The British Navy in World War I

Paper Summary:

The paper explains that Great Britain did not use the Royal Navy to its full abilities during World War I, mainly out of fear that a defeat of a costly victory at sea would lose them the war by lowering morale of the British populace. The paper discusses the unsuccessful sea battle at Jutland that caused low soldier and citizen morale. The paper shows how Great Britain would have lost all chances of winning the war if another battle signaled defeat at sea. The paper explains that this was why Great Britain minimized their presence in the water and only remained the strongest navy in the world through inaction and a refocusing of military efforts elsewhere.

From the Paper:

"As World War I began, Great Britain was considered the supreme power in terms of naval force. Yet, the German Navy had been upgrading enough to make it of significant British concern during the war. In particular, the use of German U-boats as a threat to both military and merchant vessels complicated Great Britain's naval choices. Though many history texts take it for granted that Britain was the stronger of the two navies, the only major naval battle (at Jutland) between the two forces resulted in heavy British losses. While the Royal Navy had both experience and opportunity to strike more forcefully at Germany by sea, they instead spent most of the war only blockading."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Coffman, Edward M. The War to End All Wars: The American Military Experience in World War I. Lexington, KY: University of Kentucky, 1998.
• "German Admiralty Declaration, 4 February 1915." In Naval Operations, Vol. II, ed. Julian Corbett, 260-261. New York: Longmans, Green, and Company, 1920. Reprint, New York: Battery Press, 1997.
• Denhe, Phillip. "From 'Business as Usual' to a More Global War: the British Decision to Attack Germans in South America During the First World War." Journal of British Studies 44 (2005): 516-535.
• "Excerpts From a German Conference Concerning Unrestricted Submarine Warfare, 31 August, 1916." In Official German Documents Relating to the World War, Vol. II, ed. Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 1154-1163. New York: Oxford University Press, 1923.
• "First News Shocked British; But Later Bulletin Telling Foe's Loss Was More Assuring." New York Times, 3 June 1916, p.1-2.

More papers on The British Navy in World War I:

• Essay # 48470 : "The German Navy"
• Term Paper # 92422 : "The Struggle For Guadalcanal"
• Research Paper # 101630 : "Germany and England - Naval Arms Race"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: