Summary: The Importance Of Naval Warfare

Naval warfare played a key role in both the course and the outcome of World War II. This essay will explore the significance of the German U-boat campaign, the victory of the Allies in the battle for the Atlantic and the effect of naval warfare in the Pacific to the outcome of the Second World War.
The battle of the Atlantic is a fundamental example of how sea power was decisive to the outcome of the war, where German U-boats attempted to deprive Britain of its raw materials. Initially, in 1942, the Germans were leading in terms of sea power as they had 90 U-boats in operation and 250 being built, (Lowe, 102) promptly advancing their U-Boat campaign, making them more capable, as they held the upper hand at this point in the war. This shows the importance of greater naval warfare in relation to the war effort

(Laver, 329) The effective use of aircraft in sea warfare was demonstrated in the pacific campaign, where the Japanese used air power at the start of the war in the attack on Pearl Harbour and also against British ships. (Pearson, 163) This is considered to be of importance as the Japanese hoped to disrupt allied shipping from reaching the Pacific in order to stop any resources from coming in. In 1942, it seemed as if though the Japanese were successful in the war. However, the success of the USA in the battle of Coral Sea and Midway put the Japanese into a state in which they could not recover from. The Americans success was largely due to their shipbuilding capability, as the Japanese shipbuilding capability was limited. Furthermore, like the British, the Americans also could access Japanese codes. (Pearson, 163) Thus, these factors were vital to the success of Allied forces as the defeat of the Japanese is considered to be a turning point for the outcome of the war as the Japanese were unable to continue with the war due to the damage inflicted by the