The Battle of the Atlantic, the longest continuous military campaign in World War II, ran from 1939 to the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, covering a major part of the naval history of World War II. At its core was the Allied naval blockade of Germany, announced the day after the declaration of war, and Germany's subsequent counter-blockade. The campaign peaked from mid-1940 through to the end of 1943.
HMS Bluebell was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Navy in World War II. Ordered from Fleming & Ferguson of Paisley, Scotland on 27 July 1939, she was launched on 24 April 1940 and commissioned in July 1940. She served in the Atlantic, Mediterranean and Arctic campaigns, escorting several convoys to Russia, and also took part in the invasions of Sicily and France. She was torpedoed and sunk by U-711 in the Kola Inlet on 17 February 1945 while escorting the convoy RA 64 from Murmansk. Only one member of her crew survived.
Captain Frederic John Walker, was a British Royal Navy officer noted for his exploits during the Second World War. Walker was the most successful anti-submarine warfare commander during the Battle of the Atlantic, and was known popularly as Johnnie Walker.
Admiral Sir Max Kennedy Horton, was a British submariner during the First World War and commander-in-chief of the Western Approaches in the later half of the Second World War, responsible for British participation in the Battle of the Atlantic.
German submarine U-534 is a Type IXC/40 U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine built for service during World War II. She was built in 1942 in Hamburg-Finkenwerder by Deutsche Werft AG as yard number 352. She was launched on 23 September 1942 and commissioned on 23 December with Oberleutnant zur See Herbert Nollau in command.
HMCS Alberni was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) during the Second World War. The Flower-class corvettes were warships designed for anti-submarine warfare. The ship was constructed by Yarrows Ltd. in Esquimalt, British Columbia, laid down on 19 April 1940, launched on 22 August and commissioned on 4 February 1941. The corvette sailed east to join the RCN's fleet in the Atlantic via the Panama Canal, where upon arrival, the vessel began escorting trans-atlantic convoys in the Battle of the Atlantic. Alberni took part in the key convoy battle of Convoy SC 42. In 1942, the corvette was transferred to Allied convoy assignments associated with Operation Torch in the Mediterranean Sea. In 1944, Alberni was among the Canadian naval vessels assigned to Operation Neptune, the naval component of the invasion of Normandy and escorted support ships to and from the United Kingdom on D-day.
Commander-in-Chief, Western Approaches was the commander of a major operational command of the Royal Navy during World War II. The admiral commanding, and his forces, sometimes informally known as 'Western Approaches Command,' were responsible for the safety of British shipping in the Western Approaches.
Canadian Northwest Atlantic Command was the zone of operations during the Battle of the Atlantic that stretched from north of New York City to 47 degrees west. It was set up at the Atlantic Convoy Conference, held in Washington, D.C., from 1–12 March 1943, and placed under the command of Rear-Admiral Leonard W. Murray on 30 April 1943 with its headquarters in Halifax, Nova Scotia. It was notable for being the only Allied theatre of operations commanded by a Canadian during the war.
HX 79 was an Allied convoy in the North Atlantic of the HX series, which sailed east from Halifax, Nova Scotia. The convoy took place during the Battle of the Atlantic in the Second World War. One ship dropped out and returned to port, leaving 49 to cross the Atlantic for Liverpool. Two armed merchant cruisers and a submarine escorted the convoy to protect it from German commerce raiders.
HMS Fowey was a Shoreham-class sloop of the Royal Navy. She served during the Second World War.
HMS Leith was a Grimsby-class sloop of the Royal Navy that served in the Second World War.
SC 143 was a North Atlantic convoy of the SC series which ran during the battle of the Atlantic in World War II. It was the second battle in the Kriegsmarine's autumn offensive in the North Atlantic.
HMS Ferret was a shore establishment and naval base of the Royal Navy during the Second World War, located in Derry. It was given a ship's name as a stone frigate.
An Escort Group consisted of several small warships organized and trained to operate together protecting trade convoys. Escort groups were a World War II tactical innovation in anti-submarine warfare by the Royal Navy to combat the threat of the Kriegsmarine's "wolfpack" tactics. Early escort groups often contained destroyers, sloops, naval trawlers and, later, corvettes of differing specifications lacking the ability to maneuver together as a flotilla of similar warships, but rigorously trained in anti-submarine tactics to use teamwork emphasizing the unique sensors, weapons, speed, and turning radius of each ship. The development of these 'escort groups' proved an effective means of defending shipping convoys through the Battle of the Atlantic.
SS Gairsoppa was a British cargo steamship that was built in 1919 and sunk in the Battle of the Atlantic in 1941. 85 of her complement were killed, and only one person survived. When she was sunk, her cargo included 7 million ounces of silver bullion. In 2012 and 2013 a US company recovered part of the bullion, and in 2014 the Royal Mint struck 20,000 silver coins from it.
Convoy HX 90 was a North Atlantic convoy of the HX series which ran during the Battle of the Atlantic in both world wars, this being a Second World War convoy.
SC 2 was an Allied North Atlantic convoy of the SC series which ran during the Battle of the Atlantic in World War II. It was attacked by a wolfpack of German U-boats, losing five merchant ships.
HMS Witherington was an Admiralty modified W-class destroyer built for the Royal Navy. She was one of four destroyers ordered in April 1918 from James Samuel White & Co Ltd. under the 14th Order for Destroyers of the Emergency War Program of 1917–18. She was the first Royal Navy ship to carry this name.
HMS Sunflower was a Flower-class corvette of the Royal Navy. She served during the Second World War.
The Western Approaches Tactical Unit (WATU) was a unit of the British Royal Navy created in January 1942 to develop and disseminate new tactics to counter German submarine attacks on trans-Atlantic shipping convoys. It was led by Captain Gilbert Roberts and was principally staffed by officers and ratings from the Women's Royal Naval Service (Wrens). Their primary tool for studying U-boat attacks and developing countermeasures was wargames. After the U-boat threat to merchant shipping was defeated, WATU continued to develop anti-submarine tactics for later stages of the war, including Operation Overlord and the Pacific War. WATU trained naval officers in its tactics by hosting week-long training courses in which the students played wargames. WATU formally ceased operations at the end of July 1945.
