THE KAISER’S GAMBLE

Germany was late to develop its own submarine, promoted vigorously by the German Torpedo Inspectorate despite opposition from the naval hierarchy. On the outbreak of the war in Europe in early August 1914 the Imperial German Navy possessed two flotillas comprising 28 operational U-boats – U1 to U28 – with U29 to U41 either nearing completion or in relatively advanced stages of construction. Of those which were operational, U1 to U4 were primitive designs, quickly relegated to training vessels, while U19 to U28, powered by new diesel engines over previous kerosene versions, were among the most advanced submarines yet built by any nation. Given that Germany was a relative latecomer to submarines the Imperial Navy began the conflict with two main misconceptions regarding their potential use.

First, after pre-war tactical trials using U1, U3 and U4, the German