The Battle of the Atlantic cover art

The Battle of the Atlantic

How the Allies Won the War

 Preview

Get 30 days of Standard free

£5.99/mo after trial. Cancel monthly.
Try for £0.00
More purchase options

The Battle of the Atlantic

By: Jonathan Dimbleby
Narrated by: Jonathan Dimbleby
Try for £0.00

£5.99 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for £14.29

Buy Now for £14.29

Season's Savings | £0.99/mo for 3 months

£5.99/mo after 3 months - terms apply. Cancel monthly

Penguin presents the unabridged, downloadable, audiobook edition of The Battle of the Atlantic, written and read by Jonathan Dimbleby.

The Battle of the Atlantic was - though often overlooked - crucial to victory in the Second World War. If the German U-boats had prevailed, the maritime artery across the Atlantic would have been severed. Mass hunger would have consumed Britain, and the Allied armies would have been prevented from joining in the invasion of Europe. There would have been no D-Day.

Through fascinating contemporary diaries and letters, from the leaders and from the sailors on all sides, Jonathan Dimbleby creates a thrilling narrative that uniquely places the campaign in the context of the entire Second World War. Challenging conventional wisdom on the use of intelligence and on Churchill's bombing campaign, The Battle of the Atlantic tells the epic story of the decisions that led to victory, and the horror and humanity of life on those perilous seas.

 Military War Winston Churchill Submarine Imperialism Thought-Provoking U-Boat Imperial Japan Royalty Franklin D Roosevelt Russia Africa Interwar Period Air Force
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1

Critic reviews

Winston Churchill famously described the Battle of the Atlantic as 'a war of groping and drowning, a war of ambuscade and stratagem, a war of science and seamanship' and no book depicts all of those myriad aspects better than Jonathan Dimbleby's majestic overview. His judgments can sometimes be harsh and are bound to be controversial, but they are backed up with wide reading, diligent scholarship and cogent argument. This is a truly gripping account of a campaign that the author rightly puts epicentral to the Allied victory in the Second World War.
Fascinating, thought-provoking and entertaining. Explodes a number of self-serving myths
Fresh and provocative
A wonderfully incisive, superbly written history. What Dimbleby has nailed so brilliantly is what so many war historians miss: the big picture
The epic Battle of the Atlantic can only really be understood when set against the strategic context of the time. This highly engaging history does this by combining gripping accounts of the tactics and operational fortunes of the Germans and the Allies in this bitterest of battles with an authoritative review of the strategic thinking that helps explain their motives and their responses at the highest national level, and that shows why victory was so important for both sides.
In this refreshing book Jonathan Dimbleby skilfully weaves together front line accounts and high policy discussions to provide a gripping and accessible new account of the most important campaign of the Second World War against Germany.
A gripping read and a great contribution to the history of the Second World War. The author realizes his immense ambition of bringing out the human aspects of the drama at every level, from the heads of state to the crews in the Atlantic, while also bringing important nuances to received views on the struggle against the U-boats, and, indeed, on Churchill's war leadership. An epic account.
All stars
Most relevant

Would you consider the audio edition of The Battle of the Atlantic to be better than the print version?

Yes, for listening in the car. The quality is patchy as there are a number of 're-recordings' left in the audio, and the levels vary between Jonathan's recording sessions. Could do with a final edit and balancing out.

Any additional comments?

The narrative itself is tilted strongly towards the politician's perspective of the battle. I'd say 55% White House/Downing Street/Berlin, 35% on the water and 10% implications of the battle. Rather too much of the political back and forth for me; though it is a vital part of the story, I would rather have had the politics/water proportions reversed.

Good but more politics than 'on the water'

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Unbelievable stories Highlightning the true cost of war to humanity I cannot recommend this highly enlightened

May we all learn from this

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I already knew much about the battle for the Atlantic and other aspects of WWII. But this audio book - so well read by Jonathan Dimbleby - is, from start to end - a wonderful and fascinating account. I recommend it fully. I could quibble about some early mispronunciations and the like, but that would truly be mere quibbling. And I would have loved the final U-boat surrender to have included Montserrat's stirring account from The Cruel Sea - one of the most masterly passages of prose I've read anywhere. But...100% recommend. Thanks to Audible and to Jonathan Dimbleby.

A comprehensive and fascinating account

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
great narration and gripping throughout giving a detailed account of the Atlantic war. Really captured all aspects from the grand strategic to personal accounts.

brilliant book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

If you could sum up The Battle of the Atlantic in three words, what would they be?

This is an important subject that has obviously been well researched and documented. That said this audiobook is marred by poor attention to detail in the editing. The author's strengths are more biased towards the research and writing, the narration improved when he settled on one way of pronouncing some German words.
Criticisms are minor, this is a book that deserves attention and focuses a light on an often forgotten battle and those mariners who fought both an enemy and the ocean unrecognised for so long in both war and peace.

Important subject with minor flaws

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews