Sims explicitly limits The Victory at Sea to an account of the submarine campaign, explaining that a full naval operational history would require many volumes and prolonged research. Wartime secrecy had prevented civilians from understanding how the U-boat campaign was defeated. Unlike conspicuous weapons used on land, a device used against a submarine could remain unknown if no survivor carried the news home. Depth charges, decoy ships, hydrophones, minefields, explosive nets, and hunting submarines formed parts of that concealed struggle. Decoy-ship methods could continue to work until a submarine survived to report them. Censorship protected those methods while denying sailors' relatives and friends an account of the work. Once the secrecy restrictions ended, Sims could explain the difficulty of the campaign and the methods used against the submarines.
Chapter · 54:06-57:25
Sims makes World War I sea power visible
Sims explains why the anti-submarine campaign remained hidden during World War I and writes for civilians who had not seen the Navy's dispersed contest with the U-boats.