Подморнице против Енглеске – Submarines Against England, by German Rear Admiral Friedrich Lützow, edited by Aleksandar Stojković, published by БИБЛИОТЕКА СТВАРНОСТ БЕОГРАД, Belgrade, [1940]. In Serbian. A rare publication promoting the superiority of the German submarine fleet in surprise attacks along the English coast during World War II. Extremely rare.
A rare publication in which German Rear Admiral Friedrich Lützow argues for Germany’s superiority in the submarine war against England. He details the German naval strategy, which had been improved since World War I, and explains various tactics such as surprise attacks by submarines and the “war channel” strategy, in which German submarines penetrated the eastern coast of England and sank British ships using surprise cannon fire. The booklet was published in Serbia shortly after the outbreak of World War II, with the aim of convincing the Serbian public that the alliance Serbia had signed with Nazi Germany was worthwhile, and that Germany was prevailing in the naval arena against the Allies. The cover features a photograph of a German submarine and the Nazi swastika flag.
With the outbreak of World War II, Nazi Germany launched a submarine (U-boat) campaign against Britain, aiming to impose a naval blockade on the British Isles and sever Britain’s access to essential supplies of food, fuel, and raw materials arriving via the Atlantic Ocean. Germany operated a limited number of submarines, but in the early stages of the war, they proved highly effective. The submarines targeted Allied convoys sailing from America to Britain, in what the German campaign referred to as “The Battle of the Atlantic.” The Germans developed the “wolf pack” tactic—groups of submarines attacking convoys simultaneously—which significantly increased the scale of destruction and caused heavy losses to the British merchant fleet. At that point, it was easy to portray the submarine offensive as a “victorious campaign” by Germany against the British. However, this impression did not last long. In contrast to the sense of “invincibility” presented in this booklet, the British and their allies responded with advanced technologies to counter the German attacks—technologies that ultimately proved more effective. Through the use of maritime patrol aircraft and additional defensive measures, the Allies succeeded in inflicting heavy losses on the German submarine fleet and neutralizing the threat. Despite German efforts to resume the fight with new models (such as the Type XXI submarines), it was too late. The German U-boat fleet suffered losses exceeding 70%, and Germany ultimately failed to cut off the shipping lanes permanently, losing the Battle of the Atlantic.
Extremely rare. This booklet is not listed in the WorldCat global library catalog.
31, [1] pp. Light stains to cover. back cover restored. Good condition.
