After Jutland - The Naval War in North European Waters, June 1916-November 1918

The aftermath of Jutland saw the British Grand Fleet and German High Seas Fleet pull back to their home ports to lick their wounds, and in the case of the Grand Fleet, its injured pride. James Goldrick’s book shows that whilst another major encounter in the North Sea between the two massed Fleets was unlikely, naval encounters continued at every level. The High Seas Fleet under Scheer had failed to produce the knockout blow that the German nation had expected. Scheer believed that concentrating on unrestricted submarine warfare was the only realistic way of neutralising the British. Meanwhile Scheer still had to face up to the threats in the Baltic from both the Russian Navy and possible British incursions. Along the coast of Belgium and the Dover Straits, there were frequent naval clashes involving primarily submarines and destroyers. The lessons learnt from Jutland spread through both Fleets. Command and control methods were restructured, communications systems were enhanced, and there was greater awareness of the growing impact of air power. For the British, the increasing economic impact of the U-boat campaign led to technological changes as well as the eventual introduction of the convoy system. Mining was also a growing threat to both sides with the laying of large scale barrages, and this is an area where Goldrick believes that the British could and should have been more active in restricting the movement of the High Seas Fleet. Goldrick shows that far from the respective navies withdrawing from the fray, both navies, particularly the smaller ships, were being worked hard. The Russian Navy, at first a major force in the Baltic, was to become increasingly burdened with political turmoil which subsequently spread to the High Seas Fleet. In his final conclusion, Goldrick comments that Royal Navy operating methods in 1918 “were a remarkable advance on 1914”, and that large scale battle fleets were being replaced by balanced formations with integral air support. This is an extraordinarily absorbing book, leaving one almost breathless as it covers every aspect of the naval war of the last years of WW1 from morale to the development of weapons and tactics. Very highly recommended.