Submarines, Mines and Torpedoes in the War — Key Ideas to Explore

Specifications as Evidence of Evolution

Domville-Fife’s method is relentlessly technical. For each submarine class he provides displacement, horsepower, speed, range, armament, and crew complement. The German U-1, launched in 1905, is described as an experimental boat of 197 tons surface displacement, with a speed of 10 knots on the surface and 7 knots submerged, carrying one torpedo tube. By contrast, the U-21 to U-24 class, completed 1912–13, had submerged displacement of 800 tons, surface speed of 14 knots, and an armament of four torpedo tubes plus two quick-firing guns. The progression is stark: in less than a decade, German submarines grew from coastal vessels to large sea-going warships with three times the submerged displacement and double the surface speed. The author’s tables and specifications allow the reader to trace this evolution class by class.

The Human Element in Numbers

Amid the technical data, Domville-Fife notes the human scale of the new underwater fleets. He states that “no less than 264 underwater fighting ships are engaged” and that the crews “comprise nearly 20,000 men.” The complement of the early U-1 was nine officers and men; the later U-21 class carried seventeen. The author also records that the U-13 and subsequent vessels provided “sleeping accommodation for the crew,” a detail that underscores the shift from experimental boats to vessels capable of sustained operations. These numbers, while dry, hint at the organizational and logistical demands of submarine warfare.

A Contemporary Snapshot of Anti-Submarine Measures

The book includes chapters on anti-submarine tactics, mines, and mine-sweeping, though the excerpts provide only the chapter titles. The author’s preface promises to cover “the actual fighting underseas” and “the vast preparations and curious events” leading to the submarine phase. The table of contents lists chapters on submarines in action, anti-submarine tactics, the submarine torpedo, submarine mines, mine-laying fleets, and mine-sweeping fleets. This structure suggests that Domville-Fife intended to give a balanced view of both offensive and defensive aspects of underwater warfare, as understood in 1914.

Readers interested in the early history of submarine warfare will find Domville-Fife’s book a valuable primary source. Its tables of specifications for each nation’s submarine classes offer a baseline for understanding the rapid technological change of the period. The author’s emphasis on scientific factors and his claim to be the first to describe the “Submarine Phase” give the work a sense of immediacy, even if later events would overtake some of its assessments.

Leafing through these measured tonnages and torpedo ranges, I recalled my grandfather’s faint, penciled notes in a similar technical manual—how he’d underline speeds, never the human cost. That same quiet ache surfaced when I later found Female Warriors, Vol. 1 (of 2) Memorials of Female Valour and Heroism, from the Mythological Ages to the Present Era. — Text and Context; both books cataloged prowess, yet the margins felt heavy with unspoken sorrow.