German Unterseeboot ("undersea boat")
German submarine .
The first German submarine, the U-1, was built in 1905. During World War I Germany became the first country to employ submarines in war, and during World War II its U-boats dominated the Battle of the Atlantic until the Allies developed new antisubmarine tactics. The principal German U-boat was the type VII; the VIIC variant was 220.25 ft (66 m) long, displaced 769 tons on the surface, carried one 90-mm deck gun and five torpedo tubes, and was manned by a crew of 44. Modern German U-boats are built for the German navy and navies of allied countries; their sophisticated structures, electonics, and propulsion systems allow them to be used for intelligence gathering and special operations in addition to defending sea lanes and threatening enemy forces.