The dreadnought battleship launched in 1906, by Great Britain, which out classed and made all other battleships obsolete, later Great Britain in 1909 launched the super dreadnought Orion. Another British innovation was the battle cruiser first launched in 1907 was to be the equivalent of the dreadnought in cruiser form. The German side as well as trying to match British navy, made many advances in submarine warfare which they called U-boats.
By the out break of war the British fleet, contained 20 dreadnoughts and numerous other ships, including battle cruisers, cruisers, destroyers, and frigates. The British fleet was based largely at Scapa Flow, in the Orkney Islands to the north of Scotland. A second British fleet, consisting of older and second-rate ships, was stationed to guard the English Channel. The German fleet called the High Seas fleet, consisted of 13 dreadnoughts, and 20 U-boats and many other ships like the British navy. The High Seas fleet was based in the North Sea ports of Germany. Britain superior navy helped Britain in winning the war.
Weapons and tactics used to attack and defend supply lines:
Mines were used extensively in the First World War, after being successfully used in the American civil war (1861-65). They could be laid to stop enemy shipping and block sea routes called declared mine fields, and offensively by laying them secretly by U-boats outside enemy harbours to destroy ships. The British laid declared mine fields across the English Channel and between the Orkney Islands and Norway to limit German U-boat activity outside the north sea and destroy enemy firepower. The Germans laid declared mine fields to protect their coasts and block entrance to the Baltic.
U-boats (underwater boats) were the most serious threat to British shipping by the German navy. U-boats carried torpedoes (underwater missiles) they were small submergible craft which relied on stealth and surprise to sink larger warships and merchant ship convoys. They did recognise the rules of war, that civilians should not be killed by military personal. They sank merchant ships instead of trying to capture them, as the U-boats contained only a skeleton crew incapable of capturing merchant ships, and if they revealed themselves and took damage they might not be able to submerge condemning them to a watery death. So in 1915 the German government announced an unrestricted U-boat campaign, declaring that all ships around the British Isles would be sunk, this discouraged other countries from trading with Britain. This caused great loses for the British until the sinking of the liner Lusitaina(the sinking of the Lusitaina encourage America to send troops) , when the Germans under American pressure the U-boat campaign stopped for a while. During the war the German navy stopped building surface ships and converted their shipyards to producing U-boats.
Q-ships were a weapon to be used against U-boats they were merchant ships that carried heavy guns and special cargo to keep them afloat when torpedoed. They sailed across shipping lanes so that when a U-boat surfaced to demand its surrender it would open fire to destroy or damage the attacking U-boat, they were initially successful but U-boat captains countered by not surfacing to demand merchant ships surrender and just opened fire on them.
The most effective way the British navy protected its merchant ships was through a convoy system were the merchant ships were escorted by a group of British warships. This meant that only a large group of U-boats could mount an attack and the German navy did not have enough available.
The British attacked German supplies in a different way using the superior British navy to blockade German ports so supplies could not enter or leave there harbours. This starved Germany, which was very important in deciding the outcome of the war because it was destroying the German people and its soldiers will and ability to fight.
Battles:
The Battle of Heligoland, heligoland is a stretch of water near the German navy base in Wilhemshaven on the 28th august 1914 when the British navy attacked German coastal patrols the attack was a huge successes with no British ships lost and the Germans losing three cruisers and a destroyer.
The battle of Jutland on the 31st may 1916 in the North Sea was the biggest naval battle in the war and last. German and British scout squadrons came in to contact and both were enforced by their main fleets. The British and Germans both claim to have won the British lost more ships but the Germans lost more of a higher class. The outcome of this battle was significant, as the German fleet never again challenged the British fleet.
Conclusion:
The Sea was the most important as the blockade by British ships was what eventually led to the German surrender in 1918 as the civilian population and military could no operate with out needed supplies form abroad.
The Sea was aided by technologies in the air such as reconnaissance planes to spot enemy ships and convoys.
The Sea greatly influenced the western front as the British fleet defended and kept open British supply routes, allowing supplies and men to reach the front. While blocking German supply lines preventing supplies from reaching the German front.
Naval domination was vital to Britain’s war efforts, as it protected Britons island status and kept open the routes of trade between the empire that Britain depended on.
