ABSTRACT
Because the offensives of 1940 placed the European coastline at the disposal of the German navy, the Royal Navy was unable to impose a blockade of Germany. In fact, Germany was able to attempt a strangulation of the British economy by raiding its shipping. A reprise of the cruiser warfare waged in WWI was unsuccessful, but German submarine operations posed a serious threat. Not until 1943 did Allied navies turn the tide of the Battle of the Atlantic in their favour. With Britain’s survival ensured, the Allies were able to build-up their forces there in preparation for a cross-Channel invasion of France. Meanwhile, American forces joined British forces in North Africa with the invasion of Tunisia in November 1942. Secure bases in North Africa set the stage for an Allied invasion of Sicily and Italy, from which Allied forces could dominate the Mediterranean and attack Axis forces in the Balkans. The main Anglo-American effort in bringing the war to Germany itself was through strategic bombing. There were debates within the Allied command about targeting civilians, but both RAF Bomber Command and the United States Army Air Force came to accept the legitimacy of attacks involving civilian death.
