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After Jutland: The Naval War in Northern European Waters, June 1916-November 1918
After Jutland analyses the naval war in Northern European waters following the critical, but inconclusive Battle of Jutland. A popular misconception is that Jutland marked the end of the operational career of the German High Sea Fleet and the beginning of a period of stagnation for both it and its opponent, the Grand Fleet. The reality is much more complex. The German battle fleet was quiescent for much of the time in the North Sea, but it supported an ambitious amphibious campaign in the Baltic while a bitter commerce war was waged by U-Boats and the light craft fought a gruelling campaign in the waters of the English Channel and the Belgian Coast.
After Jutland focuses primarily on the Royal Navy as the dominant maritime force, but it also analyses the struggles of the beleaguered German Navy as it sought to find ways to break the tightening stranglehold of the blockade and undermine Allied control of the world's oceans - and of British home waters in particular. The continuing conflict in the Baltic will also be explored as the Germans increased the pressure on the Russian territory and the Russian fleet while the latter, despite its descent into revolution, still struggled to provide an effective counter to the Imperial German Navy.
The Royal Navy learned much from Jutland and applied those lessons to good effect. It greatly improved the way that ships were organised for battle, as well as developing new tactics. There were also great leaps in communications and in command and control, while both aviation and undersea operations, including mine warfare, developed at breakneck pace. The Imperial German Navy made its own changes as a result of Jutland. Indeed, both Germany and Russia undertook much more naval innovation in the final years of the conflict than is often realised. By 1918, all the protagonists were fighting what was, in every way, a multi-dimensional maritime war that was the forerunner of naval conflict for the remainder of the twentieth century.
The period also saw the entry to the conflict of the United States and the increasing commitment of the United States Navy. USN units saw hard service before the Armistice of November 1918. Many of the foundations of success in the next war were laid by the USN at this time. The learning curve was steep as officers and sailors alike sought to catch up on the experience of nearly three years of conflict, but they brought new methods and new applications of technology to the operational problems with which their coalition partners had been struggling. This included the Sixth Battle Squadron, which was rapidly assimilated into the Grand Fleet, absorbing the hard-won knowledge of their British colleagues, but applying some of their own ideas.
After Jutland focuses primarily on the Royal Navy as the dominant maritime force, but it also analyses the struggles of the beleaguered German Navy as it sought to find ways to break the tightening stranglehold of the blockade and undermine Allied control of the world's oceans - and of British home waters in particular. The continuing conflict in the Baltic will also be explored as the Germans increased the pressure on the Russian territory and the Russian fleet while the latter, despite its descent into revolution, still struggled to provide an effective counter to the Imperial German Navy.
The Royal Navy learned much from Jutland and applied those lessons to good effect. It greatly improved the way that ships were organised for battle, as well as developing new tactics. There were also great leaps in communications and in command and control, while both aviation and undersea operations, including mine warfare, developed at breakneck pace. The Imperial German Navy made its own changes as a result of Jutland. Indeed, both Germany and Russia undertook much more naval innovation in the final years of the conflict than is often realised. By 1918, all the protagonists were fighting what was, in every way, a multi-dimensional maritime war that was the forerunner of naval conflict for the remainder of the twentieth century.
The period also saw the entry to the conflict of the United States and the increasing commitment of the United States Navy. USN units saw hard service before the Armistice of November 1918. Many of the foundations of success in the next war were laid by the USN at this time. The learning curve was steep as officers and sailors alike sought to catch up on the experience of nearly three years of conflict, but they brought new methods and new applications of technology to the operational problems with which their coalition partners had been struggling. This included the Sixth Battle Squadron, which was rapidly assimilated into the Grand Fleet, absorbing the hard-won knowledge of their British colleagues, but applying some of their own ideas.
352 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2018
About the author
James Goldrick
17 books9 followersJames Goldrick is a retired two-star rear admiral in the Royal Australian Navy who held several seagoing commands and later led the Australian Defence Force Academy, Australia’s Border Protection Command, and the Australian Defence College.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 4, 2025
After Jutland there were no more Jutlands, only hesitation in a war fought between mines, small ships and airplanes.
Keeping minefields trim, opening sea lines, hunting submarines, sinking tonnage.
These were opposing tasks best suited to destroyers and cruisers, with the occasional battleship as a guardian in reverse.
Except the German attack on the Baltic islands to facilitate seaborne logistics for their 1918 offensive into Russian lands, no conventional Trafalgar was fought in the second half of WWI, with the famous raid on Zeebrugge fully targeted against the submarines of Flotilla Flandern, not capital ships.
it's not always riveting and the U.S. Navy's entry as well as the evolution into the convoy system could've had more depth, but Goldrick has the steady seaman's hand in describing Atlantic undepths, Baltic fog and poor visibility in winter weather.
Keeping minefields trim, opening sea lines, hunting submarines, sinking tonnage.
These were opposing tasks best suited to destroyers and cruisers, with the occasional battleship as a guardian in reverse.
Except the German attack on the Baltic islands to facilitate seaborne logistics for their 1918 offensive into Russian lands, no conventional Trafalgar was fought in the second half of WWI, with the famous raid on Zeebrugge fully targeted against the submarines of Flotilla Flandern, not capital ships.
it's not always riveting and the U.S. Navy's entry as well as the evolution into the convoy system could've had more depth, but Goldrick has the steady seaman's hand in describing Atlantic undepths, Baltic fog and poor visibility in winter weather.
July 26, 2025
Better than the first one (which was also good). Detailed technical discussion of the naval war in World War I. My only disappointment is that I had to go to a different author for the battle of Jutland itself.
September 3, 2020
A good read, although not quite great. It makes for a fair account of the Great War at sea in the European Theater of Operations.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews