Download or read book U.S. Submarines Through 1945 written by Norman Friedman and published by US Naval Institute Press. This book was released on 1995 with total page 408 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The period covered by this book was one of radical change for the U.S. Navy. When the modern navy first considered buying a submarine in 1887, it was a coast defense force confined to the Western Hemisphere. The United States became a world power just as its new submarines offered a way of defending its most distant possession, the Philippines, without tying down an expensive fleet. World War I found U.S. submarines in an unexpected role, countering German U-boats in British waters. Then the situation changed again with unexpected speed.