Naval mine ship, HMHS "Britannic", which was the sister ship of the RMS "Titanic." During World War II, the U-boat fleet, which dominated much of the battle of the Atlantic, was small at the beginning of the war and much of the early action by German forces involved mining convoy routes and ports around Britain. German submarines also operated in the Mediterranean Sea, in the Caribbean Sea, and along the U.S. coast. Initially, contact mines (requiring a ship to physically strike a mine to detonate it) were employed, usually tethered at the end of a cable just below the surface of the
HS Marechiaro HS Marechiaro Italian hospital ship Marechiaro was a steam ship originally built by an Italian shipping company, but requisitioned for use as an Italian hospital ship during the First World War. On February 21, 1916 she was sunk near the Albanian port of Durrës by a mine laid by the German U-boat . British drifters "Hasting Castle" and "Selina" saved 104 men from the water while 33 were killed. Other sources mention over 200 casualties. During the war operated as a minelayer, and undertook 7 patrols in this role. Mines laid by "UC-12" were credited with sinking 6 ships. One