Century of Submarines

The first submarines to be commissioned by the British Admiralty were five `Holland' class boats in 1900. Arriving in 1901, they heralded a new age of naval warfare. The British submarine service took a long time to grow, however, due to naval rivalries and hierarchies and an institutional misinterpretation of submarine tactics and strategy. The First World War saw German success with U-Boat warfare but the British response was more inventive than effective - it included feasibility studies into the employment of sea lions and gulls to defeat the underwater menace. Full realisation of the submarine's fighting capabilities did not come until the Second World War. The advent of sonar, radar and the application of air power changed both the tools and tactics of war.