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Originally Posted by Gustav Schiebert
The London Naval Treaty signed before the war, by Germany and Britain, meant that subs could not attack shipping while submerged. They had to surface, stop the vessel, inspect its cargo, then move the crew to a 'place of safety' before sinking it (known as Prize Regulations). Putting them in lifeboats did NOT count as a 'place of safety'.
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During the First World War the u-boats were ordered to approach merchants on the surface, inspect their papers and let them go if truly neutral, but if they were enemy to allow the crew to abandon ship then sink them with scuttling charges or the deck gun. The British answer to this was the Q-Ship, which not only had guns hidden in crates or otherwise disguised, but even had small crews trained to man the boats and pretend to abandon ship while the gun crews made ready. Then, when the u-boats were ordered to use torpedoes in underwater attacks, the Brits started crying "Foul".
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However, in order to recieve this pretty robust legal protection they had to be civilian ships. And if they carried ANY guns or ANY military personnel (as most did) OR communicated with the navy AT ALL (as practically every ship did after the outbreak of war, they lost their protection.
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Also true. The whole point was to strangle an island nation by preventing supplies from getting through. The only question was whether to attack submerged, increasing the chances of success, attack on the surface, which sooner or later was certain death, or not attack at all.