidly. The Milk Cows were highly vulnerable during the lengthy refuelling procedure as they lay stationary on the surface, hatches open. By the end of the war virtually every tanker had been sunk with severe loss of life.

The story of this critical campaign has been thoroughly researched by the author and is told against the background of changing U-boat fortunes.

U-Boat Attack Logs - A Complete Record of Warship Sinkings from Original Sources 1939-1945

During the Second World War over 250 Allied warships from a dozen navies were sent to the bottom by German U-boats. This ground-breaking study provides a detailed analysis of every sinking for which source material survives from both the Allied and the German sides, resulting in detailed treatment of the fate of 110 vessels, with the remainder summarised in an extensive appendix.

Uniquely, each entry is built around a specialist translation of the relevant segment of the war diary (log) of the U-boat in question, taken directly from the surviving originals - remarkably, this represents the first large-scale publication of the U-boat war diaries in any language.

The book offers a wealth of new information, not only with respect to the circumstances of the sinkings from both the Allied and German perspectives, but also to the technical environment in which they lived as well as the fate of the crews.
The entries include background details on the vessels concerned and the men involved, with a selection of rare and carefully chosen photos from archives and collections around the world. Each entry is itself a compelling narrative, but is backed with a list of sources consulted, including documents, published works and websites.
A decade in the making, this is probably the most important book on the U-boat war to be published for many a year.

Steel and Ice : The U-Boat Battle in the Arctic and Black Sea 1941-45

The U-boat war against Russia was as fierce and unrelenting as the land war that raged along the Eastern Front between 1941 and 1945. From Wolf Pack attacks on Russian convoy traffic and military vessels to close-quarter combat undertaken by small U-boats transported by land and river to the Black Sea, the Kriegsmarine wrestled for control of the seas fringing an embattled Soviet Union.

Previously untold in English, Lawrence Paterson explores the tremendous clash between the Kriegsmarine's U-boats and the Red Navy - a struggle that lasted from the opening salvos of Operation Barbarossa to the final chaotic days of Germany's defeat.
This fascinating book contains rare colour and black-and-white illustrations.

Axis Midget Submarines - 1939-45 (Osprey)

During World War II, Germany, Japan, and Italy built approximately 2,000 small, inherently stealthy, naval craft to perform special operations and conventional naval missions. Much more numerous and more technically advanced than their Allied counterparts, they saw service worldwide, operating in the Pacific, Mediterranean, Black Sea, Indian Ocean, North Sea, and the English channel.
Manned by courageous crews, these vessels made daring attacks on Allied ships in heavily protected anchorages using torpedoes and mines. Most notable were attacks against Gibraltar - launched from an Italian cargo vessel interred in nearby neutral Spain that had been converted into a clandestine support base and equipped with an underwater hatch - and Pearl Harbor.
They were used against shipping in coastal waters and, near the end of the war, in desperate attempts to offset their opponents' overwhelming naval superiority during the US advance across the Pacific and the Allied amphibious landings in France and Italy.
This volume details the history, weapons, and operations of German, Japanese, and Italian midget submarines.

Contents: Introduction - The midget submarine in naval history - Italy - Japan - Germany - Analysis and Conclusion.