Roger Moorhouse

Author, historian.

Roger Moorhouse is a historian’s historian. Specialising in modern German history - with particular focus on Adolf Hitler and the Third Reich - Roger has published several highly acclaimed books on the subject. Described by former Trig guests James Holland and Dan Snow as “a superb work of history” and “a thrilling account from a master of Second World War history”, his latest work - Wolfpack: Inside Hitler’s U-Boat War - is available now.

Why did we invite him on?

For better and worse, World War II interest is at an all-time high. We include ourselves in that - you might have seen that reflected in some of the guests we’ve hosted in the last 12 months. Much of the conversation today operates at the macro-level - were we right to join? How could things have gone differently? Who really were the bad guys?

These discussions are fascinating, but often forgotten are the overlooked details. The tangible moments of bravery, terror and awe that make the period one of such intense fascination. Roger’s staggering knowledge of the subject made him a perfect candidate to come on and explore that with us. Having recently torn through his new book, we wanted him to sit down and share the story with you.

What happened?

For those who don’t know, ‘U-boat’ is something of a misnomer. A retraction of Unterseeboot (“under-sea boat”), these weren’t boats at all, but submarines. Their presence - in fleets nicknamed ‘Wolfpacks’ - was a decisive factor in the Battle Of the Atlantic, which lasted approximately the length of the war itself. In fact, Chuchill later wrote: “The only thing that really frightened me … was the U-boat peril.”

Historians have long argued that they were the crucial pillar of Germany’s naval offensive. Roger disagrees. While the tonnage of resources dedicated to the U-boat project outweighed that of the tank initiative, by then, they’d already as good as lost. In his estimation, timing cost them.

”Hitler doesn’t think much about the U-boats until 1941. Then he realises the strategic potential they have. But by then it’s much too late. He doesn’t get his 300-boat force until the end of 1942, and by then the counter-forces have already been developed.”

And these counter-forces were not to be trifled with. As Roger explains to us, life aboard these boats was uniquely terrifying.

”The average of age of a dead soldier in this war is 22 … You have a whole generation of boys who have been fed this propaganda of the ‘glorious experience’ of [war at sea], and they go out to conditions that are unthinkably hideous… The conditions on the wartime U-boat can scarcely be believed.”

What did these conditions entail? We know what the U-boats did, and what they were capable of, but what was life like for those who were stationed aboard them?