Figure 1.-- |
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Since Trafalgar (1805), the Royal Navy had dominated the seas with a naval force more than powerful than any other two coutries. Britain, after World War I, had to make a major decesion on naval policy. Unable to win a naval armns race with America, the British widely decided to accept parity. The Washigton Naval Limitations Treaties gave American and Britain the right to build the largest navies because of their need for a two-ocean navy (1922). Both Britain and America retired ships. Britain was severely damaged economically by World War I. Domestic priorities during the 1920s impeded efforts to build new ships. Britain did not build the new ships permitted under the Washington Naval Treaties. They also did not upgrade Battle Cruisers like HMS Hood by armoring the decks. They did work on an air arm. The Depression caused further problems. Britain was forced off the gold standard (1931). The Invergordon Mutiny resulted from a proposed 25 percent pay cut which was eventually moderated to 10 percent. The Second London Naval Treaty of 1935 failed to halt the naval arms race. Britain was more concerned with NAZI Germany than Japan and engotisted the Anglo-German Naval treaty (1935). The increasing menance of NAZI Germany finally forced the rearmament of the Royal Navy. The Admiralty primarly focusedd on bsattleships, in part because planners did not think U-boats were a threat. In addition to new construction several existing old battleships, battlecruisers and heavy cruisers were reconstructed, and anti-aircraft weaponry improved. New technologies such as sonar (ASDIC), radar (Huff-Duff), and hydrophones were developed. The Fleet Air Arm was reintroduced (1937). The Royal Navy did not appreciate the German U-boat threat thinking eroniously that Asdac (Sonar) had made sunmarines obsolete. Thus the Anglo-German Naval Treaty (1935) allowed the Germans to build U-boats. The Royal Navy began construction of the King George V-class battleships and several aircraft carriers, including Ark Royal. They did not, however, build modern carrier aircraft. Well into the War, British carriers were still using the Fairy biplanes. The Royal Navy that entered World War II was a fraction of the force with which they entered World War I, but it did not face a Germany with a large surface fleet as it did in World War I. Thanfully for Britain, Japan did not enter the War when Germany and the Soviet Union began the War (September 1939). And when Japan launched the Pacific War, it did so only by bringing the United States with its powerful navy and industrial capacity into the War. In the interim, the Royal Navy would have to slug it out with the Italians in the Mediterranean.
Since Trafalgar (1805), the Royal Navy had dominated the seas with a naval force more than powerful than any other two coutries combined. The first serious challenge to British sea power was the tremendous expansion of the U.S. Navy during the American Civil War. This raised eyebrows in the Adminralty, but because the British Government did not recognize the Condeferacy and the United States fleet deployment was mostly off the American coast, the British did not consier this a major strategic challenge. After the war, the United tates rapidly down-sized its fleet. The first major challenge to British naval pwer came from Imperial Germany. The Britishdid see this as a strategic challenge and comined with Kaiser Wilhelm's incredibly provative behaivor and bombastic public language. The Kaiser in a few years managed to turn a amiable historic ally dating back centuries into a hostile relationship for no real reason.
Admiral Jellicoe was aware that only he could lose the War in a single day. The German Highseas Fleet challenged the Royal Navy, but was not large enough to defeat it. And the U-boats only succeeded in bringing America into the War. The British Royal Navy was still the dominant naval force of the day. The British had virtual undispute control of the seas since Trafalgur (1805). The Royal Navy between Traflgur and World War I fought no major fleet engagements. It had, however many responsibilities as a result of Britain's far-flung Empire and all impotant merchant fleet. It was the Royal Navy's responsibility policie the colonies and trade routes and defending the British coastline. It also wa used to imposing blockades. This was a major factor in the Napoleomic Wars, but Until World War I this primarily meant small countries that were not paying their bills. Successive British government adopted the policy that to accomplisgh its responsibilities and to guarante British security, the Royal Navy needed a battlefleet that was larger than the world's two next largest navies put together. Thus the Royal Navy could prevail against even an alliance of hostile European powers. The only serious threat was the new German High Seas Fleet built by Kaiser Wilhelm and Admiral Tirpitz. The growing U.S. Navy before the War was also a concern, but it was the bombastic Kaiser and German High Ses Fleet that dominated British thought. The Royal Navy at the time of the War outnumbered the Germans in all important classes of surface vessels.
Britain, after World War I, had to make a major decesion on naval policy. Unable to win a naval armns race with America, the British widely decided to accept parity. The Washigton Naval Limitations Treaties gave American and Britain the right to build the largest navies because of their need for a two-ocean navy (1922). Both Britain and America retired ships. Britain was severely damaged economically by World War I. Domestic priorities during the 1920s impeded efforts to build new ships. Britain did not build the new ships permitted under the Washington Naval Treaties. They also did not upgrade Battle Cruisers like HMS Hood by armoring the decks. They did work on an air arm. The Depression caused further problems. Britain was forced off the gold standard (1931). The Invergordon Mutiny resulted from a proposed 25 percent pay cut which was eventually moderated to 10 percent. The Second London Naval Treaty of 1935 failed to halt the naval arms race. Britain was more concerned with NAZI Germany than Japan and engotisted the Anglo-German Naval treaty (1935). The increasing menance of NAZI Germany finally forced the rearmament of the Royal Navy. The Admiralty primarly focusedd on bsattleships, in part because planners did not think U-boats were a threat. In addition to new construction several existing old battleships, battlecruisers and heavy cruisers were reconstructed, and anti-aircraft weaponry improved. New technologies such as sonar (ASDIC), radar (Huff-Duff), and hydrophones were developed. The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) was reintroduced (1937). The Royal Navy did not appreciate the German U-boat threat thinking eroniously that Asdac (Sonar) had made sunmarines obsolete. Thus the Anglo-German Naval Treaty (1935) allowed the Germans to build U-boats. The Royal Navy began construction of the King George V-class battleships and several aircraft carriers, including Ark Royal. They did not, however, build modern carrier aircraft. Well into the War, British carriers were still using the Fairy ???? and Swordfish biplanes.
The Royal Navy that entered World War II was a fraction of the force with which they entered World war I, but it did not face a Germany with a large surface fleet as it did in World War I. Thanfully for Britain, Japan did not enter the War when Germany and the Soviet Union began the War (September 1939). And when Japan launched the Pacific War, it did so only by bringing the United States with its powerful navy and industrial capacity into the War. The British admiratly were shocked with the effectiveness of the German U-boats, a threat they thought they had defused during World War I. The Admoralty orrdered the implementation of a convoy system, probably sooner than they needed to. The Admiralty soon saw that they were sorely deicient in escort craft. The only saving grace was that Hitler went to war earlier than he had planned and the Kriegsmarine was not yet prepared. Admiral Döntitz still had a very small force. Impressed with the U-boat successes, Hitler ordered an expanded building program. The first fleet action occured in the South Atlantic off the Rio de la Platte and resulted in a victory by out-gunned British cruisers.
The British Royal Navy from the outbreak of the War were thriust into one of the most pivotal campaigns of the War--the Battle of the Atlantic. While this was the central struggle on whoch the fate of Britain depended, the Royal Navy fought many other campaigns as well.
Britain entered World War II with a much smaller fleet than in World War I. Britain again implement a naval blockade of Germany. This time it proved less effective because of German successes and rapid occupation of much of Europe. The Royal Navy at the onset of the War proved to be deficient in ASW capability and its carriers still had biplanes. And with a small fleet it was forced to fight the most important naval campaign of the War, the battle to keep the sea lanes open in the North Atlantic. Britain negotiated a bases for destroyers agreement with the United States, but would eventually need the support of the U.S. Navy and a new Canadian Navy. Here the Allies naval forces would receive indespensable aid from the Ultra code breakers. The campaign against the U-boats was primarily a campign fought with small ships, a variety of destroyers, descroyer escorts, and covettes. The principal vessels of the Home Fleet were held in reserve for first a German invasion and then forays by the Germn battleships and heavy cruisers/pocket battlships.
The Mediterranean was not involved in the War several months after World war II began. Mussolini did not at first join his Axis partner and the Italian Navy did not have the capbolity to challenge the combined British and French squadrons in the Mediterranean. With the German assault on France and Italian declaration of War (June 1940>), the Royal Navy was faced with the task of slugging it out with the Italians in the Mediterranean (1940-41). Primeminister hurchill even faced with a German invasion threat was determined not to withdraw from the Mediterranean.
Britain's Pacific naval strategy was built around Singapore. The base at the tip of the Malay Peninsula was fortified, and thought capable of hilding out against an extnded seige until a Royal Navy relief force could relieve it. Because of the life and death struggle with the Germans in the North Atlantic, however, no major force could be spared. The Admiralty did dispatch two battleships, the Prince of Wales and Repulse. Destruction of the two ships by Japanese bombers in combintion with the Japanese success at Pearl Harbor ended the reign of the battleship as the capital naval vessel (December 1941). The subsequent fall of Singapore (February 1942) ended the Royal Navy's Pacific campaign. The hard-pressed Royal Navy would have to leave the fight in the Pacfic to their new American allies. Even so the British did make some valuable contributions. I would say the major British contributions to the Pacific War was 1) the work on Japanese codes, 2) development of carrier operations, 3) radar technology, 4) and attracting a Japanese task force into the Indian Ocean at a critical time taking pressure off the battered American Pacific fleet. The Royal Navy did, however, after VE-Day (May 1945) send naval squadrons back into the Pacific.
At the time of World War II the British Royal Navy was one of three naval services (including America and Japan) that had huge naval forces with all major ship types, includng carriers. The Royal Navy wa built around battleships. The Royl Navy's battlships and cruisers dominated the small, but modern German surface fleet. While biggun battlesgip thinking still dominated, there was increasing realization that the aircraft carrier ould play aajor role in a coming war. Unfortunately while Britain had an imoortant carrier fircrce, it did not have modern carrier aircraft at the outbreak of war and incredibly for over 2 years into the war. The major Royal Navy weakness was shortage if dsr=troyers and other exort craft. The Admiralty believed that World War I anti-submarime warfare (ASW) had defeated the German U-boats as a threat. Admiral Dönitxz proved them wrong. There were also submarines, but as the Royal Navy blockde had already cut off Germanyfrom maritime commere, they did not play an important role.
Royal Navy carriers were known as the Fleet Air Arm (FAA). Therewas some experimetatin with naval viation during World War I. The end of the War, thr Royal Naval Air Service was merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps (1918). The FAA was formaly constituted (1924). At first it was a unit of the Royal Air Force which was then operating all aircraft embarked on Royal Navy ships. The World War I. The FAA was not made part of the Royal Navy and direct control of the Admiralty until just before World War II. The British began the war ith seven carriers. Neither the Germas or the Italians hd carrier, althiygh the grmans wre woring on one. The FAA operated aircraft on ships as well as land-based aircraft that defended the Royal Navy's shore establishments and facilities. British carriers unlike American carrier had armoured flight decks. This made them more resistntto air attacks, but also more difficult to epair battle damage. The primary focus of the Royal Navy during World War II was on the Battle of the Atlantic to keep the sea lanes open with America in the North Atlantic. Land based aircrft played role in this. Fleet carriers were not the ideal ship toescort convoys. The Royal Navy lost fleet carriers on convoy duty to U-boats before revising essort duty assignments. The answer proved to be small escort carriers. The RAF almost entered World War II with biplane fighters. he FAA did--the Fairey Swordfish which layed a role in the attack on Toranto ad the hunt for Bismarck. The first modern carrier airccraft received by the FAA was the American F4F Wildcat, called the Martlet by the British (1942). The Wildcat was obsolete the time the British received it, but the Bitish did not have to face advanced aircraft at sea. And the Wildcat was still effective in operations against German U-boats and surface units. Evetully the British got F4U Crsair and F6F Hellats. The British helped develop techniues that helped llowed Corsair operationd from carriers. The British carriers were primrily used in the North Atlantic and Mediterranean. They also saw service in the Indian Ocaen and in the final months of the War after VE-Day in the Pacific.
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