OPERATION PAUKENSCHLAG (Drumbeat)

The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor held both surprise and promise for Germany in World War II. Admiral Dönitz, who had been previously trying to strategize a way for Germany to win the war, given that Hitler had ordered all U-boats from the Atlantic to support operations in the Mediterranean and off Gibraltar. Dönitz saw the Pearl Harbor attack as advantageous for a few reasons. First, it would force Hitler to declare war on the US since the US would now be involved in the war overseas. Second, it would divert some U-boats back to the Atlantic where he felt they could do the most good. And finally, it would allow Germany's forces to attack US ships, which beforehand were off limits because of America's neutral position. Dönitz set his gaze on the US East Coast.

Not only would a U-boat attack off the East Coast threaten Britain's trade, it would satisfy Dönitz's desire to punish America for what he considered to be her false neutrality. Although the United States had claimed a neutral position in the war, they carried war materials and food to England, Germany's primary enemy, and they reported the sightings of U-boats to British destroyers as well. Dönitz began to plan an attack that would not only rival Pearl Harbor, it would surpass it in shipping losses and psychological repercussions.

Dönitz knew that a strike on the East Coast could increase America's vulnerability. If an initial strike was then succeeded by additional hits, commerce between the US and Britain could be seriously affected. Choking off shipments of war materials and food could seriously hamper Britain's ability to win the war. Since October 1941 Dönitz had sent U-boats to intercept British-bound convoys all the way to Newfoundland, but the US coastal waters contained more ships bound to Europe. Therefore, he began to plan a surprise attack off the US coast from New York to Florida.

Dönitz's operation would be quick and jarring, like the beat on a kettledrum. With that idea in mind, on December 10 he christened Operation Paukenschlag (Drumbeat), a surprise U-boat attack scheduled to last less than a month. Two days later, Hitler declared war on the US. Operation Paukenschlag was intended to inflict a sudden deep wound on both the US and Britain through quick, violent sinkings that would occur on the same day. The sudden massive loss would both scatter and confuse Germany's enemy.

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