The Merchant U-Boat: Adventures of the Deutschland, 1916-1918

The Merchant U-Boat: Adventures of the Deutschland, 1916-1918 by Messimer, Dwight R.. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780870217715.

Everyone with a taste for adventure and intrigue will appreciate this informative and entertaining book. Based on the World War I records of the German navy, the British Admiralty, the U.S. Department of State, and contemporary newspaper reports, it offers the first detailed account of the unorthodox activities of the Deutschland. This uniquely designed U-boat, built with an exceptionally wide beam to carry cargo, was Germanys desperate response to a British blockade that by 1916 had driven the regular merchant fleet from the seas, leaving Germany cut off from foreign markets and on the verge of economic collapse. Here, Dwight Messimer reounts the submarines two dramatic trips to the United States for critical supplies of nickel and introduces the reader to the highly secret Etappendienst, a complex international network of agents, dummy companies, and bank accounts, charged with ensuring war materials for the homeland. In addition, the book provides a fascinating overall picture of World War I and of American attitudes towards the war and its participants. It also offers an inside look at the intelligence-gathering operations of the three leading powers, presenting some amusing anecdotes in the process.