Destroyers for bases: alliance politics and escort value

Bases gave the United States more reach for neutrality patrols and drew it further into Atlantic operations. The destroyers supplied additional hulls, although they needed adaptation for Atlantic escort work and their value varied. Campbeltown's use in the St Nazaire raid is raised while discussing the usefulness of the older ships. The account links the demand for escorts to Churchill's memory of the First World War submarine threat. It also notes that concern about minelaying submarines helped explain the emphasis on minesweeping in early corvette and trawler orders. Obtaining American escorts prompts a renewed criticism of having delayed British carriers and capital ships.