View source for Battle of the Caribbean

{{short description|1941–1945 naval campaign between Allied and Axis forces in World War II}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict          = Battle of the Caribbean
| partof            = [[World War II]], [[Battle of the Atlantic]]
| image             = CaribbeanIslands.png
| image_size        = 300px
| caption           = The Antilles, Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico
| date              = 1941–1945
| place             = [[Antilles]], [[Caribbean Sea]], [[Gulf of Mexico]]
| result            = Allied victory
| combatant1        = [[Allies of World War II|''Allies:'']]<br/>{{flag|United States|1912}}<br/>{{flag|United Kingdom}}<br/>{{flag|Canada|1921}}<br/>{{flag|Netherlands}}<br/>{{flagcountry|Free France|name=Free France}}<ref name="lago-colony.com">[http://www.lago-colony.com/AMERICANS_IN_ARUBA/COAST%20ARTILLERY%20COMMAND.htm The United States Coast Artillery Command on Aruba and Curaçao in World War II] ''The Coast Defense Study Group Journal, Volume 11, Issue 2''.</ref><br/>{{flagcountry|Republic of Cuba (1902–59)}}<br/>{{flag|Panama}}<br/>{{flagcountry|United States of Venezuela|1930}}<br/>{{flag|Mexico|1934}}<br/>{{flag|Colombia}}<br/>{{flag|Peru|1884}}<br/>[[Allies of World War II|''other allies'']]
| combatant2        = [[Axis powers|''Axis:'']]<br/>{{flagcountry|Nazi Germany}}<br/>{{flagcountry|Fascist Italy (1922–1943)}}<br/>{{flag|Vichy France}}
| commander1        = {{flagicon|United States|1912}} [[Ernest J. King]]<br/>{{flagicon|United States|1912}} [[Jesse Oldendorf]]<br/>{{flagicon|UK|naval}} [[Percy Lockhart Harnam Noble|Sir Percy Noble]]<br/>{{flagicon|UK|naval}} [[Max Kennedy Horton|Sir Max K. Horton]]<br />{{flagicon|United States of Venezuela|1930}} [[Isaías Medina Angarita]]<br />{{flagicon|Cuba|1902}} Francisco de Menocal Roldán
| commander2        = {{flagicon|Nazi Germany|naval}} [[Erich Raeder]]<br/>{{flagicon|Nazi Germany|naval}} [[Karl Dönitz]]<br/>{{flagicon|Fascist Italy (1922-1943)}} [[Romolo Polacchini]]
| strength1         = 
| strength2         = 
| casualties1       = 400 merchant ships sunk
| casualties2       = 17 submarines<ref>{{cite web |title=The U-Boat War In The Caribbean: Opportunities Lost |url=https://www.history.navy.mil/research/library/online-reading-room/title-list-alphabetically/u/u-boat-in-the-caribbean.html}}</ref>
}}
{{Campaignbox Battle of the Caribbean}}
{{North American Theater}}
{{Campaignbox Atlantic Campaign}}

The '''Battle of the Caribbean''' refers to a naval campaign waged during [[World War II]] that was part of the [[Battle of the Atlantic]], from 1941 to 1945.<ref>One U.S. naval source gives different dates for the battle. See Smith, Commander C. Alphonso, U.S. Naval Reserve, [https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/1954/september/battle-caribbean "Battle of the Caribbean"], ''Proceedings of the U.S. Naval Institute'', Vol. 80/9/619, September 1954: "The Battle of the Caribbean lasted nine and a half months—from February 16, 1942, to November 30, 1942."</ref> [[Kriegsmarine|German]] [[U-boat]]s and [[Regia Marina|Italian]] [[submarine]]s attempted to disrupt the [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] supply of oil and other material. They sank shipping in the [[Caribbean Sea]] and the [[Gulf of Mexico]] and attacked coastal targets in the [[Antilles]]. Improved Allied [[anti-submarine warfare]] eventually drove the Axis submarines out of the Caribbean region.

==Background==
The Caribbean was strategically significant because of [[Venezuela]]n [[oil field]]s in the southeast and the [[Panama Canal]] in the southwest. The [[Royal Dutch Shell]] refinery on Dutch-owned [[Curaçao]] was processing eleven million barrels per month, more than any other [[oil refinery]] in the world at that time. The refinery at [[Pointe-à-Pierre]] on [[Trinidad]] was the largest in the [[British Empire]]{{clarification needed| The single largest refinery, purely by physical size, in the world at that time was the British held [[Abadan Refinery]] in Iran. By late 1941 Abadan was all but officially part of the British Empire. It is unclear exactly what definition the author is using for "size" or "in the British Empire".|date=July 2023}} and [[Lago Oil and Transport Company]] was another large refinery on Dutch-owned [[Aruba]]. The [[British Isles]] required four [[oil tanker]]s of petroleum daily during the early war years, and most of it came from Venezuela, through Curaçao, after Italy blocked passage through the [[Mediterranean Sea]] from the [[Middle East]].<ref>Kelshall, Gaylord T.M. ''The U-Boat War in the Caribbean'' United States Naval Institute Press (1994) {{ISBN|1-55750-452-0}} pp.7–22</ref>

The Caribbean held additional strategic significance to the [[United States]]. The United States' Gulf of Mexico coastline, including petroleum facilities and [[Mississippi River]] trade, could be defended at two points. The United States was well positioned to defend the [[Straits of Florida]] but was less able to prevent access from the Caribbean through the [[Yucatán Channel]]. [[Bauxite]] was the preferred ore for [[aluminum]], and one of the few strategic raw materials not available within the continental United States. United States military aircraft production depended upon bauxite imported from [[the Guianas]] along shipping routes paralleling the [[Lesser Antilles]]. The United States defended the Panama Canal with 189 bombers and 202 fighters, and based submarines at [[Colón, Panama]] and at Submarine Base, Crown Bay, [[St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands]].<ref>
The Navy Department Library: Building the Navy's Bases in World War II, History of the Bureau of Yards and Docks and the Civil Engineer Corps
1940–1946, Volume II, Part III, The Advance Bases: Chapter XVIII: Bases in South America and the Caribbean Area, Including Bermuda</ref><ref>Kelshall, Gaylord T.M. ''The U-Boat War in the Caribbean'' United States Naval Institute Press (1994) {{ISBN|1-55750-452-0}} pp.7–18</ref> [[United States Navy]] VP-51 [[Consolidated PBY Catalina]]s began [[neutrality patrol]]s along the Lesser Antillies from [[San Juan, Puerto Rico]] on 13 September 1939; and facilities were upgraded at [[Guantanamo Bay Naval Base]] and at [[Naval Air Station Key West]].<ref>Scarborough, William E. "The Neutralitv Patrol: To Keep Us Out of
World War II?" pp.18–23 ''Naval Aviation News'' March–April 1990</ref>

The [[United Kingdom]] based No. 749, 750, 752 and 793 Naval Air Squadrons at [[Piarco International Airport]] on Trinidad. British troops occupied Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire soon after the [[Netherlands]] were captured by [[Nazi Germany]]. The French island of [[Martinique]] was perceived as a possible base for [[Axis powers|Axis]] ships as British relationships with [[Vichy France]] deteriorated following the [[Second Armistice at Compiègne]]. The September 1940 [[Destroyers for Bases Agreement]] enabled the United States to build airfields in [[British Guiana]], and on the islands of [[Great Exuma]], Trinidad, [[Antigua]], and [[Saint Lucia]]. On 11 February 1942, United States forces replaced British soldiers on the Dutch refinery islands and began operating [[Douglas A-20 Havoc]]s from Hato Field on Curaçao and Dakota Field on Aruba.<ref>Kelshall, Gaylord T.M. ''The U-Boat War in the Caribbean'' United States Naval Institute Press (1994) {{ISBN|1-55750-452-0}} pp.4–24</ref>

==Axis operations==

===Operation Neuland===
{{Main article|Operation Neuland}}
The first offensive against the Caribbean refineries was organised under the command of ''[[Kapitänleutnant]]'' (lieutenant) [[Werner Hartenstein]] aboard {{GS|U-156|1941|2}} with and {{GS|U-502||2}}, {{GS|U-67|1940|2}}, {{GS|U-129|1941|2}}, and {{GS|U-161|1941|2}}. The first three U-boats launched simultaneous attacks on 16 February 1942. ''U-502'' sank crude oil tankers ''[[SS Monagas|Monagas]]'', ''Tia Juana'' and ''San Nicholas'' between [[Lake Maracaibo]] and Aruba. ''U-67'' entered [[Willemstad]] harbour on Curaçao and torpedoed three oil tankers. The four torpedoes from the bow tubes were duds, but the stern tube torpedoes sank ''Rafaela''. ''U-156'' entered San Nicolas harbour on Aruba and torpedoed oil tankers ''Pedernales'', ''Oranjestad'' and ''Arkansas''. ''U-156'' then attempted to shell the Aruba refinery with its [[10.5 cm SK C/32 naval gun]]; but the gun barrel burst when the first shell exploded because the gun crew failed to remove the [[tampion]].<ref>Kelshall, Gaylord T.M. ''The U-Boat War in the Caribbean'' United States Naval Institute Press (1994) {{ISBN|1-55750-452-0}} pp.26–33</ref>  The Germans slightly damaged a large storage tank. A Venezuelan [[gunboat]], {{Ship|Venezuelan gunboat|General Urdaneta||2}}, assisted in rescuing the crews of several torpedoed vessels; and A-20 Havoc [[light bomber]]s attacked all three U-boats unsuccessfully; Resulting in an increased American occupation of the island began for its protection.<ref>{{Citation|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,884455,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071210164424/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,884455,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 10, 2007|title=Shells at Aruba|date=February 23, 1942|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |access-date=2007-12-09}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|last=Schenia|first=Robert L.|title=Latin America: A Naval History 1810–1987 |year=1987|location=Annapolis, Maryland, United States|publisher=[[Naval Institute Press]]|isbn=0-87021-295-8| oclc=15696006}}</ref>

''U-161'' entered Trinidad's [[Gulf of Paria]] on 18 February to torpedo ''Mokihama'' and the oil tanker ''British Consul''. As the U-boats settled into routine patrolling, ''U-67'' torpedoed oil tankers ''J.N.Pew'' and ''Penelope''; ''U-502'' torpedoed oil tankers ''Kongsgaard'', ''Thallia'' and ''Sun''; ''U-156'' torpedoed ''Delplata'' and oil tanker ''La Carriere''; ''U-161'' torpedoed ''Lihue'' and oil tankers ''Circle Shell'', ''Uniwaleco'' and ''Esso Bolivar''; and ''U-129'' torpedoed ''George L. Torrain'', ''West Zeda'', ''Lennox'', ''Bayou'', ''Mary'', ''Steel Age'' and the oil tanker ''Nordvangen''. The ''U-156'' crew used [[hacksaw]]s to cut off the damaged portion of the gun barrel; and, when ''U-156'' ran out of torpedoes, used their sawn-off [[deck gun]] to sink ''Macgregor'' and the oil tanker ''Oregon''. On 10 March ''U-161'' entered [[Castries]] harbour on Saint Lucia to torpedo {{HMCS|Lady Nelson}} and ''Umtata''. After leaving Saint Lucia, ''U-161'' torpedoed ''Sarniadoc'' and sank the [[United States Coast Guard]] lighthouse tender {{USCGC|Acacia|WAGL-200|6}} with gunfire.<ref>Kelshall, Gaylord T.M. ''The U-Boat War in the Caribbean'' United States Naval Institute Press (1994) {{ISBN|1-55750-452-0}} pp.26–68</ref>

===Other operations===
Five Italian submarines patrolled the Atlantic side of the Lesser Antillies during Operation Neuland. ''Morosini'' torpedoed ''Stangarth'' and oil tankers ''Oscilla'' and ''Peder Bogen''. ''Enrico Tazzoli'' torpedoed ''Cygnet'' and the oil tanker ''Athelqueen''. ''Giuseppe Finzi'' torpedoed ''Skane'' and oil tankers ''Melpomere'' and ''Charles Racine''. {{ship|Italian submarine|Leonardo da Vinci|1939|6}} torpedoed [[Latvian fleet that fought for the Allies in World War II|''Everasma'']] and the neutral Brazilian ''Cabadelo''. [[Italian submarine Luigi Torelli|''Luigi Torelli'']] torpedoed ''Scottish Star'' and the oil tanker ''Esso Copenhagen''. {{GS|U-126|1940|2}} was simultaneously patrolling the [[Windward Passage]] between [[Cuba]] and [[Hispaniola]] torpedoing ''Gunny'', ''Barbara'', ''Cardona'', ''Texan'', ''Olga'', ''Colabee'', and oil tankers ''Hanseat'' and ''Halo'' between 2 March and 13 March.<ref>Blair, Clay ''Hitler's U-Boat War: The Hunters 1939–1942'' Random House (1996) {{ISBN|0-394-58839-8}} pp.503–513</ref>  {{GS|U-504||2}} moved south from Florida.<ref>Kelshall, Gaylord T.M. ''The U-Boat War in the Caribbean'' United States Naval Institute Press (1994) {{ISBN|1-55750-452-0}} p.67</ref>

A German submarine shelled the Puerto Rican island of [[Mona, Puerto Rico|Mona]], some forty miles west of the mainland of [[Puerto Rico]], on March 3, 1942. No damage or casualties resulted.<ref>"Puerto Rican Isle Shelled by Enemy." ''The New York Times'', March 4, 1942.</ref>

An oil refinery on [[Bombardment of Curacao|Curaçao was shelled]] on 19 April 1942 by {{GS|U-130|1941|2}} under ''[[Korvettenkapitän]]'' (lieutenant commander) [[Ernst Kals]]. The small engagement ended in a German failure. Kals ordered the shelling of several petroleum storage tanks but after only five shots, a Dutch shore battery responded which forced him to abort. Later a German U-boat attacked a merchant ship off Curaçao and was engaged by Dutch anti-aircraft and naval gun batteries but again the submarine escaped unharmed.<ref name="lago-colony.com">[http://www.lago-colony.com/AMERICANS_IN_ARUBA/COAST%20ARTILLERY%20COMMAND.htm The United States Coast Artillery Command on Aruba and Curaçao in World War II] ''The Coast Defense Study Group Journal, Volume 11, Issue 2''.</ref>

German submarines sank two Dominican merchant marine ships in May 1942, after the [[Dominican Republic]] entered World War II on the side of the Allies.<ref>{{cite web |title=Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico Campaigns |url=https://ww2db.com/battle_spec.php?battle_id=276}}</ref>

===Attacks on Allied shipping===
{{SS|Norlantic||6}} was an American-flagged, {{GRT|3860}} [[cargo ship]] that was sunk on the morning of 13 May in the Caribbean by a U-boat. She was transporting a load of random cargo from [[Pensacola, Florida]] to Venezuela when attacked by {{GS|U-69|1940|2}} {{convert|90|mi|nmi km|lk=on|abbr=on}} east of [[Bonaire]]. At 03:38, ''U-69''—under the command of ''[[Kptlt.]]'' [[Ulrich Graf (naval officer)|Ulrich Graf]]—fired two torpedoes from a surfaced position. Both torpedoes missed, so Graf ordered his crew to close the range to {{convert|2200|yd|m|abbr=on}} and to open fire with the deck gun at 03:47. ''U-69'' began shelling ''Norlantic'' as she attempted to flee the scene. After several hits the American ship signaled the Germans to cease fire so they could escape the inferno in their life-rafts. The Germans failed to hold their fire while two lifeboats were lowered, then at 04:11 they fired a ''[[coup de grâce]]'' which hit ''Norlantic''{{'}}s boiler room. She sank, taking six men down with her, two men were killed by the torpedo and four men killed from the shelling. ''Norlantic''{{'}}s surviving crew were then adrift at sea for several days before being rescued by Allied ships.

German U-boats sank two Mexican tankers, {{SS|Potrero del Llano||2}} on 14 May by [[Reinhard Suhren]]'s {{GS|U-564||2}} off Florida, and ''[[Faja de Oro]]'' on 21 May by [[Hermann Rasch]]'s {{GS|U-106|1940|2}} off [[Key West]]. Sixteen men died in the two attacks. This prompted [[Mexican declaration of war on Germany, Italy, and Japan|Mexico to declare war on Germany]] on 22 May 1942.

SS {{SS|Sylvan Arrow||2}} was a tanker of the [[Standard Oil|Standard Oil and Transportation Company]] during [[World War II]] when {{GS|U-155|1941|2}} [[torpedo]]ed her. The attack occurred on 20 May just southwest of [[Grenada]] in the Caribbean Sea. Attempts to tow her to port did not succeed, and she sank on 28 May, at position 12° 50' north, 67° 32' west.

The tanker {{SS|Hagan}} was sunk by {{GS|U-157|1941|2}} on 11 June about {{convert|5|mi|nmi km|abbr=on}} north of the Cuban coast. The American ship holding thousands of barrels of molasses was hit in the engine room. The torpedo destroyed the engines and caused a boiler to explode and a moment later another torpedo hit the ship. Six men were killed and 38 survivors made it to shore. Two days later, ''U-157'' was sunk by  [[USCGC Thetis (WPC-115)|USCGC Thetis]].
[[File:SS Sylvan Arrow (1917).jpg|left|thumb|300px|SS ''Sylvan Arrow'' in 1917]]

{{GS|U-171||2}} attacked the {{GRT|6511}} Mexican tanker {{SS|Amatlan}} on 4 September at the position 23°27′N 97°30′W / 23.45°N 97.5°W / 23.45; -97.5. The Mexicans evaded three attacks of two torpedoes each before being hit by one in a final spread. ''Amatlan'' sank with 10 men and another 24 sailors survived.

On 11 September, {{GS|U-514||2}}—under ''[[Kptlt.]]'' Hans-Jürgen Auffermann—torpedoed the armed Canadian steam merchant {{SS|Cornwallis}} off the coastline of [[Bridgetown]]. The ship sank in shallow waters after a short exchange, but was raised and towed to [[Trinidad]] in December 1942 and later towed to [[Mobile, Alabama]], arriving on 24 January 1943. The ship was repaired and returned to service in August 1943, but was torpedoed a second time, this time by {{GS|U-1230||2}} on 3 December 1944 in the [[Gulf of Maine]], and sank.<ref name=untold>{{cite book |title=Caribbean Wars Untold |year=2007 |publisher=[[University of West Indies Press]] | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=a59YIzh9y18C&q=SS+Cornwallis+World+War+II&pg=PA160 |isbn= 978-976-640-203-7 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web
 |url=http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/ships/3382.html |title=Cornwallis (Steam merchant) |last=Helgason |first=Guðmundur |website=German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net |access-date= 20 February 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=The U-Boat War in the Caribbean |year=1994 |publisher=Naval Institute Press | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5FVTihRxCo4C |isbn= 1-55750-452-0 }}</ref>

On 5 July 1943, {{convert|70|mi|nmi km|abbr=on}} to the west of [[Port-Salut]], [[Haiti]], {{GS|U-759||2}} encountered the American-flagged steamer ''Maltran'', which was part of [[Convoy GTMO-134]]. ''U-759'' fired torpedoes and at least one hit the vessel. ''Maltran'' sank within 15 minutes of being hit, though all of her crew survived and escaped the danger in lifeboats.
The crew was later rescued by {{USS|SC-1279||6}}. On 7 July, ''U-759'' torpedoed the Dutch cargo ship ''Poelau Roebiah'', in [[Convoy TAG-70]]. The ship sank just east of [[Jamaica]], taking down two men. Sixty-eight others were rescued. After sinking ''Poelau Roebiah'' ''U-759'' was chased down and attacked by the U.S. Navy the following day. A [[Martin PBM Mariner|PBM Mariner]] [[flying boat]] first dropped a load of explosives over the sub, and then for seven hours American surface vessels depth charged the area, but ''U-759'' escaped without damage or loss of life.

==Losses==

===Axis vessels===
[[File:Men of valor - They fight for you.jpg|thumb|right|Canadian propaganda poster depicting the boarding of ''U-94'' on 28 August 1942.]]

''U-157'' was sunk on 13 June 1942 by the U.S. Coast Guard. The U-boat was surface cruising just southwest of Key West, in position {{coord|24|13|N|82|03|W|dim:400000|display=inline}}, when sighted by {{USCGC|Thetis|WPC-115|6}}. The German submarine submerged and attempted to flee but ''Thetis'' gained sonar contact and began a [[depth charge]] attack. After several minutes, the action ended when debris and oil were spotted by the Coast Guard crew. ''Thetis'' sank ''U-157''.

Seven days after escaping attacking Allied ships off Haiti on 8 July 1943, ''U-759'' was reported sunk; post war research discovered it was not until an attack on 23 July that she was actually destroyed. An American PBM Mariner at the approximate position of {{coord|15|58|N|73|44|W|dim:400000|display=inline}} bombed{{clarify|date=January 2011}}<!--depth bombs or not?--> and sank the boat.

{{GS|U-158|1941|6}} off Bermuda at Coordinates: {{coord|32|50|N|67|28|W|dim:400000|display=inline}} on 30 June 1942 was sunk by a [[Martin PBM Mariner]] commanded by Richard Schreder. A depth charge struck the deck of the submarine, but did not explode on impact; it merely lodged in the teak planking. However, as the U-boat submerged, the charge detonated after the sub carried it down to its pre-set trigger depth.

The freighter [[SS Robert E. Lee (1924)|SS ''Robert E. Lee'']] was under escort by the American patrol chaser {{USS|PC-566||6}} {{convert|45|mi|nmi km|abbr=on}} south of the [[Mississippi River Delta]] on 30 July 1942. Suddenly, a torpedo hit ''Lee'', and ''PC-566'' discovered the attacking {{GS|U-166|1941|2}}. ''PC-566'' launched depth charges at the submarine and sank her though it was not until after the war sinking was confirmed.

On 28 August, {{GS|U-94|1940|2}} was in operation against convoy TAW&nbsp;15 off [[Haiti]] when attacked by American and Canadian escorts. First, an American [[Consolidated PBY Catalina|PBY]] swooped down and bombed the U-boat, and then Canadian [[corvette]]s {{HMCS|Halifax|K237|6}} and {{HMCS|Snowberry|K166|2}} attacked. {{HMCS|Oakville}} fired depth charges which forced the submarine to the surface. The corvette then rammed ''U-94'' twice before it slowed to a stop. [[Hal Lawrence]] led a boarding party of eleven sailors from ''Oakville'' to capture the boat. They boarded the vessel and entered through the conning tower. Only two Canadians actually went through the hatch, they were surprised by two Germans who came running towards them. After ordering halt, the Canadians fired and killed the attacking Germans when they failed to stop. The rest of the crew surrendered without incident. After just barely capturing the vessel, the Canadian sailors realized the Germans had already scuttled the boat and it was taking on water. The Canadians left ''U-94'' and she sank with nineteen of her crew; ''Oakville'' rescued 26, including the commander, ''Oberleutnant zur See'' Otto Ites.<ref>{{Cite web
 |url= http://www.uboat.net/boats/u94.html
 |title= The Type VIIC boat U-94
 |last=Helgason
 |first=Guðmundur
 |website=German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net
 |access-date= 26 December 2014
}}
</ref>

{{GS|U-162|1941|2}} was detected and sunk northeast of [[Trinidad]] by the [[Royal Navy]] on 3 September. Three British destroyers—{{HMS|Vimy||6}}, {{HMS|Pathfinder|G10|2}} and {{HMS|Quentin|G78|2}}—attacked ''U-162'' with depth charges, killed two Germans and sank the boat. Forty-nine additional sailors survived and became [[prisoners of war]] in the U.S. The crew was interrogated and provided valuable information to the [[United States Army|U.S. Army]]{{citation needed|date=January 2011}} Intelligence about U-boats and their submarine base at Lorient. The German skipper—''Kptlt.'' [[Jürgen Wattenberg]]—escaped in late 1944 before being recaptured a month or so later.

On 15 May 1943, the Cuban freighters ''Camaguey'' and ''Honduran Hanks'' were being escorted by three small [[Cuban Navy]] [[submarine chaser]]s from [[Sagua La Grande]] to Havana. The convoy was nearing Havana in the Gulf of Mexico when an American reconnaissance aircraft spotted a German U-boat. The aircraft dropped a smoke float over {{GS|U-176||2}}, and the Cuban submarine chaser {{Ship|Cuban submarine chaser|CS-13||2}}—under [[Second Lieutenant]] [[Alférez de Fragata Mario Ramirez Delgado|Alférez Delgado]]—picked up the enemy craft with sonar. ''CS-13'' attacked with depth charges and quickly sank the U-boat which killed all of her crew.

===Allied vessels===
[[File:SS West Elcasco after launch.jpg|200px|left|thumb|USAT ''Major General Henry Gibbins'' before World War II]]

The French submarine cruiser [[French submarine Surcouf (N N 3)|''Surcouf'']] was the largest submarine in the world at the time. An American report concluded the disappearance was due to an accidental collision with the American freighter ''Thomas Lykes'' near the Atlantic side of the Panama Canal on 18 February 1942. There were no survivors.<ref>Kelshall, Gaylord T.M. ''The U-Boat War in the Caribbean'' United States Naval Institute Press (1994) {{ISBN|1-55750-452-0}} p.68</ref>
The investigation of the French commission concluded the disappearance was the consequence of misunderstanding. A [[Consolidated PBY Catalina|Consolidated PBY]], patrolling the same waters on the night of 18/19 February, could have attacked ''Surcouf'' believing her to be German or Japanese. This theory could have been backed by several elements.

{{SS|George Calvert|MC Hull 29|6}}, a one-gun [[Liberty ship]], was sailing off eastern Cuba when she was sunk by {{GS|U-753||2}} on 20 May 1942. Ten men were killed when three torpedoes slammed into her, sinking her within minutes. The surviving crew were captured by the Germans and interrogated before being freed in lifeboats. Three armed guards{{clarify|date=March 2023|reason=German or Allied?}} were killed and the survivors made it to the Cuban shore.

On 23 June, the unarmed [[USS West Elcasco (ID-3661)|USAT ''Major General Henry Gibbins'']] was steaming alone almost {{convert|400|mi|nmi km|abbr=on}} west of Key West, Florida, when she was attacked by {{GS|U-158|1941|2}}. Two torpedoes hit the coffee-laden ''Henry Gibbins'' on her port side over the course of 20 minutes and she sank soon after. All of her 47 crew and 21 U.S. Army guards were rescued a day later.

SS ''Stephen Hopkins'' was an armed American Liberty ship which fought during World War II. On 27 September, ''Stephen Hopkins'' was returning to [[Surinam (Dutch colony)|Surinam]] from [[Cape Town]] when attacked by the auxiliary cruiser ''Stier''. ''Stephen Hopkins'' was ordered to stop by the Germans, the Americans refused, so they opened fire with their main battery. A lone {{convert|4|in|mm|abbr=on}} gun and a few [[machine gun]]s were then put in operation by the Americans and a short but violent battle was fought. Both vessels suffered casualties and by 10:00 the American ship had sunk. ''Stier'' was badly damaged as well and could no longer make steam, so her commander scuttled her less than two hours after defeating the American vessel.
[[File:Erie (PG-50).jpg|right|thumb|USS ''Erie'' during the Battle of the Caribbean]]
The American gunboat {{USS|Erie|PG-50|6}} was escorting [[Convoy TAG-20]] in the Caribbean between Trinidad and [[Guantánamo Bay]] when attacked 10 miles south of Curaçao by a German U-boat in November 1942. {{GS|U-163|1941|2}}—under [[Kurt-Eduard Engelmann]]—surfaced and fired three torpedoes at ''Erie''. The Americans spotted the submarine and the torpedoes, then took evasive maneuvers. ''Erie'' escaped two of them but was hit by the third and badly damaged. Her crew grounded her on the nearby shore and she burned for several hours before the flames were brought under control. American forces suffered seven killed and eleven wounded in the attack. Later, ''Erie'' was towed to Curaçao's Willemstad Harbor but capsized and sank on 5 December.

{| class="wikitable" style=text-align:right
|+ Allied losses by year<ref>{{cite book |url=https://history.army.mil/books/wwii/guard-us/ch16.htm |title=Guarding the United States and Its Outposts, Chapter XVI: The Caribbean in Wartime |page=430 |first1=Stetson |last1=Conn |first2=Rose C. |last2=Engelman |first3=Byron |last3=Fairchild |publisher=[[United States Army Center of Military History]]}}</ref>
|-
! Year !! Ships !! Tonnage
|-
| 1942 || 336 || 1,559,422
|-
| 1943 || 35 || 177,945
|-
| 1944 || 3 || 14,804
|}

==In fiction==
* The Battle of the Caribbean forms part of the plot of the novel ''[[Sharks and Little Fish]]''. The protagonist's U-boat is first sent into the Caribbean and takes part in sinking American vessels off Trinidad, before being moved to the North Atlantic. {{cn|date=September 2023}}
* The [[Howard Hawks]] film ''[[To Have and Have Not (film)|To Have and Have Not]]'' is set in [[Vichy France|Vichy government]] controlled-[[History of Martinique#World War II|Martinique]] in the summer of 1940.{{cn|date=September 2023}}
* In the 1980 [[Robert R. McCammon]] novel ''[[The_Night_Boat_(book)|The Night Boat]]'', a German submarine is sunk soon after shelling a Caribbean island. Its crew remains trapped aboard the submarine, kept alive by a voodoo curse, until an underwater explosion sets them free to wreak havoc in the 1980s.{{cn|date=September 2023}}

==See also==
*[[History of Martinique#World War II|Martinique in World War II]]
*[[Naval Base Trinidad]]

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite book |first1=David J. |last1=Bercuson |first2=Holger H. |last2=Herwig |title=Long Night of the Tankers: Hitler's War Against Caribbean Oil |location=Calgary |publisher=University of Calgary Press |series=Beyond Boundaries: Canadian Defence and Strategic Studies Series |volume=4 |isbn=9781552387603 |year=2014}}
* {{cite book|last1=Wiberg|first1=Eric|title=U-Boats in the Bahamas|date=June 30, 2016|publisher=Brick Tower Press|isbn=978-1899694624|url=http://ericwiberg.com/}}

==External links==
*https://web.archive.org/web/20120403005645/http://uboatsbahamas.com/ – History of 150 Allied ships attacked by 85 German and Italian submarines in the 1 million-mile area bounded by: North of the Greater Antilles Anegada to Havana, Havana to Key West, Charleston to Bermuda, and Bermuda to Anegada, including all of the Bahamas, 1939–1945.
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070716013219/http://www.cubanow.net/global/loader.php?&secc=5&cont=show.php&item=586 Cubans sunk a German submarine in World War II]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Caribbean, Battle Of The}}
[[Category:1940s in Aruba]]
[[Category:U-boats]]
[[Category:Caribbean Sea operations of World War II]]
[[Category:Military history of the Caribbean]]
[[Category:Naval battles of World War II involving Germany]]
[[Category:Naval battles of World War II involving Canada]]
[[Category:Naval battles of World War II involving the Netherlands]]
[[Category:Naval battles and operations of World War II involving the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Naval battles of World War II involving the United States]]
[[Category:1941 in the Caribbean]]
[[Category:1942 in the Caribbean]]
[[Category:1943 in the Caribbean]]
[[Category:1944 in the Caribbean]]
[[Category:1945 in the Caribbean]]
[[Category:Battles of World War II involving Canada]]
[[Category:Military history of Canada during World War II]]
[[Category:Military history of British Honduras during World War II]]
[[Category:Military history of British Guiana during World War II]]
[[Category:Karl Dönitz]]