263: War At Sea '41 Pt. 1 - The Surface Raiders

263: War At Sea '41 Pt. 1 - The Surface Raiders

June 25, 2026 · 26 min · Season 4 · Episode 76

About this episode

This episode explores the German surface raiding campaign of late 1940 and early 1941, focusing on the impact of the fall of France and the strategic importance of key ports.

This episode begins a new look at the German surface raiding campaign of late 1940 and early 1941, when the Kriegsmarine tried to use cruisers and battleships to threaten Britain's Atlantic lifelines. We trace how the fall of France transformed Germany's naval options, why ports like Brest and St. Nazaire mattered, how intelligence shaped the hunt on both sides, and how the Admiral Scheer's attack on Convoy HX-84 forced the Royal Navy to rethink convoy protection just before the campaign reached its most dramatic phase. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

People in this episode

Host: Wesley Livesay

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Kriegsmarine

Places: Brest, St. Nazaire

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