Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 40:23-40:58

Which world war threatened British merchant shipping more?

Britain lost the higher proportion of its merchant marine in the First World War, when German minelaying submarines came closer to defeating its convoy system.

ConvoysMerchant NavyNaval HistorySubmarine WarfareWorld War IWorld War II
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Question

Did Britain lose a higher percentage of its merchant marine in the First or Second World War?

Short answer

The First World War; its submarine campaign also came closer to defeating Britain's merchant-shipping system.

Notes

Britain lost the higher proportion of its merchant marine in the First World War. German submarines came closer to winning the convoy war then than in the Second World War, with minelaying submarines receiving particular emphasis. The later conflict attracts more cinematic attention because of its submarine encounters with merchant ships. That greater familiarity can obscure the danger posed by the earlier campaign.