The Battle of the Atlantic

How the Allies Won the War

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The Battle of the Atlantic by Jonathan Dimbleby is a narrative history of the strategically crucial struggle for control of the Atlantic during the Second World War. Combining the wider military and political picture with the experiences of those involved, it explains how the campaign shaped the course of the war and ultimately made the Allied invasion of Europe possible.

Topics covered: Convoys; Lend-Lease; codebreaking and intelligence; radar; air cover; naval strategy; political and military decision-making
Knowledge level: Some prior knowledge of the Second World War is recommended

About the book
Had the German U-boats succeeded in severing Britain's maritime lifeline, the consequences would have been profound: supplies would have been cut off, mass hunger threatened and Allied armies prevented from assembling for the invasion of Europe.

Drawing on contemporary diaries and letters from leaders and sailors on all sides, Dimbleby moves between high-level decisions and the realities faced by merchant seamen, escorts and submariners. He examines the evolving tactics and detection methods used in the campaign, as well as the relationship between the RAF and Royal Navy.

Alongside this human and operational history, Dimbleby challenges conventional interpretations of the use of intelligence and Churchill's bombing campaign, placing the struggle at sea within the broader developments of the Second World War.

Comparable books
If you're looking for books similar to The Battle of the Atlantic, these books also explore the Second World War through military history and personal experience, with approaches ranging from a closer focus on the Atlantic campaign to wider accounts of the war at sea and in Europe.

The Battle of the Atlantic by Andrew Williams: Williams covers the same prolonged struggle for control of the Atlantic and its importance to Allied victory, with particular emphasis on the experiences of the sailors and civilians caught up in the campaign, complementing Dimbleby's broader treatment of its strategy and politics.
The War At Sea 1939–45 by John Winton: Widening the lens from the Atlantic to the world's oceans, this anthology places the convoys and U-boat campaign within the Royal Navy's wider Second World War experience, using eyewitness testimony from the British and Commonwealth Navies, Fleet Air Arm, Merchant Navy and those serving ashore.
Endgame 1944 by Jonathan Dimbleby: Dimbleby turns from the struggle at sea to the closing stages of the war in Europe, applying his military, political and diplomatic approach to the Allied advances of 1944 and the events on the Eastern Front that helped determine both Nazi Germany's defeat and the post-war settlement.

This is an exceptionally vivid account of one of the critical campaigns of the Second World War by a masterly writer
Max Hastings

Winston Churchill famously described the Battle of the Atlantic as 'a war of groping and drowning, a war of ambuscade and stratagem, a war of science and seamanship' and no book depicts all of those myriad aspects better than Jonathan Dimbleby's majestic overview. His judgments can sometimes be harsh and are bound to be controversial, but they are backed up with wide reading, diligent scholarship and cogent argument. This is a truly gripping account of a campaign that the author rightly puts epicentral to the Allied victory in the Second World War.

Andrew Roberts, author of 'Masters and Commanders'

A fascinating story written with bite and grip of one of the most crucial showdowns of the twentieth century - of a victory wrung out of the unforgiving Atlantic swell by sailors and airmen using the best technology and Intelligence that those on land could provide. How close-run it was and the price of losing would have been catastrophe, defeat and darkness. Compelling
Lord Peter Hennessy, author of 'The Silent Deep'

Excellent on the characters of individual commanders . . . But perhaps the book's greatest strength is its analysis of the strategic side of the battle. Regularly switching from vivid coverage of individual encounters at sea, the narrative reveals the intense discussions that took place at the highest levels to decide naval policy, especially among Churchill, Roosevelt and their military advisers. It is [the] controversial assertion, backed by solid research and a readable style, that makes this book so compelling.
Leo McKinstry, Wall Street Journal

A gripping read and a great contribution to the history of the Second World War. The author realizes his immense ambition of bringing out the human aspects of the drama at every level, from the heads of state to the crews in the Atlantic, while also bringing important nuances to received views on the struggle against the U-boats, and, indeed, on Churchill's war leadership. An epic account.
Peter Padfield, author of 'War Beneath the Sea: Submarine Conflict 1939-1945', and biographies of Dönitz, Himmler and Hess

The epic Battle of the Atlantic can only really be understood when set against the strategic context of the time. This highly engaging history does this by combining gripping accounts of the tactics and operational fortunes of the Germans and the Allies in this bitterest of battles with an authoritative review of the strategic thinking that helps explain their motives and their responses at the highest national level, and that shows why victory was so important for both sides.
Professor Geoff Till, author of 'The Development of British Naval Thinking'

Dimbleby makes a convincing case that of all the campaigns of WWII, the struggle for dominance over the North Atlantic was the most important . . . The history of the battle for the Atlantic is well documented, but Dimbleby's work, with its emphasis on the strategic importance of the battle, is an excellent addition to the story, and expert historians as well as general readers can enjoy this effort
Publishers Weekly

About Jonathan Dimbleby

Jonathan Dimbleby's previous books include the highly acclaimed Second World War histories The Battle of the Atlantic and Destiny in the Desert: The Road to El Alamein, which was shortlisted for the Hessell-Tiltman Prize and was followed by his BBC2 programme Churchill's Desert War. His other books include, Russia: A Journey to the Heart of a Land and Its People, Richard Dimbleby: A Biography, The Palestinians, The Prince of Wales: A Biography and The Last Governor: Chris Patten and the Handover of Hong Kong.

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