What part did the British navy and the war at sea play in bringing about allied victory.

        Another reason that the British Navy was crucial to victory was that they frustrated the Germans in to bombing the ‘Lusitania. This killed 100 American civilians and forced America in to the war. Which was a major factor towards allied victory due to the added supplies and fresh troops that brought to the war.

        Another big advantage of Britain’s naval prowess was their part in halting the German U-boat campaign. This was vital was the Germans had planed to use their U-boats to end the trade that was bringing the UK supplies from abroad. The Germans announced that all merchant ships leaving Britain would be attacked by the U-boats so it was vital that the British navy stopped them. The allies had many tactics that helped them to defeat the German U-boats such as Q ships, which were merchant ships armed with disguised heavy guns. They fooled the German U-boats in to attacking well-armed targets. Mines were a crucial weapon against the U-boats as they prevented U-boats from using the English Channel and sailing in to British ports, they destroyed more U-boats than any other weapon. A good tactic in preventing the U-boats from sinking merchant ships was the use of convoys with British and US war ships escorting the merchant ships. This reduced the losses of allied shipping by 20 per cent. These convoys were protected by Long-range aircraft, which by the end of the war could protect the convoys and give advanced warnings of any U-boat attacks. These tactics were very effective and by 1917 the British and Americans were producing so many ships that the Germans halted their U-boat campaign.

        There were a few battles at sea such as in Heligotand where the British scored a clever tactical victory in the North Sea. Where the British sank three German light cruisers and one destroyer in August of 1914. The British Navy followed this up by sinking the German cruiser ‘Blucher’ at the battle of Dogger Bank in 1915. But the only major sea battle was at Jutland in 1916 when the two great dreadnought fleets met. There 259 warships carrying over 100,000 men. The German navy planed to send a squadron of ships in to the North Sea to act as bait for he British so that they could make a surprise attack on the British Grand fleet. The plan lost its element of surprise however as the British cracked the German naval code so they could prepare for an attack. At the battle there was fierce fighting but casualties were light. The fighting was mainly a ‘hit and miss’ affair and when night fell, the Germans stored action and ran for port. Although the Germans did sink more ships than the British. The British fleet was simply too large so the Germans failed in their most important objective which was to remove the British naval blockade which was starving the German troops and civilians.

        On the other hand there are some factors that show that the British navy and the war at sea did not play a big part in victory. For example most of the fighting was done on land and in the only major sea battle in Jutland the Germans can claim to have won as they caused more damage than they received themselves. This lack of major sea battles meant that relatively few deaths were inflicted as a result of the British Navy. Also the British Navy’s blockade was not totally effective as supplies could still reach Germany over land. The entry of America can also not be claimed as a direct result of the Navy as their were many factors that contributed to Americas entry, such as Germanys attempt to ally with Mexico and the fact that the Americans were already supplying weapons and loans to the allied nations. Also the sinking of the ‘Lusitania’ happened in 1915 but the USA did not declare war until April 1917 two years later.

        So in conclusion the British Navy and the war at sea played a crucial part in bringing about allied victory. The main reason for this was the fact that they managed to blockade the German Supply routes meaning that the German people and the troops were poorly fed and under supplied. It also led the Germans in to a tactic of unrestricted submarine warfare, which led to the sinking of an American passenger ship bringing the USA in to the war.